This shop is New York-level. Impressive selection, eclectic and eye-catching decor, wonderful array of art (including local artists), utterly charming atmosphere. If it were in the Village, I'm sure I'd be going all the time. The folks behind it have impeccable taste, and their hearts are clearly in the right place. I wish them much success. read more

Bobzbay Books - Postcard depicting the store - Used Bookstore Near Me - Bloomington, Illinois

I have watched the growth of Bobzbay Books through the years and marvel at the innovative and trend setting promotions they have sponsored over time. read more

A local treasure! Wonderful selection of new & used books plus fun gift items. So much fun to browse. They will also special order.

Bloomington Normal finally has a good, locally-owned bookshop again. A great selection of well-curated titles it's a warm and welcoming place. Nice selection of knick-knacks and gifts, too, if you're into that sort of thing. If something isn't in stock, they can order it for you, too, all for the same prices you'd get if you visited Barnes & Noble (or in some cases less). Oh, and in case "Tony" has re-uploaded his 1-star review, please note: Bobzbay is a book store. If you're upset that Bobzbay isn't selling RPG books, or games, check out Red Raccoon Games a block south. Do you give AutoZone a one-star review for their lack of high-quality meats and cheeses? No, I don't think you do. That's why Yelp keeps taking it down, but "Tony" really seems to hate "Liberals", so... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ In short, an excellent book store, and another reason to shop local. Edit: Tony's now updated his review to include accusations of racism. Why, I wonder, wasn't that in the original review? You'd think that have been a bigger deal than "no anime"? Color me suspicious. read more

Reviews over a year ago are no longer accurate! The store is under new ownership and has become a more expensive bookstore then Amazon or Barnes And Noble. Bobzbay no longer offers the huge selection of used books, movies, comics, and manga, and records that they used too. Someone bought it but didn't change the branding at all. They've changed it into a left wing book store. Primarily the books are political, and they all lean toward progressive views. Of the 30% of the store that is unoccupied by political books, there is a small anime/manga section, a small movie/tv show section, and a small kids section. All of which are priced at or above Amazon, Barnes And Noble. Most of the movies, anime, and TV shows could be found at Walmart for cheaper. Lastly when me and my fiancé went in we were treated with hostility by the lady behind the counter. I'm blue collar, and my fiancé is a first generation Mexican immigrant, so we are use to rude treatment. However, We frequented Bobzbay before the owner swap and never experienced this kind of treatment at the previous Bobzbay. read more

First time stopping by today and was blown away at the quality of this store. it's nicely laid out and is relatively easy to navigate. There's a wide variety of subjects, as well as prices. You can find new releases for standard prices. While also find tons of used books at an affordable rate - I nabbed 3 books between $3-5 each. Staff were friendly and helpful, while also not being a distraction. I will definitely be coming here again and telling all my friends about them read more

I love book stores and this a great one! Bobzbay has a great selection of used and new books. I have bought several copies of hard cover Stephen King books here at a great price. My wife loves the children's section. She is an early childhood educator and can find so many amazing and diverse stories for children. We both love the logo and the robot theme through out the store. Check out the location near Red Raccoon games, the Bloomington Coffee Hound, and many great restaurants. read more

If you haven't been here you are really missing out! Such a gem of a store with a wonderful selection of new and used books which is bad for my bank account but it's worth it to support a local business. read more

I love local bookstores! Bobzbay has good selection and really helpful staff. I have found some great gifts here over the years and the staff can definitely help you pick something out that you'll love read more

I love Bobzbay! Bobzbay is great for used or new books. If they don't have the one you're looking for in stock, they'll order it and contact you when it's in. All around great women-owned, locally-owned bookstore. read more

I like Bobzbay. It has a good mixture of things for sale (an Atari system, old records, a copy of The Boondock Saints on DVD) and an eclectic, home-y feel. Go here because it's more than just a used bookstore, and you can probably find SOMETHING you like that's reasonably priced. Definitely worth a stop if you're in the area! read more

I noticed this store in downtown Bloomington recently and decided to check it out. I'm not sure if it's a new store or what the deal is but it's a pretty cool shop. They don't have a big selection but that's because they are selective with what they buy and sell. The used books looked to be in good shape and interesting. They had CDs and DVDs for sale for $3-5. It was mostly popular music and movies. I didn't check out the video games - someone else will have to comment on that part of Bobzbay. I'm planning to go back again when I have more time to explore, so I'll update my review if I discover anything new. Practical Info: Open Tuesday - Saturday 10AM - 6PM Located on the corner of Main & Market read more

If anyone in Bloomington-Normal hopes to get even a few dollars back, - by taking books in excellent, pristine, even unused and unopened condition to bookstores, such as Bobzbay,- you're just kidding yourself, if you think the store owner will offer you anything more than a few bucks of store credit,-on books that you spent hundreds of dollars purchasing in the last few years.- For example, I brought about 20 book-selections total,- one box and one bag of large, hard-cover books of a wide variety of genres,-some historical accounts,-some political based,-some dealing with faith & Christianity, - other books dealing with art, etc.- yet the only book of any value in the bookstore owner's estimation,-was a "mint-cherry" large, hard-cover book on the Roosevelts' Dynasty in 20th Century,-US politics, with hundreds of photos.-It was a book I gave to my folks before they recently passed away,-that I had ordered online for $46.- still in the original packaging,-so it was in practically brand-new shape,- all pages untouched.-But as fine as the book is,-(it included an accompanying Video made by PBS and Ken Burns,-on the Roosevelts and their legacies),-this book is only worth $6. in store CREDIT,- to the bookstore owner.-She was polite and pleasant,-but books have gone the way of cassettes,-CD's,-DVD's, Vinyl Records, newspapers, etc.-Archaic,-and Out-of-Date,-and not even worth pennies on the dollar.- People under the age of 40,-such as this bookstore owner,-have little or no appreciation,-for pristine books,- even though her store has thousands of books to sell,-starting at $3.50 per book,-and going up from there.- I doubt if someone brought in a FIRST EDITION of Persuasion by Jane Austen,- to sell to BOBZBAY,-they would be offered any more than a few bucks of Store Credit,-for this particular item,-even though in Great Britain,-first editions of Persuasion have sold for a $100,000 pounds,-or more.- No hard feelings,-but not everyone is suited to the job they do for a living.- -Jay,-a retired History Teacher. read more

I love this store. It's a unique atmosphere and a great place to get books for cheap. I one purchased the first Divergent book of the series for only a few bucks. I also bought a few games for a Gameboy that I used to have. They also sell some pretty unique, unexpected items (for example--I've seen them sell a few vintage bikes). I think this place is definitely worth a visit if you happen to be Downtown. While I definitely recommend buying from them, I am not sure if I recommend selling to them. I'm honestly not sure how much I would've gotten for my items elsewhere, but I felt like I didn't get much for the Gameboy that I sold them or the few books that they accepted from me. They passed on a few books that I tried to sell, and I was confused why they passed on them (they were in good condition and fairly well-known books). read more

We were going through "Blormal" and I picked out this bookstore to stop at. I was a little worried my 14 y.o. step-daughter wouldn't find anything but she found a bunch of books for cheap! It's not big but has a lot of variety. They even had Nintendo games (NES and cube from what I remember...) Plus! They had this little table right in front with a box of crayons and some paper. My 2 y.o. went straight for it and sat there for a good 20 minutes happy as can be! Definitely worth checking out! read more

Someone who knows records needs to price the LPs in here. I looked at two records that I *kind of* wanted (one priced $30 and the other $35) that I can literally go down the street to Reverb and get for half that price, if not less. Just because one CAN sell records doesn't mean one SHOULD sell records. How is the pricing done in here? Does Bobzbay go to Discogs and check the highest price a record is selling for and then tack on 10%? It does nothing but annoy me when I see amateur hour pricing. (As an aside, the people are friendly and the store actually has a little charm, but I can't get over the record pricing.) read more

Great place to shop for books!

Always enjoy a visit to this Bobzbay and especially enjoy interacting with the staff! I think I will let them determine my To-Be-Read list from here on out. read more

This is a store that falls in between a bookstore, music store, games and general pop culture items. It has a very nice balance of all. I've found very rare items in music, movies and books. Prices are probably best in town and even Lp pricing has improved. Only negative i could find is the limited hours it maintains its doors open and closed on Sunday? I guess if everything around it is closed then there is no use. read more

I went to Bobzbay for the first time today. I walked in and the store was inviting. The staff was friendly and helpful. I liked the atmosphere, it was smaller than I expected but still had everything you could ever need. They buy and sell everything from books to vintage toys. Really cool place! read more

Checked out this place for the first time last week and wish we had found it sooner. We are moving and heard we could bring some books, cds and DVDs to sell them. Went in yesterday with three big boxes; they spent about 10 minutes looking through them, kept one box worth and said they'd donate the rest. They offered us $15 for the lot and I could tell they'd be willing to haggle, but we didn't because we would have just brought the books to Goodwill otherwise, and I'd rather this place make a healthy profit and stay in business. Bookstores are dropping like flies these days, and this one has a great vibe and selection. I hope they stay afloat. read more

Great little shop! An interesting collection of books and some sweet old school games. Helpful staff - Bob gave me a hefty discount when I came up to his register with a towering pile of stuff. I'll be coming back for sure. read more

This store is a guy store and I am glad about it. The place has cool stuff and good cheap used video games and movies. Plenty of toys and books too. read more

Bobzbay is neat little shop tucked away in downtown Bloomington with a great variety of books and friendly people

Love it. Stopped in to browse books, and left with Star Wars figures. Everything is priced very well, I make it a frequent stop on my days off, nice staff also. I feel like I never know what I'll find here, and that adds to the excitement! I never leave empty handed. read more

Very cool store with a variety of items, not just books and music. Always see something new and interesting there. Love the robot theme.

Bought a book from Bobzbay on half/eBay. IMO book condition was better than "as described". Service was lightning fast and item was beautifully packaged. I'd be delighted to deal with them again, and I recommend them very highly. Wish I could get there myself, but I'm not nearby. read more

If your in Bloomington and if you read books and if you don't have a Automatonophobia. You should probably check out this epic book store.

Having had a pricing bait and switch pulled on me by the owner, I can't say I'm unbiased, but being told you need to pay $115 dollars for a Bob Dylan record clearly marked $15 isn't the best kind of business practice (this after he looked it up online, decided he'd priced it too cheaply, and sneered and said, "I'm not selling this, not unless you give me another hundred dollars!"). A typical middling used store - cheap things priced too expensively (a $17 LP copy of Springsteen's "The River"?) and some rarer things priced too cheaply, but don't expect to be able to buy those underpriced finds - all you'll be doing is finding the better stock for "Bob" to reprice in front of you. read more