Troubadour Books

A wonderful place to find the unexpected that you’ll probably not find anywhere else: facsimiles of 1521 Venetian editions, Latin and Greek works (extraordinary number of Loeb eds.). Spent hours browsing and buying. Could have doubled that without even noticing.

Though I went to college in this area, I never knew about this hidden gem. Andi described it as «her favorite place ever.» Discretely tucked off Route 9, this bookstore offers quite the selection thanks to its neighboring colleges. You’ll find plenty of seating (especially near the erotica section) to get lost in a book. Picked up Hooking Up by Tom Wolfe for just a buck.

Made it here finally, after many months of meaning to. I knew roughly where it was, and had biked by it dozens of times without realizing how close it was to the bike path. Finally I decided to wander up and down the intersection to find it, and found it was in the very first building I looked at. I had to circle the entire building before I found the entrance, which is on a lower level than the road, and at the very back, toward the right.
I’m not sure whether I was in Grey Matter or Troubadour territory (probably both) but I was very happy with what I found. If the pictures posted to this listing are accurate, then I may have been in Grey Matter only. I saw many books that I’d been searching for in the past (and had eventually found) but sometimes I saw several used copies of varying quality of a book that I could barely find at all. I left with two books, and the employee gave me a biking discount because apparently she had noticed that I left my bike near the door. I ended up buying two books, one from either end of the place, and paid for them at the same register, so who knows which store I patronized.
Highly recommended! Less weird random junk and a higher density of good stuff than other used stores around (mainly Raven, since the two Amherst bookstores are mostly new books). Note: no new books here, only used.

TROUBADOUR BOOKS HAS MOVED!
It’s new location, just off Rt 9 in Hadley, MA, has allowed owner Bob Willig to bring numerous titles OUT OF STORAGE AND ONTO THE SHELVES! The store features larger sections on Military History, Philosophy, and Poetry! (The poetry section is one of the finest ANYWHERE, featuring more than a dozen floor to ceiling bookcases of the slender volumes.) It has to be seen to be believed! A GREAT bookstore just got even BETTER!

Troubadour Books is a treasure worth the drive. If you want a more exact measurement, I’d say if you find yourself within two hours of this address, you must check it out. As much as I like visiting every used bookstore I see, many times the collections are on the stale side, or items are overpriced. Troubadour Books is a truly unique bookstore because their books are clearly hand-​picked by a book expert who knows their stuff. You’re not going to find a pile of worn-​out copies of The Great Gatsby from the local middle school, but you may find rare first editions of classic titles, out-​of-​print material, or offbeat titles that you just can’t pass up.
Because of its location, Troubadour Books might not be the first used bookstore on the local (or traveling) book hunter’s mind. That said, I hope the owners have their collection on Amazon so they can keep up with the Internet age and keep this amazing bookstore alive.

I’ve driven by Troubadour many times, but only recently stopped to check it out after buying a Christmas tree nearby. I had *no idea* what I was missing!
The collection here is vast and seemingly endless. It looks small from the outside, but don’t be fooled — there are thousands of books in this store. I was most intrigued by the fiction, poetry and history sections, but if you’re into books on music, politics, and pretty much anything outrageous (serial killers, anyone?) you’ll be quite happy with the selection. Prices ranged from pretty cheap (small fiction for $ 3) to moderate ($ 10 – 12 for good condition hardbacks), so I was surprised to have the owner knock a few bucks off my total AND my girlfriend’s total when ringing us up, for no apparent reason other than we were buying half a dozen books each.
I dock them a star for being a bit cramped (so many books stacked on the floor that I couldn’t take the time to look through) and having a smaller sociology/​cultural studies section than I would have liked. But if you’re in the Valley and into used books, this should be on your list.

Troubadour is indeed an excellent used-​bookstore and is definitely worth going out of one’s way for. The selection is quite impressive and though particularly strong, to my mind, are the poetry, philosophy, literature, social and literary theory, and religious studies sections, Troubadour pretty much covers the gamut from pulp fiction to military history, from the sciences to 1^st editions and oddities.
Bob, the owner, is exceedingly friendly and invariably takes a few bucks off here and there from prices that are generally quite good to begin with. Moreover, on more than one occasion he has offered me a glass of scotch, a gesture that amounts to bad ass in my book. He clearly loves books and invites his customers to do so as well. And, as if that weren’t enough, Troubadour also has a 35% off sale twice a year (typically the first or second weekend in October and March).
Troubadour is a red, one-​story clap-​boarded building on the right side of the road at the corner of West Street and Depot Road about fifteen minutes north of Northampton on Rts. 5 & 10. Unfortunately, they don’t seem to have a website, but if I am not mistaken they are typically open until five or six and are closed on Mondays. Prolly you should call first.

Probably the best collection of used volumes I have ever seen, well organized and fairly priced. Staff are lovely.