Halpern's Books, and Other Places for Literature in Tel Aviv Israel
Written: Nov 22 '00 (Updated Mar 14 '02)
|
Product Rating:
|
|
|
Pros: well organized, great selection, English speaking staff, good prices
Cons: easy to miss in the little alley
The Bottom Line: This is the best place to buy books in all of Tel Aviv! One of my favorite bookstores anywhere in the world.
|
|
|
| naphtalia's Full Review: Tel Aviv |
When I began to finish the books I brought for fun to Israel, folks back home suggested I go to Steimatzky's bookstores. I should tell you ahead of time that I love Steimatzky's and if what you need is a specific new book, it is a good place to start. They have been very helpful to me when I needed a specific title (although the best bet for specific new titles is still amazon.com.)
Steimatzky's is a chain of bookstores in Israel which carries both Hebrew and English books. In some neighborhoods, such as Kfar Saba where I first lived when I got here, they also have Russian titles. With the exception of the Steimatzky's north of Kikar Dizengoff (where the ugly fountain is) I have not found any shop that had much selection. Steimatzky's books are also very expensive. The third Harry Potter book on sale cost me 64 NIS in paperback (about $16). There are, in some shops, discount baskets with used books. These tend to be very strange titles. There is very limited selection there, and the books still run from 19 to 28 NIS - hardly a bargain for a used paperback.
If what you want is a used book, the best place in Tel Aviv is Halperns. If you are in Tel Aviv, there are a number of used book stores on Ibn Givrol. I have not had a chance to explore them all yet, though I've made a good start. So far, however, Halperns is head and shoulders above the rest. It is located at 87 Allenby - just a few alleys down from Mazeh but before you get to Montefiore. The small alley is altogether too easy to miss. It is on the side of the street opposite the Carmel Shuk. If you get down as far as Montefiore, you've gone to far. The store looks deceptively small but goes on forever. There is a large selection here of both English and Hebrew books and magazines. The store is arranged like most used book stores into sections - science fiction, romance, Israeli authors, childrens' books, poetry, etc. It is clean and easy to maneuver around. On the left hand side as you enter is a section full of dictionaries. Everyone who works at Halpern's speaks English well. Perhaps more importantly, everyone who works here loves books. Outside are several bookcases of bargain paperbacks that sell for 10 NIS for 4 books. There are also boxes of books outside for 5 or 10 NIS each. Inside, titles seem to run about 16-22 NIS ($4-$5). There are titles for less and titles for much more, too. Halpern's is open everyday but Saturday. Hours start about 10 a.m. If you go on Friday, remember the shop will close early for Shabbat. During the winter, it may close as early as 2:30 or 3 p.m.
This is a good place to go after hitting the Shuk, if you haven't shopped for too much. After all, books are heavy.
If you're interested in book buying and you found this helpful, you might also want to check out these reviews:
Varsity Books Online Store
http://www.epinions.com/content_57159683716
Alibris
http://www.epinions.com/content_57161584260
Allbooks4less.com
http://www.epinions.com/content_57158766212
There is also a review of the Adobe Acrobat E-Book Reader if you'd like to learn more about downloading and reading books:
http://www.epinions.com/content_57155751556
Recommended:
Yes
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
naphtalia
|
 in Restaurants & Gourmet |
 - Top 100 |
|
Location: Somewhere in Southern California for Now
Reviews written: 1586
Trusted by: 449 members
About Me:
Just cause you got the monkey off your back doesn't mean the_circus has left town.
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.