Buying Books

My collection includes books given (in exchange or lieu of something, on my request) or gifted by my friends / family and the ones I bought. When I know someone is gifting me a book, I specifically (and shamelessly :-P) ask for the title I want to read. Chuck modesty!

Why do I buy?

I have so many reasons to buy a book that they sound more like excuses. So I won’t list them here.

Where do I buy?

Unless inevitable, I don’t buy from online bookstores like Amazon and Flipkart despite their heavy discounts. For me, buying books is a very personal experience. I enjoy the process of buying books in physical stores almost as much as reading them.

I scout for books wherever I go. Even when I travelled outside for official trips, I roamed alone on streets filled with old book sellers and bought some good stuff.

Here is list of bookstores I generally visit to buy books.

Sl.No.	Bookstore	Reason I visit	Approximate time spent per visit	USP
1	Book sellers on Avenue Road, Bangalore	Used Kannada and English Books	1-2 hours	Old treasure house. I got Kannada version of Mahatma Gandhi’s pictorial biography for Rs.35 once.
2	Aakruti Book House, Rajajinagar, Bangalore	Used Kannada and English Books	1-2 hours if the owner, Guru, is present Less than 15-20 mins if it is just staff	Guru is an avid reader and very knowledgeable about books.
3	Ankegowda Book House, Pandavapura, Mandya	Used Kannada books	3-4 hours	Rarest of rare books, but not everything that is displayed is up for sale. Cash only.
4	Ankita Book House, Basavanagudi, Bangalore	New Kannada books	1 hour	Courteous and knowledgeable owner and staff
5	Blossom Book House, Church Street, Bangalore	Used Kannada and English Books	1-2 hours	Aladdin’s lamp. Surprises galore.
6	Kannada Pustaka Pradhikara, JC Road, Bangalore	New Kannada books	1-2 hours	Excellent place for “complete collections”. But they sell like hot cakes. Always visit with a big bag.
7	Kannada Sahitya Parishat, Chamarajapet, Bangalore	New Kannada books	1-2 hours
8	Kuvempu Bhasha Bharathi Pradhikara, Mallathalli, Bangalore	New Kannada books	30-45 minutes
9	Lavanya Book Store, Rajajinagar, Bangalore	Used Kannada books	1 hour
10	Prasaranga, Mysore University, Mysore	Kannada, English, and Sanskrit books	1-2 hours	Older, undiluted versions of books available. But sell out real quick. Grab when you can. Cash Only.
11	National Book Trust, Banashankari 2nd Stage, Bangalore	New Kannada and English books	1 hour	Excellent books for all ages at dirt cheap prices. One of the books I bought costed Rs.7.50 after 50% discount.
12	Sahitya Akademi, Central College campus, Bangalore	New Kannada and English books	1 hour	Sahitya Akademi award winning books, translated from other languages
13	Sapna Book House, multiple outlets, Bangalore	New Kannada and English books	30 minutes
14	Sudha Book House, Srinagar, Bangalore	New Kannada books	30-45 minutes	Owner Paramashivappa is an avid reader and knowledgeable about books he sells.
15	Total Kannada, Jayanagar, Bangalore	New Kannada books	1 hour

I also buy from India Book House (IBH), Ekalavya, Pratham Books, annual Bangalore Book Festival, Kannada Sahitya Sammelana, and other book exhibitions.

However, my biggest single-store haul was when Late Ravi Belegere’s Belegere Books and Coffee (BBC) shut down. I made three trips on my scooter carrying sackful of books each time.

Book Exchange

I participate in the annual book exchange event. I have sent and received books.

I have an unwritten book exchange pact with a friend which happens multiple times a year. Sometimes I ask for a specific book, sometimes I don’t. But despite what non-believers say about book exchange initiatives, I like the idea of getting unexpected books from strangers and enjoy the process of buying (or selecting from my own collection) for them.

Sidewing

I did not visit a single book shop when I stayed in Kolkota for a couple of months. I still don’t know the reason behind that blasphemy.

I don’t negotiate price when buying books. But I don’t say no to discounts.

Though I create and promote usage of eBooks, I don’t buy them as I am still not comfortable reading books on a device.