Classics and Suchlike Books

Ahhh, such a cute shop! They aren’t lying when they say they have 7 rooms full of books (: it’s literally a house that’s been turned into a book shop, every single wall is covered in books. The prices are unbelievably cheap and the shop has a vast selection. The lady was very grateful for our business, this is why I shop at second hand book shops. you just don’t get that warm feeling at a Barnes and Noble.

Room upon room of pre-​loved literature. This bookshop on ponsonby road is a treasure trove for the avid reader. If that wasn’t enough, they have a plant shop st the back where you can come away with not just leaves, but a palm!

My favourite bookshop in Auckland and I read a lot.
Always find something to read here and I only ever buy books that are in good condition.

I used to go to Classics and Suchlike Books to swan around whimsically, trying to get the attention of the cute guy who worked there. I’m sure I was about as subtle as a bull in a china shop as I very pointedly walked around the store, nodding and making a real meal of book buying. My flirting might have been terrible but the books I got out of it were excellent. Cheap, good quality paperbacks and peculiar non fiction books on Napoleon, on kittens and on American muscle cars. I just checked my collection and found my copy of Burrough’s Junky that I got from there. $ 5.50! What a stupidly good bargain for a stupidly awesome book. Pretty sure I bought it just to impress the guy though.

I’d been meaning to check out this bookstore in Ponsonby for years and only recently actually got the chance to go inside. I have to admit, I was shocked. Awed. Inspired. Classics and Suchlike Books looks more like an incredible library than a bookstore.
Shelves upon shelves upon shelves, rows upon rows upon rows — books take up every inch of space in this surprisingly large store. From the street it looks as though Classics and Suchlike Books is only a room or two big, however it actually takes up the entire space of an old villa house. Every room is packed with books, most secondhand — and according to the knowledgeable and friendly sales assistant, they stock virtually everything but textbooks. That is, you can literally find any information you need to know in this place — whether you’re after gardening advice, recipes or do-​it-​yourself books, the works of William Shakespeare, Tolstoy, the Bronte sisters or even a John Grisham thriller — chances are you’ll find it here!
Classics and suchlike Books is definitely the kind of place you need to set a few hours, or days really, aside for. There is such a wealth of knowledge on such a great variety of topics, I feel my one trip didn’t do it justice at all and will have to return soon.
Bonus: Because the books are secondhand they are pretty cheap. No more breaking the bank just to buy a decent read!

You know when you see houses converted into business and you’re more than a little apprehensive to enter? For example you see a sign in someones yard advertising a dentist, or a vet clinic, or a podiatrist, and you’re sure if you enter you will see a family sitting down to dinner. That’s what Classics & Suchlike Books remind me of, but do not be put off!
Inside this converted Ponsonby villa you will find a labyrinth of rooms with section upon section of alphabetized books. Honestly, you may need a ball of yarn to lay a trail behing you like Theseus. Twice I found myself back in the entrance, so engrossed was I in the endless titles. It doesn’t have any café charade or try to masquerade the fact that it is anything but an immense supply of books.
Get lost in a plethora of literature.

OOOh. love this place. Every time I need a book I can’t find, this place always seems to have it. They have a ridiculous amount of books to look through, but not too much you have on look and walk out the door. It’s a great place to browse, they have so many different genres scattered around the place, you’ll find books you’ve never heard of and genres you’ve never dared to venture. It’s a really cool-​looking book shop too, it’s a nice old villa in the middle of Ponsonby Road and the inside is so cool with floor to ceiling selves. Readers beware: you’ll spend hours here.

Yesterday I got copies of Welcome to the Monkey House, Don Quixote, and Sombrero Fallout from Classics and Suchlike for $ 26. I searched the same books on Book Depository and the total came to $ 42. That’s $ 16 worth of massive savings.
Add on extra bonus discount value that I’ll add because the old ladies who work there and ‘man the desk’ and deliciously meek and wonderful and it becomes $ 20 worth of massive savings.
Deduct a small amount of discount for the fact that you have to leave your bag at the front counter and the obvious drawback of second-​hand book shops (you can only get what they have). You’ve still got $ 18 worth of powerful discount.
Add in one bonus dollar for the fact that they have about seven rooms full of books and you have a grand total of $ 19 worth of discount over Book Depository.
So, Classics and Suchlike is $ 19 better than Book Depository.
Also potentially the only second-​hand bookshop in Ponsonby?