A Curious Service

Tell us what you like, what you do for fun, what matters to you; give us a budget. We'll build a selection to suit. Let us surprise you (or a friend)!

Surprise Me!

FREE LOCAL PICKUP & DELIVERY

Iowa City and Coralville area: No shipping needed. Select "Curbside or Delivery" at checkout. $0.00!

SERVICE THROUGH NOV 2

Shop by telephone or email noon-6pm, Mon-Sat. Curbside pickup, delivery, and shipping available. Still closed to browsing. Thanks for your continued support!

Puzzles Puzzles Puzzles

We have over 300 different jigsaw puzzles in stock. Click on the red link to the left to browse our collection!

IOBA Member

You should be able to trust that we care about your books. When you buy a book from us, it will come from a collection curated for content and physical quality, and it will be shipped to you with the utmost care, regardless of price.

Selling Your Books

We are not buying books in August 2020.

Walk-in selling hours: Fri-Sat 3pm-7pm. Donations accepted at any time.

Selling Tips

Our house will be closed March 16-November 2

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 and philosophy, cultural studies, sciences and languages, art books, children's books, literary nonfiction, Iowa-related books, and more.

The storefront will be closed from March 16 - November 2 for the health of our patrons and staff, but we continue to offer shipping, curbside pickup, and local home delivery on thousands of books, puzzles, games, and more. Have a budget and a theme in mind? Try a Surprise Me! bag!

Thank you for your support and caring. We could fill pages with the many generous things you've done to lift our spirits and keep us busy, and we are more grateful than pages and pages of thanks could hold.

If you'd like to purchase a gift certificate, give us a call at 319-337-2996 or email!

Winter hours will begin September 8: We will be open 12pm-6pm Mon-Sat

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.

Get Audio from an Independent Bookstore Supporter

When we found out that Libro.fm is an independent business committed to paying fair rates to authors, publishers, and independent bookstores, we joined. Now you can purchase audio books, keep and listen on any device (because it's DRM-free), buy specific books as gifts or give credits, and best of all, get reviews and new suggestions from indie stores across the country, including the inimitable crew of Haunted!

You can become a subscriber with a few clicks. Oh no, not another subscription...? But hang on! The terms are reasonable and this subscription is really worthwhile:

$14.99 USD for one audiobook per month, plus discounts sitewide, with a subscription!
With a variety of gift options and easy wishlist setup, Libro also makes birthdays a breeze. We recommend the 3-month gift subscription!

Sell Your Books

If you want to sell your books, you can bring them to the shop between 3pm-6pm Fri-Sun, or call us for appointment options.

We strongly advise that you call ahead every time you plan to bring books in order to check wait times.

If you have mobility concerns or a large collection (>10 shelves/boxes), we may be able to visit your home/office. We do not travel outside Iowa City between September and May.