Sell to Westsider
Buying Hours
Weekdays from noon to 6pm
On Sunday by appointment only
Please call ahead, especially for lots larger than two boxes
All purchasing is done through the book store
For estates and collections, please email info@westsiderbooks.com or call
What We Buy
Books
Records
CDs
DVDs
Cassettes
Ephemera
and more
Books
Always
Paperback fiction
Philosophy
Hardcover Classics
LGBT+
Film and Media
Genre Fiction (horror, sci-fi)
Poetry
New York
Theater
Hardcover fiction
Art Monographs
Rare and First Editions
History
Travel Narratives
Classics (Greek/Roman)
Cookbooks
Mystery
Occult/Esoteric
Vintage Mass Market paperbacks
Records
Always
Rock
Pop
Contemporary
Jazz
Funk
New Wave
Metal
Folk
Sometimes
Classical
Vocal
Choral
Prog
Ambient
Classical guitar
Opera
Showtunes
How We Buy -
There are two main ways we acquire books - either sellers bring in anywhere from two to two thousand books OR estate calls. Information on both methods is below for your convenience
For both cases -
We offer cash or store credit. Store credit is double the cash offer Ex. $5 or 10 in credit
We cannot take any item with water damage, mold, or staining
We don't take - textbooks, last years political bestseller, law books, encyclopedias, Harvard Classics or similar large sets, most self help, most hardcovers, and travel guides. We cannot guarantee we will take everything in the collection
DVDs/CDs/LPs must be undamaged and in the original case
Please call to set it up! If you have fewer than twenty books you can walk right in, but any amount of books you wouldn't want to carry all the way back, please you call to make sure a buyer is in
Estates
We get the vast majority of our stock from estates and personal libraries. Every estate is unique and requires individual appraisal. We cover most of Manhattan, but can go to any borough for the right collection. We cannot go on a call for fewer than 200 books, less if it's largely art monographs.
Unfortunately, many libraries that have been lovingly curated do not have resale demand, but we're here to help you sort that out for you. We have gone everywhere for estates, from the basement of a pizza restaurant to The Dakota, and it's the most exciting and most challenging part of the job. You get to know someone through their books and we try to treat each collection with respect. In an effort not to waste anyone's time, we do not generally view collections that have been picked over by other dealers.
For estates and large libraries, please either call the bookstore at (212) 362 0706 and specify it's an estate, or email us at info@westsiderbooks.com.
Here's what we need to know -
How large is the collection?
Media type, i.e. books/LPs/DVDs or a variety?
What is the time frame?
Selling or donating?
What genres?
Where is the collection located?
And your contact info, at least a name and phone number so we can follow up
If you are emailing, please include photos. Just a few shelves that you feel are representative of the collection, so we can read the spines and assess condition. If you are not comfortable with tech, please call so we can get an idea how we can best help.
Selling in Store
We buy in store Monday through Friday, by appointment only on Sunday. It's a madhouse in here on Saturday, so for your own sake, it's best to try any other day.
Call ahead generally, but definitely for more that twenty books/records. If you are bringing two or more boxes, let us know as early in the day as possible so we don't tell someone else to come in when you are expected.
If you arrive before a buyer and have to drop the books off for a buyer to look at we will call you with in offer ASAP, if accepted we will shelve what we can take. Any books we pass on that are left at the store longer than 48hrs will be considered donations and put outside on our dollar rack.
Wish List -
Art Monographs on O'Keefe, Ansel, major impressionists, and any major artist from the 19th to 21st centuries
Ishiguro, Mantel, Bronte's, Egan, Austen, Kingsolver, Steinbeck, Camus, Kafka, etc
Sanderson, Rice, King, Le Guin, Jordan, Clarke, K. Dick, Butler, Jemison, etc
Roald Dahl, Riordan, Suess, and other children's classics
The Iliad, Odyssey, and world myths
Benjamin, Marx, Arendt, Descartes, Kant, Kierkegaard, Sartre
Darwin, Feynman, Carl Sagan, Stephen Hawking, and Isaac Asimov, Brian Greene, Einstein
The heavy hitters, in short! Thank you for helping us grow and stay the well curated store you love
What about the rare in "Rare and Used"?
What we look for in rare books
First editions
Signed copies
Antiquarian sets
Fine binding
Easton/Franklin press
Vintage paperbacks
Rare American classics
Limited editions
and more
If you have rare books and would like to sell to us, please email info@westsiderbooks.com with photos and any information on the provenance.
Thank you.
