A bookworm in Hong Kong, Part 2

As promised, here’s the post about my marathon trawling of secondhand bookstores in the Central District of Hong Kong.

On the itinerary my sisters planned, I had the Central expedition moved from Sunday to Tuesday, because I knew the stores weren’t open on Sundays. The downside of it was that we’d come from Disneyland and I was lugging half my luggage and a big bag of Disneyland souvenirs with me. I left the sibs at IFC mall and armed with the street maps in the appendix of my trusty guidebook (and my cousin Dianne’s instructions).

My older sisters told me I only had a couple of hours, and I knew that wasn’t ample time to browse, especially because I had to locate the spots first, but I really wanted to scope the stores out so I could blog about them, at the very least. I was right in that, as I spent most of my time surveying the streets, ended up scanning the shelves at each stop, and then went back to meet my siblings empty-handed. But I have notes for future visits (hopefully with people who understand my passion for books!), and I hope you’ll find them useful, too, if you ever find yourself book hunting in Hong Kong.

Comparing prices in the bookstores I’d been to in Hong Kong, used books are about 50% (and up) cheaper than the new books, about HK $30-$50 as opposed to HK $89-145 for paperbacks. I was looking for, in particular, reasonably-priced books that aren’t readily available at home. I also found the fiction selection more extensive at the used bookstores, meaning not just bestsellers, and in a wider variety of formats and genres and reading levels, too.

I started with Queen Victoria Street, because I had two book stores marked there, and found three when I got there. I did not take note of the landmarks, but with a street map, it’s not difficult to navigate on foot. Just wear comfy shoes and don’t bring luggage like I did (harr), because I warn you, streets go uphill and downhill all around.

BooksMart -1/F 2 Queen Victoria St., Central, Hong Kong (closed on Wednesdays and Sundays)

I took a long walkway from IFC mall and emerged from the escalator right on Queen Victoria Street, and the yellow banner was visible from across the street.

Went up a couple flights of stairs and found the shop.

A friendly woman was manning the counter. As there was no one else in the shop, I asked if I could leave my backpack and oversize tote on the chair by the counter, and she said it was no problem. It’s a well-lit shop, the walls lined with shelves and more in the center, with a fairly extensive collection, in fair to good condition (the well-thumbed, bargain selection is up front, mostly mass market paperbacks). Well-organized, too, by genre and author.

Joint Publishing, 9 Queen Victoria St., Central

A few steps away from BooksMart. It’s not actually a secondhand shop; it’s an outlet of a major chain bookstore and publisher in Hong Kong.

Nevertheless, the selection was better than the other chain bookstores I visited — I noticed the chain bookstores were quite small, and the English selection is mostly bestsellers in mass market paperback, children’s books and lifestyle books. There were a lot of people browsing (always a good sign — there weren’t a lot elsewhere), and a lot of titles I didn’t see in the other bookstores.

Joint Publishing also had a fair amount of books that were substantially discounted, even though it wasn’t sale season in May.

Collectables – 2/F Queen Victoria St., Central

Further along the road is Collectables, half the store dealing used books, and the other half music (reminding me of Nick Hornby’s High Fidelity, actually). It was dim and dusty, and books were haphazardly arranged, some on shelves, some on the floor, some in boxes — I had a difficult time scanning the shelves, and I was targeting two more shops so I couldn’t linger. Not my type of book store, but I know certain people (e.g. Flippers Mike and Pivnoj!) who would totally dig this place.

Flow Book Shop – 1/F #40 Lyndhurst Terrace, Central

I had trouble finding this shop on Lyndhurst Terrace. I don’t remember exactly how I found it, but I spent a lot of time up and down Lyndhurst (not a good idea, with the load I was carrying). I was winded and about to give up (my sister kept texting where I was), when I spotted the sign on a street corner (yes, Dianne was right, there’s some obstruction in front of it).

Inside is a wonderland — it was my favorite shop of the bunch. A sizeable collection, arranged properly, and the shop was so homey, I really felt the book love.

I literally sat on the floor browsing.

I had wanted to go to The Book Attic, which was actually my original target for the book hunt, and it’s in the area, too (Cockloft, 2 Elgin Street, Central), but I was wiped out and I was pressured because my sister texted that they had gone ahead to Times Square (in a totally different district, mind), and I wanted to get there before dark. Someday, Book Attic, someday.

I love visiting book stores in other countries, especially the non-chain bookstores, as you get a feel of the reading culture of the country, and find treasures you’d never find back home.

I hope I get a full day to trawl for books in Hong Kong one day — because I’m sure there are more shops out there!). That is, if that (annoying and totally unfair) Customs regulation on book importation (UGH) becomes more reasonable. Otherwise, I’ll just soak in the bookish atmosphere.

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Note: you can compare my notes with my cousin Dianne’s here — she had a lot more time to go around (eldest among siblings, therefore authoritative!), and took home quite a haul.