kerry4thecup
Hi, Just had a look at the cheap deals referring to Books and on that was recommended was Amazon in the UK.
The books are cheaper alright but the actual delivery costs are quite high and you end up paying a little more .
I was looking at one book costing £3.99 which is cheap with exchange rates, but then i have to add 0.99p per book ordered and £3.99 per shipment, which adds up to £8.97. So with conversion to Euros(.70p to 1 Euro) it adds up to 12.73 Euro and of course you have to wait a few days. If you get one of the second hand books for 99p you may save a Euro or so but you run the risk of getting poor quality .
Am i incorrect in this calculation or is there anyway around the high Shipping charge.
Regards.
0
As far as I know Amazon's shipping charges structure is always:
(Highest Applicable Per-Shipment Cost) + (Number of Items x Per-Item Cost) = Total Shipping Fee
I've bought good as new second hand books from the Amazon Marketplace third party resellers in the US for a couple of dollars and even when the c. US$12 shipping charges are added they are still cheaper than buying them locally!
euroDilbert
Generally, I wait until I want to order a few books in order to reduce the impact of the per-shipment charge. Nowadays, I tend to only buy from Amazon where the book is discounted enough to offset the charges, or where it is difficult to get here. Also, for many US-published technical books, they offer a fair exchange rate.
For top-selling books, Reads on Nassau St. is usually chapest (but they have a limited selection). Otherwise the main booksellers often have good deals (3 for 2 or, not applying the full Sterling conversion).
Unfortunately, there is no single best place.
Cliona
Try [broken link removed] They don`t sell books but will trawl through UK online book sellers to get the cheapest deal.
Also
www.thebookpeople.co.uk are worth looking at. Not always brilliant nor most up-to-date reads but good value. They will tell you on the site that they sell to mainland UK only actually include the republic.
Sweeney
I'd like to repeat my recommendation for Reads of Nassau Street in Dublin.
A visit there before Christmas revealed very good value in books. Paid €7.00 for Eats Shoots and Leaves. Saw it elsewhere for €15.
Reads definitely worth a browse if you're in the neighbourhood.
coolaboola
I know this suggestion isn't much good for anyone looking for cheap books but if you're browsing and flexible about what you might find/are willing to read check out your local charity shop. I got nine books for EUR4.50 last Saturday at my local charity shop (Irish Cancer Society shop, Sundrive Road - all books 50c) including Bill Byrson's Notes from a Big Counrty, K-Pax II and Sex and the City. My last foray into the same shop turned up a very nice vegetarian cookery book and a beautifully illustrated book on painting and drawing techniques both for 50c.
DT
A point to note when ordering from Amazon.co.uk is that they charge VAT at the applicable rate in the EU country of destination.
Books are rated at 0% VAT both here and in the UK so the price of books won't change. However there are different rates on other items like calendars or cds which are VAT rated in the UK at 17.5%, as opposed to a rate of 21% here, so the end price will be higher than the price displayed.
In addition, the delivery charges listed on their site exclude VAT. So when buying one book, the delivery charge of £3.99, and the charge per book of £0.99 are both subject to VAT at 21%.
With the VAT difference, the delivery charges, and the exchange rate, buying from Amazon.co.uk is not always the bargain it seems at first. I only buy there if it's an item I can't get here, or if there is a saving to be made.
0
Good as new second hand books ordered from the US (
www.amazon.com) are generally bargains even with the shipping charges and especially with the weak US$ in my experience...
