Welcome to Bell’s Books!!

Selling fine used, new, and rare books since 1935.


A new shipment of our bags has just arrived!!

Your choice of cotton or canvas, and each one is unique!

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 “One of my favorite bookshops in the World.”

                                                                                – A recent customer

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HOURS

Monday through Thursday    11:00 – 5:00

Friday                                            11:00 – 8:00

Saturday and Sunday              11:00 – 5:00

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New shipments arriving daily!

  • We are happy to provide personalized gift shopping via phone or in person.
  • Free gift wrapping!
  • 350,000 titles from which to choose!

Give us a call at (650) 323-7822 with any questions.

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We highly recommend that you be fully masked before coming in to browse, and we provide hand sanitizer at the door. Thanks for keeping everyone safe!

Please call 650-323-7822 if you have any questions. We are happy to fill specific requests, or to suggest good reading that can be picked up at our doors, depending on your comfort level. Also, please see our Health Safety Policies

Check out the fabulous windows on our Instagram account: @windowsofbells 

…and our News page will let you know about our most recent happenings!

Many exciting collections have recently come our way, including thousands of philosophy titles from the estate of the renowned Richard Rorty. We also have:

  • Signed editions by T.S. Eliot, Joseph Conrad, Robert Frost, Bertrand Russell, Raymond Carver, among others.
  • A limited signed first edition of Winnie the Pooh, also signed by the illustrator.
  • A number of fine Arion Press editions of various titles, including a very attractive edition of Don Quixote.

Located in downtown Palo Alto, Bell’s has served the Stanford University and Silicon Valley communities, providing new, used, and rare books since 1935. We are the oldest and only bookstore located in the downtown area.

Our century-old storefront houses 300,000 volumes on two floors. Spilling over with hardcover and quality paperback books in 500 subject categories, there is, quite literally, something for everyone at Bell’s: 

Fine bindings, large format art books, 19th Century treasures, second-hand reading copies of classics at affordable prices, children’s picture books, signed first editions, technical books, philosophy, an entire history room, handsome sets, ornamental horticulture, thousands of volumes of poetry, literature, architecture, religion, natural history and more…
 
We would love to help you build a collection of your own.

Bell’s purchases fine books and private collections.