Kingston upon Hull, the East Yorkshire port usually shortened to Hull, spreads its second-hand books thin, so plan a run that strings together one independent bookshop, two Emmaus charity shops, a market with a car boot, an indoor car boot on Newland Avenue and a library sale. Three of them cluster in the city centre within a single half-mile stretch: J. E. Books inside Hepworth's Arcade, Emmaus on Whitefriargate and the Central Library on Albion Street, with the Emmaus furniture superstore a little further north on Lockwood Street. Past the city boundary, the East Riding adds an Oxfam on Hallgate in Cottingham and, out in Beverley, Oxfam's dedicated bookshop and the Jacob's Well charity shop a couple of streets apart. Any price quoted here is in pounds sterling.
Several shops that crop up in any search for a Hull bookshop won't sell you a used paperback. Wrecking Ball Music and Books on Whitefriargate sells used vinyl but, going by its own site, new books, from independent presses and its own Wrecking Ball Press list; Hessle Bookshop on Northgate and The Beverley Bookshop on Butcher Row both trade in new titles. And one charity shop has gone: the YMCA branch on King Edward Street closed on 4 January 2025, the Hull Daily Mail reported that month.
Independent bookshop (new and second-hand)J. E. Books
12 Hepworth's Arcade, Hull HU1 1JU
A small independent in Hepworth's Arcade in Hull's Old Town, which its owner opened in September 2018 and stocks with new and second-hand books plus literary gifts, going by the shop's own website. If you're after a particular second-hand title, it will hunt for a copy on request by phone, text or direct message. Its Instagram account refreshed the window display on 29 July 2026 with a reminder of the 10.30-to-4, Tuesday-to-Saturday week, and on 14 August 2026 confirmed a 10% discount on every Book of the Month throughout 2026.
Hours: Tue–Sat 10:30am–4pmWebsite Charity shop (Emmaus)Emmaus Furniture Superstore
32 Lockwood Street, Hull HU2 0HN
Emmaus Hull & East Riding's big furniture outlet on Lockwood Street, which the charity places about 20 minutes on foot from the railway station, with its own car park. Furniture and electricals are its main trade, but second-hand books also appear on the charity's list for this site, next to DVDs, CDs, vinyl, puzzles and board games, and one of its gallery photos is captioned as books for sale. Hull Live named it among the charity's three outlets on 7 January 2026, when Emmaus launched its '£10k for 10 years' appeal; takings support a residential community of up to 30 formerly homeless people.
Hours: Mon–Sat 9am–4pmWebsite Library book saleHull Central Library Book Sale
Hull Central Library, Albion Street, Hull HU1 3TF
Hull Libraries has listed a bumper book sale at Hull's Central Library running Saturday 24 October through Saturday 31 October 2026, with novels and non-fiction aimed at grown-ups and children alike, on an Eventbrite listing marked free that says you don't need to book. The sale keeps to the library's own week, so Wednesday doesn't get going until 1pm, Friday wraps up at 1pm and Thursday stays open until 7:30pm. Both Saturdays share the 10-to-4 slot the listing gives for the opening and closing days.
Hours: 24–31 October 2026 (Library hours: Mon–Tue 9:30am–5pm, Wed 1pm–7:30pm, Thu 9:30am–7:30pm, Fri 9:30am–1pm, Sat 10am–4pm)Website Oxfam BookshopOxfam Bookshop Beverley
10 Toll Gavel, Beverley HU17 9AJ
Over in Beverley, the East Riding market town roughly 7 miles north-west of Hull, the Toll Gavel Oxfam at number 10 is a specialist branch for reading matter and recordings rather than a general one, taking donations of books and music only. Oxfam's volunteering site was recruiting weekend helpers aged under 18 for 'Beverley Books' in a posting dated 1 April 2026. No weekly hours appear on its Oxfam page, which simply asks callers to phone ahead, so ring 01482 526093 before setting off.
Where can I find cheap used books in Hull?
Target the library sale first: Hull Libraries bills it as a bumper sale of children's and grown-ups' books, novels and non-fiction alike, at the Albion Street library from 24 to 31 October 2026, with no booking needed. Between sales, the two Emmaus shops, on Whitefriargate in the centre and in the furniture superstore on Lockwood Street, both list second-hand books among their stock, and in Beverley the Jacob's Well shop on Ladygate keeps a large charity-shop book section sorted by author. J. E. Books mixes second-hand copies in with its new stock and takes 10% off its monthly book pick all through 2026.
Where do I sell used books in Hull?
No bookshop or charity shop listed here advertises over-the-counter buying. The Book Buyer, based on Chamberlain Road, comes to your home to value and collect a collection, and it's most interested in transport, military, natural history, motorsport, Folio Society and vintage children's books. For anything outside those categories, put it up yourself on Vinted, or on Amazon.co.uk, or on eBay.co.uk, or hand the box to the Oxfam bookshop in Beverley. Before choosing, photograph the shelf with BiblioScan, which matches every spine in the picture to a resale value; the few with real money behind them earn a listing of their own, and the remainder can fill a donation bag.
Which charity shops have books in Hull?
Five on this page carry books on their own operators' say-so. In the city, Emmaus lists second-hand books at Emmaus Whitefriargate and at its Lockwood Street superstore. Across the boundary, Oxfam's Cottingham branch on Hallgate names books among its stock, while in Beverley, Oxfam runs a shop devoted to books and music at 10 Toll Gavel and Jacob's Well shelves donated books alphabetically on Ladygate. Dove House Hospice has a large network of shops, but its branch pages don't mention books, so call the branch first before counting on a shelf of paperbacks.
Which day is best for book hunting in Hull?
Saturday. J. E. Books, both Emmaus shops and Jacob's Well in Beverley all open that day, Oasis Hull holds its indoor car boot on Saturday 10 October 2026, and later that month the Central Library sale runs on the Saturdays of the 24th and the 31st too. Monday is the weak day in the city centre, since J. E. Books doesn't open until Tuesday. Among the places here that publish hours, only the Walton Street market and car boot trades on a Sunday, and that only from 1 November 2026, once Hull Fair has left the site.