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Looking for a book? Want a deal? No problem AddALL!



Who are you and why are you doing this?
We are a bunch of book lovers who believe in equal opportunity and the power of knowledge, and want to make a difference in people's lives. This web site is our way of helping people to read more, pay less, and live life to its fullest. The site has to support itself to survive, of course. Every time you buy a book through our site, we get a commission, at no cost to you. Our operation relies on this commission only, unlike other sites, which sell banner ads to advertisers. If you log onto one of our affiliates without going through our site, we don't receive the commission. So if you like this free service to you and want to see us continue, please visit us often and always purchase through our service the books that we helped you find. This web site operates under several aliases, including addall.com, usedbookarea.com , providing basically the same book search and comparison shopping service.

 
How do I use your service? How can I place an order?
On our main search page you can use author, title, keyword or ISBN number to search for a book. You may get more selections than you want, in which case you will have to sift through them to find the book you're looking for. If you have the ISBN number, you'll get an exact match. After you choose the book you want, click on the title, or the words "click here to compare the book price" which will take you to the price comparison table. Choose the store you want to purchase from and click on "buy it" (or the title if you are using the used search engine) and you will be taken to the bookstore site to place your order. You will complete the transaction there. Clicking on "buy it" takes you to the store to order - it does not commit you to purchase. After you have completed your order, print out your receipt/order confirmation, so that you can contact that store in case problems arise later, such as the order is late/wrong/lost, etc. As a book search site, we do not sell books at our site, and do not have/retain any information about transactions or customers, and won't be able to help you track/cancel/change orders later.

 
I ordered a book but haven't received it yet. Can you help me check the status?
We are a book search engine and we scout dozens of reputable online bookstores for price/availability/shipping information so that you can make an informed decision when you're buying books. We do not sell books at our site. We do not have/retain any information about transactions or customers, because no transaction occurs at our web site. Therefore, we cannot help you to check the status of your order.

When you order a book, you should make a note of the store, dealer, price and any other relevant information. You will receive an order confirmation, usually by e-mail. This is not a confirmation of availability; it just confirms that your order was received and processed. Please make sure you print or handwrite the confirmation information/number, etc. for your records. Keep the information until your order arrives. If a problem arises, contact the store where you bought the book directly. If you purchased from a dealer handled by a large conglomerate bookstore, like Alibris or Bibliofind or Abebooks, be sure you note the bookstore name as well as the name of the dealer. The bookstore may be more responsive than the dealer and is accountable for the dealers it represents. You can go to the bookstore by clicking on the name at here. You can track your order at the bookstore or write to their customer service department and complain. Sometimes a phone call works better. If your complaint is repeatedly ignored by the vendor, please let us know. We are always monitoring our affiliates and could use your help in weeding out the less qualified ones.

 
I found several books with the same title in the search result. How can I tell which is the correct edition?
You should be able to tell the correct edition if you use the ISBN number (the 10-digit number usually found on the back cover of a book).

 
I'd like to buy a book but am not sure what the return policy is.
The return policy depends on the individual book site. We are a book search service and cannot speak on the behalf of the book site. Please check the individual site's policy carefully before you place an order.

 
I recently acquired some antique books. Can I sell them through your site?
Thanks for your confidence in us, but we do not sell books directly. As a book search engine, we only refer customers to sites that have the books and deals they want. You can always approach our affiliates and ask about their interest. Many of our Used Stores both buy and sell books. The store list is available at
here.

 
Can someone tell me the value of my books?
We are looking for a reputable valuation service to add to our site. But we do not value books ourselves. Any on or offline store that offers detailed valuation will charge a fee and most will want to see the book. You can attempt to value your book yourself by seeing what someone else is selling it for. But in rare books especially, the value can vary greatly depending on the condition of the book and dustjacket, edition, etc. so you will only get a very vague approximation of value in a price comparison table.

 
I need some books within a week or so and I was wondering what the difference is between "order processing time" and "shipping time?"
Order processing time" is the time a bookstore needs to process the order and ship it out. Shipping time is the time the book travels from the store to you. If you cannot afford to receive your books late (for school assignments, for example), we recommend that you get them from a more established site, such as Amazon or Barnes and Noble. These sites are more punctual than sites that are overseas, for example.

 
I am confused about the types of books. What is the difference between paperback, trade paper, and mass market?
Paperback is just a paperback, as opposed to hardcover/library editions, which have hard covers, and are printed on better paper stocks but are considerably more expensive. A mass market is a smaller paperback, the size you often find at the grocery store. A trade paperback is usually taller, wider, and printed on better paper than a mass market.

 
I'm looking for a particular book. Can you help me find it?
We'd love to assist our users on an individual basis, but we do not have the capacity. Please use our search engine to look for your books. That's what we do. So if our search engine can't find them, we can't either!

 
Your comparison table says the book I want is available for $90. When I went to the bookstore to buy it, the store said it's more than $130. How can you show one price but charge another? Why the difference?
This is a common misunderstanding. Most likely the store you're referring to is Chapters.ca, or Indigo. Both are based in Canada. We quote the $90 in U.S. dollars. They quote the $130 in Canadian dollars. Both currencies are denoted by the "$" sign. The difference is due to the currency exchange rate, at 1 CAN dollar=0.68 US dollar approximately. Another explanation could be that you have the coupon option on. In that case our comparison table will show the price using the discount coupon. When you go to the bookstore to order, you need to enter the coupon code at checkout to receive the discounted price.

 
Your site shows a coupon code, which will give me $5 off. When I went to the site however, I didn't get the discount. Why?
Some coupons are for first time buyers only. If you have purchased something from that site before, you won't qualify. And you must enter the coupon code prior to checkout. Otherwise, you won't get the discount. When using a coupon, always verify that you have received the discounted price before finalizing payment. That way you can go back through the ordering process if you've missed a step.

 
I am buying several books at the same time. Can your search engine find the best deal for all of the books, instead of individual ones, so I pay less for all the books?
We'd love to but we cannot yet.

 
I wanted only first editions in my used search results and I got all editions. Why?
Some of stores we search do not enter their book data in such a way as to make it possible for us to pull up first editions only. Many of our users search for first editions by sorting their results by price in descending order. You can then check the book description to verify first edition. Be aware that some sellers who are not professional dealers will describe a later printing as a "first edition". You can always email the dealer before purchase to make sure it is the first edition, first printing.

 
Can you keep looking for books that I want and couldn't find, or that I want at a better price?
No, I'm afraid not, but we suggest you check back periodically as inventory, especially in used/rare/out of print books, changes very rapidly.

 
Do you look for audio books?
Yes, we do. Search as if you were looking for a print book and your search results will indicate whether the book is audio.

 
I don't want to pay with a credit card over the Internet. Can I phone or fax my order? Can I pay by check, money order, purchase order?
Some bookstores will let you phone or fax the last digits of your credit card number and many smaller dealers selling used books take phone orders or checks. Some large bookstores take checks or money orders, a few will accept government or school purchase orders. You can check with the store you are ordering from.

 
I found the book I want but when I went to the bookstore to order, the book was unavailable. Why is it still listed on your site?
If the bookstore has the book in its database, our search will turn it up. Some bookstores and dealers leave books in their databases when they are no longer available from that store or dealer. We sympathize with your annoyance and disappointment but there is not much we can do at our end.

 
My price comparison table didn't reflect results from all the stores you say you search. Why not?
If a store is slow in responding to our search, it may be timed out before it has replied with a search result. We now have an option in the used search to extend the response time to up to 125 seconds. Go to the Response Time option and click on "extremely slow".

 
How strict is the strict used search?
Very strict. However, it has recently been modified to ignore the final "s" on a word, to make it easier for you to return the search results you were looking for.

 

 

More general FAQs can be viewed at FAQ.
This section is still under construction. We will continuously add frequently asked questions that may provide some reference to our users. Please come back and check with us often. Your feed back is always welcome at support@addall.com.