BROWSING BY APPOINTMENT

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We offer browsing inside the store on an appointment basis when the covid new case rate is under 10/100k/day, or ten new cases per 100k population per day. UPDATE: We are currently working on ventilation improvements that will make browsing safer for mixed parties. Check our social media for details!

An easy way to check the current number is available through CovidActNow. Simply scroll down to the "Transmission Metrics" section - the first graph you see is the rate of new cases. Official updates are usually released once each week, and we check those numbers every Thursday, then post available hours on our calendar. (If there are no hours posted, it's because the case rate is too high for the time being.) We do not make exceptions.

You can help lower the rate - and protect yourselves and your neighbors - by wearing a quality KN95 (or better) mask indoors and in crowded locations. It's also really important to get the updated booster shot, even if you already got the original series and a booster before this fall. Thank you for your ongoing support, and take good care of yourselves, too!


If you haven't seen our social media - Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram - you're missing out on the majority of our new arrivals, which we post (almost) daily - and announcements about when we're taking appointments and when we are having outdoor events!

NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2022

For the health of our patrons, staff, and 19mo baby, we only allow in-store browsing by appointment when new-case rates in our county are below a 10/100K/day threshold. Our mask requirement will remain in effect indefinitely. For more information about our pandemic safety practices, visit Covid Safe Network.


We continue to offer shipping, free curbside pickup, and free local home delivery on thousands of books, puzzles, games, and more. Do you have favorite subjects or authors and want to try something new? Try a Surprise Me! bag! Set any budget you like - $10, $50, $76.39, it's your choice - and we'll fill it with books you'll love!
Thank you for your support and caring. We miss you! We completely understand your frustration - it's no fun to be a bookstore without visitors - and we will reopen appointment bookings as soon as it's safe to do so. Take care of yourselves, and help us take care of our family, and we will hope to see each other again soon!
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The Haunted Bookshop, Iowa City's oldest secondhand bookshop, carries over 50,000 used, rare, out of print and antiquarian titles in over 50 different subject areas, including poetry, fiction, plays, history, religion, philosophy, cultural studies, sciences and languages, art books, children's books, literary nonfiction, Iowa-related books, and more.

We are located in the Northside district in the historic Wentz House (1847), its rooms lined with shelves and comfortable chairs, its walls offering toys, games, cards, and more. Our friendly and quirky staff delight in helping visitors to find old book-friends and new, and we pride ourselves on resourcefulness and individual attention to our guests.

We're fond of avid readers, browsers, families, students, teachers, literary reviewers, artists, writers, and other good company; we welcome book groups and community organizations; and we delightedly encourage storytelling, reading aloud, book recommendation, puppet shows (use ours or bring your own), and spontaneous performances by visiting piano players.

We are still accepting donations of quality used books, but we are not purchasing additional inventory at this time.

New Books through Bookshop.org!

You can now order new books from us through Bookshop.org! Here's how it works: search for the books you want, buy them, and have them shipped directly to you. If you use this link to start your search, we receive a portion of the sale. Easy! - Check back soon as we begin expanding our recommendations on the bookshop.org website!

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