We're named after The Haunted Bookshop by Christopher Morley.
We are not presently hiring.
The Haunted Bookshop opened in 1978 and moved to this location in 2013. The present owner purchased the business in 2004.
You were somewhere else, then another place, now - what happened? Okay. The bookshop has lived at three previous locations (on South Johnson, East Washington, and North Linn), but moved to its own home at last at 219 N Gilbert Street. South Johnson was the yellow house with the red door, ca. 1978-1982; East Washington was the house with the big porch, ca. 1982-2008; we bought and merged with Northside Book Market in 2009 and moved to that store's location; we bought The Bookery in 2010 and merged it into the North Linn location; and when Murphy-Brookfield Books moved online in 2013, we bought their house at 219 N Gilbert. Why did we move? Well, when you see the house, you'll understand. It's on the national historic register, we can curate it for the future, and it has precisely cat-sized windowsills.
The Wentz house was built in 1847 and is the foremost example of Greek Revival architecture remaining in Iowa City today.
Store Policies
How much are the books?
Nearly all our books have a price penciled on the first light-colored page, in the upper right corner. (If you can't find the price, just ask.) Generally, recent, in-print books are half or less than half of the original price.
Would you stock and sell my new book?
Congratulations on your authorship.
We do not carry new books; please contact
Prairie Lights, our town's premier new-books store.
Do you sell gift certificates?
Yes, we do! You can purchase one in person, by mail, or by phone, and we can mail it to you or the recipient.
Can I study / hold my book group meeting / play board or card games here?
We have seating in several rooms, and we welcome you to make use of this space. All we ask is that you respect the comfort of our patrons, and for large or regularly meeting groups, please call 319-337-2996 to schedule your meeting so that we don't promise the space and time to someone else.
About Our Services
Do you buy books?
We will resume buying books when we've cleared the present backlog. For more information, see
Sell Books. We do gratefully accept donations of books in good condition for our Benefit Sale for the Iowa City Free Medical Clinic.
Can I leave my books for sale and have you call me when you're done looking at them?
No. We go through the books while you wait; it doesn't take long.
Do you search for books?
We can show you where we would search for out-of-print books; if the book is in print, check with one of the local new-books stores
or search on bookshop.org, where you can buy new books from a vast selection AND support independent bookstores at the same time!Do you keep a list of books people want?
We do!
How much is my book worth?
We do not appraise books, though we know some people who do, and we can refer you to them.
Do you repair or bind books?
We do some small repairs - page and soft cover mending, mostly - but we do not have binding facilities at this time.
Do you sell bookcases?
We have some for sale, occasionally. Just ask!
Nierme was a shorthaired tabby/peach calico mix who joined us in July 2006 and passed in 2023. She was gentle, remarkably intelligent, chatty, and loved music for solo piano, particularly Satie and Chopin.