Half Price Books

No major complaints, really. Awesome selection of books, although I would have expected some of the older titles, especially textbooks, to be a bit less pricey. There was a 1996 textbook on gender discrimination that would still run you $ 9+, and I can guarantee that field of law has certainly changed since 1996, rendering that textbook almost useless and certainly not worth even that much. I would have paid a couple dollars for it and they’d be smart to clear out some of those super old titles! With that being said, I’ve found some gems on local issues by local authors here (i.e. book on MO death penalty by a fmr. UMKC Law prof).
The best part about this location is that there is ample, ample parking and it is open until 10P on weekend. It is the lot shared by the Ace Hardware, etc.

Some choice words for my feelings about that mediocre excuse for a bookstore… Elitist, inattentive, and snobby (Hipster style)! You’re better off buying and/​or selling your books, music, movies, or whatever on Amazon. At least you’ll be treated far better than you would with these jokers! Just my humble opinion.

I am a total book person, whether it be through my kindle or an actual book. There are many books here you can’t find on Amazon or anywhere else.
I have traded in some old movies (very common stuff) that weren’t worth very much in the first place but otherwise I am more of a buyer here.
I am also a Vinyl collector having over 700 records myself. So I also scour the selection whenever I come. Wonderful!

I love this place. I can always find a great deal on the books and vinyls I’m looking for. There are always great finds in the clearance section. The staff is very helpful.

Worst bookstore ever!
If you’re looking for a good deal trading in books, stay away. They will under cut a reasonable price big time!
If you’re looking for variety or a good deal here, it’s not worth it. Better deals can be found in Amazon and Prosperos books down the street.
Over priced and under appreciative!

They generally have what I need.

I am a long time fan of Half Priced Books, but I think my time with them has come to an end.
I have spent several hundred dollars there over the years, scouring their vinyl selection for well-​priced records. I’ve come across a wide range of interesting things, from $ 1 Django Reinhardt original pressings to some very rare electronic/​techno records. For awhile, here in Kansas City, they were pretty much the only place with any sort of rotating stock, and because of that, I included them on my weekly rounds even when better options finally arrived.
I’ve also sold a considerable amount to HPB, so I know the drill with them. You are basically selling to them with the knowledge that you are aren’t going to get nearly the market value of your items. They rely on «cleaning out grandma’s attic» or «getting rid of old junk» thinking to offer an otherwise untenable offer that people end up accepting because they just want the detritus gone.
I love vinyl, and having bought at HPB over the years, I know they have a nationwide stock system where anyone can search for what they have in stock and buy that item. This also means I, as a seller, have a pretty good idea what they currently have access to, and what that item is selling at. I also understand business, and understand they have to turn a profit to keep the lights on.
I took a crate of records in a bit back because I figured I’d give HPB the chance to leverage their corporate buying/​selling ability to give me a more competitive price than local stores. Support local all you want, I’m a hobbyist, I need to keep the lights on too.
Now, the records I brought in were not classic rock radio fodder. They aren’t Goodwill cutouts I was just looking to unload. These are records that I’ve had catalogued on Discogs and priced against current market value. These are records that I“ve not only graded but had second opinions on to ensure I’m not screwing over the buyer.
Of the 25 records I brought in, the median value of these records was about $ 400. Did I expect to get anywhere near that at HPB? No, of course not. But I do know that, in the case of one of them, when there are only 2 other copies available for sale IN THE WORLD, and they are selling for over $ 400 apiece, then my original, never-​reissued copy of that weird second album from the 90s band where the lead singer died suddenly (no not that one, the other one) is going to be worth a good chunk of change.
I took my crate to the buy counter and they did the usual ID verification, and literally no sooner had I stepped away than the young lady who started looking through them squealed with delight. One of the other counter workers heard her and came running over, and then began squealing as well. «OH MY GOD! ««OH CRAP LOOK AT THIS!!» «OH GOD I’M GOING TO BUY THIS FOR MYSELF, HOLY CRAP» and of course my personal favorite «WHOEVER THESE ARE HAS INCREDIBLE TASTE IN MUSIC».
At this point I was getting a little embarassed so I went off around the corner while they continued to look through them and price them out in their system. I could hear them continue to squeal for a few more minutes, and I finally heard my name come across the speaker to say my offer was ready. I figured I’d probably do ok with the reaction going on.
Big smiles from the behind the counter all around, and «We can give you $ 10 for these.»
WAIT. WHAT.
«Uh, no. What do you have on these as individual values?» I asked, as I started pulling out my phone to pull up the pricing list I’d pulled from the HPB website.
«Nope, sorry, we can only offer for all of them, we have to offer at half of half-​off because that’s what we sell them for.»
«Absolutely not.» And at that point, as I started reaching to take them back, she started frantically going through the stack, pulling off the little pricing sticky notes so I couldn’t see what she had put their value at. I didn’t need to see them because I already knew.
The kicker is, I wasn’t even 5 steps away from the counter when the second worker came over to her and said «Man, that really sucks. For us. If we could have got those we could have made a fortune. And I was going to buy XXXXX and YYYYY for myself.»
So, that being said, if you ever plan on going in there to sell your records, check a site like Discogs for a real market value. Don’t expect your beat-​up old Led Zeppelin records to pay your mortgage, obviously. But if you find out you have something that you know is worth something, don’t be fooled by the tattoos, piercings, or weird hair, because even the «informed weirdos» will take it from you for nothing at the direction of their corporate overlords.
I’ll keep 1 star on here for the older guy at the counter who comments on the weird techno stuff I pull out and always seems to point out something in their stack I missed. I’m letting them keep the lowest star for the cookbooks.
Otherwise, this location is off my list

If you are short on cash and love books, this is the book store for you. Not to mention being steps away from Westport where you can find the best food, spirits and people watching in KC. There is a First Watch in the same strip mall there, a neighborhood Ace Hardware and on any given day in summer, hometown produce sold by those that actually grow it.
Besides books there are gifts, stationary (for those who insist that there is value in the written word) calendars and movies.
Have books to sell… bring them here but be forewarned… this is a business. Leave you sentiments at home. If you book is precious, put it in your will.

I love HPB. I was at a conference once in Dallas/​Forth Worth, which is the original home of HPB, and also where there are 20-​some stores. Because of the way the flights worked out I got there very early the day before, so I spent much of my day seeing how many stores I could hit. (Six, as it turns out. I might have a problem.)
Having said that, this is a great location, but I don’t feel like it is the best in my opinion. Don’t get me wrong, the selection is great, I like the staff, and unlike many used bookstores they have a very comprehensive selection since they’re a large chain rather than just being limited to whatever books customers want to bring in to sell. However, I don’t like the layout of this store as well as some of the others – the nonfiction seems somewhat scattered to me. Maybe it’s just a bit of OCD from the years I spent working in libraries, I don’t know. Still, I go here regularly, so I can’t dislike it too much.

This is my go to place for books. As an avid reader, I like being able to find the whole series of books at a discounted price. I frequently find things in the $ 1 rack that are exactly what I am looking. My children love the clearance section in the kids books too.

This book store usually has a solid selection of good books at very cheap prices. The staff is friendly and parking is always simple and easy. If you need text books for college this is the first place to look; however, they do not have to many current use biological sciences textbooks. This is because the study of biology and all of it subdisciplines are seeing rapid advances and half-​price books can’t keep up. This isn’t bad, unless you are a biology nerd and are totes broke:-(! If you’re looking for items they might sell at Barnes and Noble it is probably a good idea to check Half-​Price Books, because their prices are amazing!
The rationale I used to take one ‘Yelp Star’ away is because of their book purchasing policies. For example, if you try to sell an expensive hardback book they will offer you chump change, i.e. a $ 500 hardback book might get you an offer of $ 25.
Also, they are occasionally out of many of the current books that people want to read. In all other regards this bookstore is a great one for my fellow book reading Unilocaling women & men!

I love Half Price Books. This was my first visit to this location and it might be my favorite.
This store is good sized compared to the Olathe location that I would normally visit. The staff is super friendly and always helpful.
The selection is quite large and they have a good selection of popular books along with books on almost every subject you can think of. Their collection of cookbooks is amazing, I have to tell myself no when I start looking in this section.
They may not have every book you want as they are primarily a used book store (with a handful of new books), but you will not be disappointed with the variety.
Although you may find some better prices through online retailers (only slightly in most cases), you can’t resist the joy of wondering around a bookstore, reading dust jackets, and discovering books that were not on your list and that you must have. Sometimes you even find interesting notes in the books.
I also love the collection of stationary, card sets, and journals. The prices on these items are unbeatable and in a world where stationary is becoming obsolete, it is nice to find a decent selection to choose from.
They also have a selection of music and movies and some quirky novelty items mostly geared toward the nerd in you.
They have a huge children section.
You can sell your used books, movies, and music here. Anytime I have sold items to them I have felt the price offered was very fair. Most books are under $ 10 and there is also a clearance area with many books for less than a few bucks.
Sign up for their email list and you will get coupons for various amounts off of purchases throughout the year. The coupons are generally very good discounts often between 30%-50% off your purchases.

I go to this store on occasion and have YET to walk away empty handed. Their clearance book section is addictive, and I have to admit that I often find myself buying a few books… maybe many books… that’ll be sitting on my book shelf awhile before I get a chance to read them. The store is not the largest Half-​Price bookstore that I have been to, but it gets the job done. I can almost always find a gem of a book on clearance! The greatest thing of all is stumbling across a clearance book that is about a peripheral, lingering subject that I am interested in, but have never had the money to buy full-​price at the regular bookstore. Half-​Price books provides a great way to get to explore the subjects we forget we’re interested in, or those ideas that slip away from mind when sitting in front of the Internet, or gather information in depths not easy to assimilate from a search of the Internet.

I do so love Half Price Books! We have one that’s really close to our house, but sometimes we check out the Westport Half Price since the variety is a bit different at each location.
At our last visit, we found ourselves with 50% off highest priced item coupons in our paws and we were pretty excited to see what great bargains we could snap up. In my mind, one of the best deals is to get new 180 gram vinyl for half price. They do have a few of those interspersed with used records and both the new and used vinyl are nicely priced. The hubby and I each were able to snag a new record at half price, plus some other choice items.
This particular Half Price Books just remodeled a bit. It remains very un-​fancy, but the layout is a little more pleasing and conducive to browsing.
Half Price employees are always friendly and helpful, although you won’t really find any wandering around the store. They’re where they’re needed most: at the buy counter (they buy used books, DVDs, BluRays, vinyl, etc) and the checkout counter.

Took a lot of old and new books in that I wasnt reading or going to read just because I had already read them. I walked away with $ 100 for them. Also to my surprise they sell Kindles!

I don’t really buy very many books, so my review is based mostly on the movie and music sections, plus the exchanges I’ve overheard at the «buy» counter. First, the movies. Lots and lots of public domain titles, usually taken from very poor prints. Plus some liquidated stuff from major studios (read as, stuff that didn’t sell). There are used items mixed in, but don’t expect to find a lot of perennial classics. I guess people keep those.
The music selection is pretty varied, but anything remotely recent is few and far between, for obvious reasons. Tons of new CDs from Europe, containing music from half a century ago (Europe has a shorter copyright rule). There is also a moderately-​sized vinyl section, 98% used stuff, with a few new releases thrown in for good measure.
Shopping anywhere near the «buy» counter is extremely uncomfortable. The people trying to unload unwanted items routinely have their intelligence insulted with ridiculously lowball offers. You will feel embarrassed for them to say the least. Hint to Half Price Books: Pay a little more, some amount that is remotely fair, and you’ll have a much better selection that will keep myself and others coming back!

As far selling books go, put them on AMAZON and get at least CLOSE to what you paid for them.
I was in college for 9 years, and ever time I would think about selling my books back to the campus book store or half price books, when I took them in to get a quote I remembered why.
I took over 900.00 in books in to this location, and they offered me 5.00! I came home and listed them on amazon, in my personal seller account, which only cost a small fee if you sell something, and I posted based on amazons pricing and posted over 400.00 in books and have already sold 125.00.
Some of these books were old and I knew it, they were VERY RUDE, and then tried to down play the «old» books that the probably couldn’t even sell, according to the disgruntled hipster behind the counter.
I also bought most of my books on amazon through college… help out a college kid!

This is my favorite location. They have the best prices and selection, in my opinion. You might find this funny, but I’m not really a book person. Actually, I really don’t read books much at all. My mom is an avid reader and somebody at my work leaves free books in the breakroom. If no one else takes those books, I take them before they get thrown away and add those to books my mom is done with and sell them to Half Price Books.
You won’t get rich selling your books here. In fact, if I actually bought the books I was selling I’d probably feel a little bent out of shape over the prices, but when I’m basically just selling them stuff that was going to get donated or trashed, what do I care? It gives me a little fun money, which I usually spend on something in the store anyway.
I tend to gravitate toward their notecards or funny little gift items.

Never sold items here, but I always walk out with *something* I didn’t know I needed. Their clearance book section in the back has something for everyone, only a dollar or two apiece. I’ve found everything from novels to memoirs to sheet music method books.
The store has a variety of books, records, CDs, DVDs … and VHS tapes? I didn’t realize those are still a thing. The staff hasn’t been too chatty, but I haven’t sought them out for help.

Half Priced books is a really cool bookstore! It is loaded with books (obviously), movies and music.
I have been to this location twice now and the thing that I find most notable about the place is that they have books which seem quite obscure. Of course they have titles and authors that everyone should know but if you dig deep enough you can find some really interesting items.
One of the most notable books that I found was a book that they had out that was part of a Gay Pride display. In this book were pictures of turn of the century (the last century, not the one we are in now) of men that were perceived to be couples back during the time. The book did clarify that where a hand was placed just might have been fondness to the friendship, but others you could clearly tell that there was more going on than the ‘just friends’ thing.
The staff is very friendly and helpful and coming to a Half Price Books location sure beats going to the big retailers where you pay an arm and a leg for just a couple of books!