The Experience: Half Price Books is a great place to go to stock up on cheap books. The majority of the books they sell are used, and are mostly paperbacks. If there is no other price marked, the price of the book is half of the cover price, so you can get some great bargains, especially on older books that originally sold for less. You can even find some rare and collectible books, if that's your thing. We have found that this is not the place to go if you are looking for one specific book, because you might walk away disappointed. Rather, it is best to go with a list of your favorite authors, and see what they have in stock on that day, or just browse through the shelves with an open mind. The stock does change frequently, as people sell books to them daily. The kids' selection is large, and includes many new books suitable for gifts. They have a lot of favorite character books, like Sesame Street or Bob the Builder, and lots of picture books, easy reader books, and chapter books. We have actually found a lot of popular series for young readers here, such as Magic Tree House or Spiderwick Chronicles. You may also want to browse through the movies and music as long as you're there. One person's trash is another person's treasure, after all.