Hive Mind Books Buy Used Books in Brooklyn!

We are especially looking for books by queer and trans authors.

Yes, Hive Mind Books buys used books! We buy through our bookstore at 219 Irving Avenue in Bushwick. We have a small budget for this, and limited storage space, which means that we are very selective about what we take. We are discerning about how we curate our inventory. This allows us to pay you more per item for the books that we do end up buying.

Books must meet the following criteria in order to be considered: 

  • First and foremost, we must believe that our specific bookshop has a market for these books. We have to believe we can reliably sell them.

  • Books must be in excellent condition. Ask yourself: is this a book, in this condition, that I would buy off of a shelf or display table? 

  • No writing, highlighting, or marks of any kind can appear on the pages. Pages must be clean. (A book signed by its author is acceptable.) 

  • No torn, bent, or creased pages. No warped spines. Pages and book jacket must be intact. 

  • If a book is hardcover and originally had a dust jacket, it must still have its dust jacket and the jacket must be in very good condition (no tears; fading; heavy wear, etc). 

  • No mold, mildew, foxing, or stains of any kind. 

  • Children’s books must be in pristine condition. It is rare for us to buy used children’s books, as they have typically been too well-loved. 

We do NOT take the following:

  • Textbooks

  • Encyclopedias

  • Out of date manuals or reference materials

  • Christian fiction or devotionals

  • Abridged or condensed books

  • Spiral-bound books

  • Former library copies

  • Mass market paperbacks, unless they’re really cool

  • Anything we don’t think we can sell 

What we are looking for: 

  • Books by queer and trans authors

  • Books by BIPOC and marginalized authors

  • A wide variety of quality fiction and nonfiction (we’re especially looking to build out theory, philosophy, science, art, and creative nonfiction right now)

  • Graphic novels

  • Cool and weird books

What do we pay? 

  • Payment varies considerably based on the book’s condition and what we determine to be its market value. We pay a different price for each book we buy. 

  • We do not sell used books at the list price of a new copy, which means we do not pay based on the publisher’s list price printed on the book. We pay based on what we deem to be the book’s current market value. 

  • Payments are made in cash or store credit.

How do we review and buy the books? 

  • We buy books Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, 12:00pm - 6:00pm.

  • If you cannot make it during those hours, please send an email to julie [at] hivemindbooks.com and we can work out a convenient time.

  • You’ll bring your books in and we will either look at them on the spot and make an offer, or ask you to come back later, after we’ve had adequate time to review.

  • Due to our small space, we cannot accept most donations.


Do we travel to buy books? 

  • Sometimes! The distance we will travel depends on the size and the value of your collection. 

  • Regions easily accessible for us: Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, Jersey City, Hoboken, Newark. We are also frequently on Long Island. 

  • If we are unable to buy your books, we will do our best to make recommendations of other book buyers in your area.