I went to Barnes & Noble today and paid $94 for 3 books. I didn’t think much of it until I got home and told my husband that I paid almost $100 for THREE books!!!
I told him there’s probably something else I could have done with those $94. I know I could have bought used books, but I went to B&N after such a long time today, it made me happy to buy them.
But then I realized how ridiculous those prices are now. Not very long ago new books were on average $15 each and now they’ve doubled!
Why are they so expensive now?
by AcademicPreference54
11 Comments
Books are free if you know where to look.
> Why are they so expensive now?
Because there are some people out there that will pay nearly $100 for three books
I love buying books secondhand!
Everything is more expensive now. And while inflation is down from its peak and many have seen their wages increase in value – well, the prices are higher now.
They might’ve been more expensive than buying on their website, too. Once I realized B&N charges more for books bought in-store, I vowed never to buy a book there again.
Almost everything shot in price in the last year but I honestly haven’t noticed a particular rise in book prices lately.
It will depend a lot on the books. Most paperback fiction books I buy are around 10-15€.
Some books are substantially more expensive, but on my case, they’re either technical books or photography books which have always been very expensive.
Have you looked to see how much those books would have cost on Amazon or even Half Price Books. I know they carry new releases as well. I love books but Barnes and Noble is the last place I’d go to buy them.
Besides the recent general inflation, I think a lot of paper mills shut down during the pandemic or pivoted to packaging material rather than commercial papers. I don’t know if supply has caught up yet, but it seems unlikely that prices will go down now. What gets me more than the price is the quality reduction in books – especially hardcovers. So many just have poor quality paper and cheap glued spines.
I agree but that’s why i use thriftbooks and Bookoutlet now
Yep. How to read the new popular stuff without spending a crap load of money on hardbacks. Personally I just don’t read new novels. My TBR is so long that by the time I get to what’s new now it won’t be new anymore and will be available in some paperback form or at lower price on kindle.
I get my books from Goodwill, thriftbooks.com, and second hand bookstores. And if they are still too much for me, I go to Libby or Hoopla.