Used bookstores

Hi everyone! I'm from the Show Me State, though I currently live in California. I will be making the journey back home soon, and unfortunately it's looking like my library has to be sold. :( It breaks my heart, but you gotta do what you gotta do. Anyway, I was hoping that someone on here could recommend a used bookstore that buys books, preferably a smaller one or one just starting out as it would be great to help someone out through my loss. Any suggestions are very much appreciated. :)

I'm not sure which part of the state you're coming to, but I found this list online that might be a place to start:

http://www.newpages.com/bookstores/missouri.htm

Absent from the list is the Changing Hands bookstore in Joplin. I found this listing for them: http://local.yahoo.com/info-17819901-changing-hands-book-shoppe-joplin;_ylt=Al4D....

We had an LT meet-up there last November and loved it, but I don't think anyone knows for sure how they survived the tornado. Even if their building wasn't damaged, it's possible that the business might not have made it.

Hopefully, you'll wait until our current heat wave breaks before coming back!

Trying to sell used books is heartbreaking. What I did was put them on a table on my driveway with a sign: Free Books. A couple people left very nice notes. A young man about to enter Rockhurst and study philosophy stopped and was blown away when I said: "Here, you need this," and handed him Augustine's City of God.

Thanks guys! I'm home now, in St. Louis. Whew, this heat is insane! I will take a look at that link, that's so much for it, and yes, it is heartbreaking. I keep finding myself saying, "Oh, I can't sell this series, haven't read this one in awhile so it should stay..." lol I'm never going to sell anything! I would love to just donate them...but honestly, I'm in debt and I need money. :( Anywho, thanks again for the responses!

#2 - @sjmccreary - I will check on the Changing Hands Book Shoppe in Joplin. According to the address, it was well outside of the tornado path and should be OK. I'll report back.

They had better be okay. We can't be missing our November Joplin Meet-Up!

#6 - @tloeffler - Sorry not to have reported back. I live in Neosho and have not been up to Joplin since posting on Aug 1. Tell me more about the "November Joplin Meet-Up."

Last year, a group of us on LibraryThing who live within driving distance of Joplin met at the Changing Hands book store. We spent the morning there, talking, buying books (it's a great used book store, and the other side of the store is a game store), then we had lunch together, then some of us went back & shopped some more! It was great fun, and we hope to do it again this year, probably the Tuesday after Thanksgiving (that's when it was last year, but nothing is etched in stone yet). If you would be interested, let me know & we'll be sure to keep you posted!

#8 - @tloeffler - Absolutely! I am in both the Joplin Library book discussion group and one at the Neosho/Newton County Library as well, and a member of Friends of the Neosho Library where I live. I am retired, so if anything takes place within a reasonable distance, I'd love to join you. If it's just once a year, I'd go most anywhere in the state if my schedule is open. Most of my reading lists are over on Goodreads. I just joined LT a bit ago and don't have much posted - yet. I probably won't go back and post previous books on LT, but I will use both sites concurrently now. I must get to the Changing Hands and look it over. I had no idea it was there. I did find one in Pineville, MO and sent them an e-mail for an address but they have closed the store and gone to online sales only.

Thanks for the follow-up. I will report back on Changing Hands sometime early next week when I'm up in Joplin.

#8 - tloeffler - Good thing I checked the Changing Hands Bookstore web site. I was planning on heading up there this morning (Monday) to look around and noticed they are closed on Sundays and Mondays. I'm out of town tomorrow (Tuesday) but will try to get up there maybe Wednesday. If I don't get that done, I'm on vacation for two weeks... The location is in an unaffected area of Joplin, and their website is active, so they should be around still.

The Changing Hands Bookstore in Joplin is alive and well. I had a short visit with Susie Davidson and looked around the store which has a good stock of used books. The Davidsons had some home damage from the massive Joplin tornado and are still repairing the roof and other things, but the store survived undamaged at its location at 5th & Virginia.

Mike, that is wonderful news. It looks like our Joplin meetup can go on as planned. Actually it isn't planned yet except that we will meet sometime in November. I hope you will join us. There were seven of us last year. The more the merrier!

#12 - @Donna828 - Thank you. I would love to join you. I'm somewhat of a novice in literature, having been a scientist during my working years which entailed slow careful reading of technical material, not the 'read-for'fun' literature that I now pursue in virtually all genres. Keep me posted on dates and times and I'll struggle to keep the date open on my calender.

That is great news! It's good to hear first-hand that they will be open when we go there! Thanks for checking this out for us, Mike! Hope to see you in November!

Looking ahead to November . . . What date(s) would we be considering? Just anxious to get it on the calendar! :)

It seems to me that Stasia's best day is Tuesday, so we met last year on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving - the 30th. Is that right, Terri?

Yes, that's when we met last year. I haven't heard much from Stasia (and she probably hasn't heard much from me either!). I should give her a nudge & see what she has in mind.

That would make it Nov. 29 if my calender is correct. Joplin isn't quite as scenic across the south part of town as it used to be, but I don't know of any bookstores that got blown away. I hope the time works for everyone.

I chatted with Stasia this evening, and she's looking at Tuesday November 29. I'm sure we'll come up with more details soon, but for right now, get it on your calendars! I'm requesting those days off first thing tomorrow!

Works for me, if I may crash the party.

#20 As Donna said, the more the merrier - it's not a private party!

Nov 29 sounds good and I'll add it to my calendar as well.

Thanks, guys! I'm just down the road in Neosho and it's on my calendar.