I love this hidden gem. Floor to ceiling rows of used books. What more could you need!?read more

This place is soooooo coooool. Being in a Christian family…read more I'm so excited to find this bible shop. They got toys for kids too. And so many vintage books. Nowadays, people rely on internet, but books are my favorite. Old school I guess.

Physical bookstores are few and far between but this one is a nice gem in Frederick. It's big, nice…read moreselection of books and they have done a good job of shifting to other retail things. Toys, games, stationary, music, etc it feels up to date. The Starbucks inside is big with plenty of seating and drinks are solid. Service is good. The staff here are overall helpful and friendly which is really refreshing. As a Lego nerd I was really surprised with their selection which was impressive for a bookstore. Decent deals on their legos and their books. It's nice to support local and smaller businesses that are getting harder and harder to find. This place is a cozy retail space that has 3rd space vibes for you to hang out for a bit while you shop and get a coffee. Would recommend and will be back.

Walking into a Barnes & Noble is like walking into a time capsule. I say this since when you walk…read morein it has not changed since the late 90s, early 2000s. Almost everything is identical as to when they really were growing. That can be said about this location. It felt like it was built a long while ago and they haven't done anything to update it as of yet. Obviously the sections have changed a bit in terms of size and what is offered overall. I found it surprising that they still had a vibrant DVD section (although I am sure they switched over to Blu-ray). The café in the store was going strong while I walked through. I will have to say that my purpose from coming in here was to take a trip down memory lane, and that was about it. I didn't need a book, or magazine, I just wanted to dip my toe into a bit of nostalgia.

Cute store with a decent selection of new and a few used books. Pleasant environment and helpful…read morestaff. A nice find on Main St. across from Becks

A must visit when you're in downtown Sykesville! The cutest bookshop. I love how they have "staff…read morerecommendations" throughout the store. Got some books for my classroom and for myself!

It's no longer the Book Warehouse... according to the guy at the shop, who I guess is the owner,…read more and showed zero interest in the customers (me and my husband) That bookstore closed two years ago . There is really limited stock on hand. I was looking for a birthday gift for a one-year-old's birthday. I found what I wanted. It would've been difficult to purchase something from here. Who knows maybe he had a recent tragedy, maybe he was sick... all in all I wouldn't recommend the place

They are not here anymore. It is a different store. Nice, but not the discount it used to beread more

While my book hunting days are largely over, on a recent trip I stopped back here as the York…read moreEmporium's old owner has retired, the shop has moved, and it's now under a new name. Street parking is available, and it is an easy walk even from around the corner. One of the noticeable things is the new location's building is in much better condition. There are almost certainly less books for sale now, but it's also less crowded, and everything is much more organized. Books are located on both levels of the shop, and they have one of the larger used selections you'll find at an independent shop. Other media for sale also include various movies and comic books. If you like independent used bookshops, this is worth a stop.

I could spend FOREVER exploring in here. WOW. What a collection. I love the fact that this is…read morecentered around giving books a second life. And it seems like they're being so intentional about being more than just a store, but a space for the community to gather as well, which is just beautiful. For such a massive store and collection, everything was incredibly well organized. Organized by genre. But last name. Rarity. It's phenomenal. We got some lovely treasures at a really good bargain, the staff was super sweet. I wish I lived closer so I could frequent more often!

I'm crossing my fingers that as the coffee bar staff gains experience, it will get better. I was…read moredisappointed in my chai tea and the pastries are obviously frozen and shipped in from far away. There are enough great bakeries around here to order fresh items from. It's too bad they can't contract with one of them. I'm a little disappointed in the children's book selection. It's great for chapter books and young adult titles, but the early readers and beginner chapter book selection is weak at best. Again, hopefully that will improve as the store ages.

This book store is the best book store because it is very quiet there is a lot of book and you can…read moreget BAM exclusive book like this one I really like is place and you should try it.

For the price, can't be beat!…read more The model is simple: donate your books (up to 7 boxes per visit). They give them away for free! According to their website, you can't take more than 150,000 books per visit, so don't be too greedy, you bookworms! They sell 1-2% of donated books to cover overhead, but everything else is volunteer basis, keeping The Book Thing a free community even once a month. Be prepared to wait in line. We arrived at 11:45 so most of the big rush had faded. They let people in on the hour, with a max of 100 people in per time. If you arrive after someone leaves, they can let you in to finish that hour out. You could make a day of it - there are several cafés, breweries, and restaurants in the area that you could visit before or afterwards. Inside there are three rooms - red, blue, and green. They are organized by genres. A warning: this is not for claustrophobic people. It gets crowded and while people are generally polite and respectful, you will rub shoulders with plenty of other bibliophiles. My kids enjoyed it, though Child #1 was a tad overwhelmed and Child#3 wanted to get out of his umbrella stroller and run around! They all picked out something that was just for them. My wife gathered several books and I picked up a couple for myself. When you leave, you need to count your books and tell them that number (for their record-keeping) and your ZIP code. Other than that, it's a great deal, not to mention a fun way to meet other folks in the community. One parent reminisced about how her (now grown) daughter used to love a series that my middle child was looking at. I overheard one woman asking about a particular genre and a volunteer told her that those usually get picked over pretty early. So while there is more of a wait and higher demand closer to opening time, it sounds like there are some choicer items that are available then. DONATION - there is a small one-way road that leads around the back. After the morning rush, it seemed like it moves quickly. There's a small parking pad where you can pull up and give your books to some volunteers. Parking - it's Waverly, so pretty much street parking and you will have to look. We lucked out and saw someone leaving their spot right by the donation drop-off, so we were able to park close. If you have a bunch of books that could use a new home, come donate them here! If you are curious about grabbing some new books for yourself, drop on by! Just check the website for specific dates - it can vary from month to month what's available.

Such a cool community completely FREE resource in the city! I first heard about bookthings in 2023…read moreand this was my second time coming here. It has been in operation since 1999 and filled with volunteers and they now own the building. It's only open once a month now but I guess it used to be more. As a tip - go closer to the hour like on the :45 mark otherwise be prepared to wait an hour. People from all walks of life come here. This operates on donations so I dropped off my books and got in line. It is a bit overwhelming and the books are organized in categories. It is fun to browse but there is a chaotic energy that I don't always love. I don't think I would go back - I much prefer the little libraries! After standing in line, when you walk in, you do have to adjust to the brightness. It's a completely free resource. You can take as many books as you want. When you check out you just tell them the total number of books and your ZIP Code. It's amazing this free resource exists - make sure you don't hoard (like the two women in front of me who were on their fourth entry of the day). Make sure you partake in the recycling of the system. Take books back take new books and keep this amazing free resource in the community.

50 years of service and still filled with lots of books! And this year they are 50% off of their…read moreusual low prices. Good selection for a lot of items. They also buy books. But their offers are not great and the evaluator was a bit fussy about what he wanted. He did suggest donating to friends of the library. So I don't bother trying to bring the books I am surrendering. (Which is a tough thing for me to do, but it needs to be done!)

We've been shopping at Second Story Books for about 30 years now. Great selection of books, but…read morewhen it comes to the employees, they're arrogant and out right nasty. I was rudely told, actually ordered, out of the blue, with no warning or previous interaction, to pick up the 4 vinyl records, a CD and 2 books that my husband and I wanted to purchase, because they were temporarily placed on top other records as we were getting ready to pay and leave the store. I asked if the woman was the owner of the store and I told them that the attitude was unacceptable and uncalled for. She kept being rude and at that point I got upset and told her to f**k off. Well, instead of apologizing we were told that they had the right to refuse service, and we were asked to leave. I see, from some of the other reviews I've read, that this is common and acceptable behavior at Second Story Books. I've always believed in supporting the local businesses over the internet, but there is no way in hell that I would ever walk back into that store.

Massive inventory of books and everything was well organized. Diana and Patrick at the front desk…read moreare great customer service reps. The books aren't expensive at all. It was worth the 30 minute ride from DC. I heard that they have a main distribution center that's much bigger. I will definitely be back in Maryland to check it out. The books here are all well organized. It reminded me of bookoff here in NY. I will be back soon.

Honestly you could get lost here and not even be worried, there are so many shelves with nooks and…read morecrannies that you never know what you will find. The place is a treasure trove.