Where are you located?
We are at 3412 SE Hwy 101 in Lincoln City, Oregon. Right near the 45th parallel and the Pacific Ocean!
But really, how do I find you?
As you drive through Lincoln City, we are located between Theatre West to the south and The Christmas Cottage across the street (to the northwest). We are on the inland side of the highway at milepost 117.
How do you price your books? Why isn't there a flat rate for paperbacks and hardcovers?
Each book in the store is individually priced, usually on the top right corner of the first page in the book. Books are priced based on what we pay for them and what they are worth in the book market. For example, a new book costing $9.99 will most likely be priced at $5 in our store (half of what it is new). Older paperbacks that were priced at $1.50 when printed in the 1970's will likely be priced around $3.00, which takes into account how much we pay for these (likely we gave $1.50 in trade credit). The price might be higher than that if the book is rare or signed by the author or less if the book is in rough condition. Hardcover books, nonfiction, collectible, and antiquarian books are priced individually based on original prices, market trends, and what we think is fair. If you can't find a price on a book, please bring it to the front counter and we can investigate it for you!
Where do you get your books?
We buy them from people! We could buy them from you! Bob is on the road a few days a week buying books. We also take in books for trade or cash at the store. If you have a large number of books to bring in please call first. Things get busy at the store and we would like to devote time and attention to your books. We can't do this during busy times of the day--so please be patient! Better yet, take time to wander around the store while you wait for us to look at what you've brought us.
What books does Bob want to buy?
He wants to buy the books you want to keep! The good books that you love are the same good books that other people are looking for. We will look at just about anything. Those pocket paperback books (the mass market size, in the language of the trade) are the best for trade-in. They go quickly here and we are always looking for more. We also look for the strange and unusual, like insect cookbooks.
Yes, but what kinds of books? Are there any genres you don't carry?
We carry everything! No, really. Everything.
(Bob loves books on how to do and make things!)
What do you pay for books?
The basic (not hard and fast) rule for current books in print is: we sell books for half of what they are new, if the books are in good condition you get half of that in credit or a little less in cash. To figure the amount for a current paperback book take the cover price and divide by 4 for credit and 5 for cash. Older books are figured differently, based on current value rather than cover price. We sometimes take in slightly damaged books or duplicates, but we pay less.
Can I drop off books to trade/sell and pick the leftovers up another day?
Unfortunately no, we simply don’t have room to store books after we’ve gone through them. This is also for your protection so they don’t get lost in the shuffle. It usually doesn’t take long to go through the books as the buyer is very knowledgeable about what we need. If you’d like to run quick errands in the neighborhood while we go through your books that’s fine, but any books still left when we close will be donated. There of course can be exceptions to this but that is on a case-by-case basis for particular reasons.
How does store credit work?
Store credit from Bob’s Beach Books and Robert’s Bookshop can be used at both stores for pretty much anything in the stores except some consignment comics and original artwork. We don’t ask you to pay a percentage in cash; credit can be used for 100% of the purchase–as long as you have enough credit to cover it (any amount due can be paid by any tender we normally take).
How many books do you have?
In the store, we have over 200,000 individual titles, not including duplicate volumes. There are also incoming books in storage; if you don't find something while looking in the store, please ask because it might just be tucked away somewhere you can't access.
Online, we have over 14,000 books and counting! The online books are not available in the store. If you are coming to Robert's Bookshop and want to see any of the online inventory, please call ahead. The online volumes are only accessible to Bob--and he is often away buying books!
I have written a book. Will you sell it in your store?
This isn't our specialty as we focus on pre-owned (used and antiquarian) books, but you can contact our other store, Bob's Beach Books (http://www.bobsbeachbooks.net/), and speak to them about your work. They will generally carry at least one copy of new books by local authors.
What is the Northwest Author Fair?
The Northwest Author Fair is a free event featuring best-selling and new authors held at our other store, Bob's Beach Books. The 2014 event was held Saturday, August 16th from 9:30am to 1:30pm. The event began with an author panel at the Bijou Theatre, followed by 53 authors, along with artist David Delamare, signing in the plaza outside Bob's Beach Books (1747 NW Hwy 101). For more information, including a list of authors who have attended past events, visit www.bobsbeachbooks.net/nw-author-fair.We generally begin planning the author fair in the early part of the year; the date of the next fair is TBD.
How long have you been open?
Robert's Bookshop has been open for thirty-two years and counting! We hold our our Anniversary event each year over Labor Day Weekend. Customers who come in to the store during the event receive 30% off their in-store purchase when they pay with cash or check. (This sale did not apply to our online inventory; there are certain other restrictions.)
Do you send books to inmates at correctional facilities?
Yes. This can be a bit complicated and can take time due to the process of using snail mail and mailing books while dealing with different restrictions for each facility. The process generally goes like this:
Please be prepared to be very, very patient with this process. Letters and packages often get held up at the different facilities and sometimes get sent back to us for various reasons and we have to ship again (we don't charge extra postage if we need to resend due to our error). If there is no reply to a letter, we encourage a follow-up inquiry. Lately we have been in the midst of a remodel so there were some additional delays on our end.
