Used bookstoresSeekers Books
509 Bloor St W, Toronto, ON M5S 1X5
Down a flight of stairs a few doors west of BMV's Annex store, a basement shop that The Green Line dated to 1988 in its August 6, 2026 roundup, run by two siblings, leaning hard into the occult alongside general used and rare stock, with an orange cat named Churchill on the premises. No website of the shop's own turned up, and the hours in circulation disagree: a listing copied from its Facebook page and Yelp both describe noon-to-midnight opening, while the Bookshop Bucket List blog gave noon to nine every day. Treat any late-evening visit as a gamble and call first.
Used bookstoresBalfour Books
468 College St, Toronto, ON M6G 1A1
On College Street in Little Italy, a second-hand shop whose own site lists art, photography, design, cooking, philosophy, children's books and rare or unusual hardcovers, which The Green Line called probably one of the most popular in the city in its July 30, 2026 guide. That article says the shop holds a half-price sale every March, keeps a generous run of $1 books, and posts fresh collections on Instagram as they arrive. The site and Yelp's September 2026 listing agree on a noon start and a six o'clock close, seven days a week.
Hours: Daily noon–6pmWebsite Used books and recordsShe Said Boom! (College Street)
378 College St, Toronto, ON
East of Bathurst at 378 College Street, 300 m from Balfour, a books-and-records shop with its own website, phone and hours, apart from the Roncesvalles store of the same name, and describes itself as Toronto's independent book and record store for over a quarter century. Its site answers yes to selling there, paying money for gently used books, vinyl, CDs and DVDs, with shelves weighted toward literature, poetry, philosophy, history, music, crime and science fiction. The Green Line photographed a staff member checking stock here for its July 2026 list.
Hours: Mon–Sun noon–7pmWebsite Used bookstoresSellers & Newel Second-Hand Books
672 College St, Toronto, ON M6G 1B8
Little Italy again, 650 m west of Balfour: a second-hand bookshop by day that began hosting concerts in June 2015 and had passed 500 shows by the time Global News profiled it on April 2, 2026. The rarer stock, filed under jazz, blues, occult, martial arts, weird fiction and jazz ephemera, is listed online at collector prices, but The Green Line's June 2026 accessibility guide stressed that plenty of affordable picks await in the shop and that a built-in ramp makes the door easy. The concert page, read on October 20, 2026, listed 8pm shows from October 24 into December, at minimum donations of $15 to $35, and the shop says it stays open later on show nights.
Hours: Mon–Thu 11am–5pm, Fri–Sat 11am–6pm, Sun 11am–5pmWebsite Rare and collectible booksThe Scribe Bookstore
375 Danforth Ave, Toronto, ON M4K 1P1
On the Danforth between Broadview and Pape, a rare and collectible shop opened in 2020 by Justin Daniel Wood, an ABAC member, holding roughly ten thousand items by its own count, heavy on first editions, original prints and copies bearing signatures. Its buying page spells out the targets: first and signed editions, antiquarian books from before 1850 and vintage ones from before 1980, preferably hardcovers still in their jackets. Questions go through Instagram direct messages, and The Green Line noted in August 2026 that the shop sometimes runs summer sales with books at $5.
Hours: Tue–Sun 11am–6pm; closed MonWebsite Used bookstoresRe: Reading Used Books
548 Danforth Ave, Toronto, ON M4K 1P8
About 350 m east of The Scribe, on the Danforth's north sidewalk between Pape and Chester stations, a shop that calls itself a used book oasis; The Green Line counted more than 30,000 titles plus DVDs and a whole science fiction room in July 2026. Owner Christopher Sheedy told the Toronto Observer in February 2025 that at least half his customers are under 25. Leave the boxes at home, though: the site says the store is not buying or trading, accepts donations only in a container it can close and set aside for a few days, and warns that two short steps at the entrance block wheelchair access.
Hours: Mon–Thu 10am–9pm, Fri 10am–10pm, Sat 10am–9pm, Sun 10am–6pmWebsite Used books and recordsCircus Books & Music
866 Danforth Ave, Toronto, ON M4J 1L7
Further east at 866 Danforth, 650 m past Re: Reading, a small shop of secondhand records, CDs, books and comics whose Facebook page advertises buying, selling and trading. The Green Line's June 20, 2026 guide recommended it to East End readers looking for a step-free used bookstore and described turning up CDs and DVDs among the books. The Facebook page is the one place that gives opening times (11 to 6 every day), so treat them as unconfirmed.
New and used bookstoreThe Great Escape Book Store
957 Kingston Rd, Toronto, ON M4E 1S8
On Kingston Road, which The Green Line places in The Beaches, a new-and-used shop that says it has lived in the same spot for over 50 years, with a rose garden and patio for browsers. Its news page announced the annual half-price sale for November 1 and 2, 2025, used books at 50 per cent off and new at 20, with food bank donations collected at the door, then a winter shutdown from December 25, 2025 to January 17, 2026. The contact page gives Tuesday and Wednesday 10 to 5, Thursday and Friday 10 to 7 and weekends 10 to 5, but a search-engine copy of that page said Tuesday to Sunday 10 to 5 and Yelp shows Sunday from 2pm, so call before a Sunday run.
Used bookstoresGreat Hall Bookshop
416 Parliament St, Toronto, ON
In Cabbagetown on Parliament Street, Asja Ljuta's shop opened in January 2026, three months after she got the keys in October 2025, according to a profile in The Bridge; The Green Line's August 2026 piece found new and second-hand books, vintage comics, antique volumes from the early 1900s and prints by local artists. The Bridge adds that she buys mostly online and turns away walk-in sellers whose books might have come from the neighbourhood's Little Free Libraries. Its Instagram bio pitches second-hand books next to stationery, puzzles and note cards, and with no website posting hours, Instagram is the place to check before going.
Antiquarian bookshopAcadia Art & Rare Books
232 Queen St E, Toronto, ON M5A 1S3
A blue storefront on Queen Street East that The Green Line in August 2026 put at almost a hundred years old, home to two cats, art prints, vintage magazines and rare books; the shop's site signs itself Acadia Bookstore Est. 1931. Streets of Toronto's January 2026 guide pointed to books on Islamic art, fashion magazines, and Spanish and French literature, plus an auction service with house calls and appraisals, and the site carries a Toronto Book Auctions section and a sell-your-books page. The site posts no hours; the ILAB directory lists weekdays 11 to 6 and Saturday 11 to 5, a single listing worth confirming by phone.
Antiquarian bookshopDavid Mason Books
366 Adelaide St W, Suite LL05, Toronto, ON M5V 1R9
Downstairs in the Capitol Building on Adelaide Street West, an antiquarian dealer that Streets of Toronto dated to 1967 in a January 2026 roundup, crediting it with 18th- and 19th-century literature, fine bindings, and travel and exploration. Its site invites offers of single books, collections and whole libraries and circulates numbered eLists, eList 116 of new acquisitions being the latest on its home page in September 2026. This is weekday territory: the contact page says Monday to Friday 10 to 5 with Saturdays by appointment only, while the ABAC directory gives a nine o'clock start, so aim for after ten.
Used bookstoresABC Books
662 Yonge St, Toronto, ON
Closing at 662 Yonge on October 30, 2026, per owner Patrick Hempelmann in TorontoToday (September 22, 2026); blogTO (September 23) and staff speaking to NOW Toronto (October 2) gave October 31 as the last day.
Near Wellesley station on Yonge, a BMV-owned shop that TorontoToday reported on September 22, 2026 has sold second-hand books on this stretch since 1970 and at number 662 since 1988. The same report quoted BMV owner Patrick Hempelmann saying the store will close for good on October 30, citing property taxes, while a window banner that day promised 50 per cent off everything and a move to BMV's Queen Street West store, about 2 km south; NOW Toronto found the half-price sale still running on October 2. In July 2026 The Green Line described the tight room as stacked with used books, comics, magazines and CDs, and a reader comment it ran in June warned that some rows are too narrow for a wheelchair.
Used and bargain bookstoreBMV Books Downtown
10 Edward St, Toronto, ON
One block north of Dundas off Yonge, the downtown BMV, in the part of the city where the company's history says its first store opened in March 1997, beside the World's Biggest Bookstore, as a true second-hand shop before remainders joined the mix. The locations page, read in September 2026, says it trades 364 days a year and that stock differs between branches and changes daily. It buys on the group's published terms, turning away water-damaged copies, encyclopedia sets, out-of-date computer, travel and health guides, and hardcover thrillers already out in paperback.
Hours: Mon–Sat 11am–7pm, Sun noon–6pmWebsite Used and bargain bookstoreBMV Books Uptown
2289 Yonge St, Toronto, ON
Half a block north of Eglinton on Yonge, about 6 km north of downtown, the second BMV to open, in September 1998 by the company's account, right across the street from the Indigo superstore at Yonge and Eglinton. BMV's store directory, checked in September 2026, puts all three of its named stores steps from the subway, Eglinton station in this case. Comics sellers should phone the buyer first, since BMV's buying page says it prefers comics that are either pre-1990s or very new.
Hours: Mon–Thu 11am–8pm, Fri–Sun 11am–9pmWebsite Used and bargain bookstoreBMV Books Queen West
244 Queen St W, Toronto, ON M5V 2B8
The BMV that the chain's own locations page leaves out: TorontoToday's September 22, 2026 report traces it from a BMV Express in 2010 through a closure in 2020 to a reopening at the same address in June 2024. It is where ABC Books is headed, since ABC's window banner announced a move to 244 Queen Street West and owner Patrick Hempelmann told blogTO on September 23 that ABC would relocate to Queen West after October. Buying is off the table here, per the shop's Instagram bio, so sellers should carry their boxes to Bloor, Edward or Yonge instead; the Queen West BIA directory describes new, used and discounted stock.
Hours: Mon–Sun noon–7pmWebsite Used books and recordsZoinks Music & Books
1019 Bloor St W, Toronto, ON M6H 1M1
Between Ossington and Dufferin stations and 160 m from The Monkey's Paw, a combined used bookshop and record store that says on its Yelp profile it buys and sells quality used books and secondhand vinyl. The Green Line's accessibility list of June 2026 steered literature and music buyers to its bargain bins and warned of a small curb and a metal lip at the door. It posts no opening times anywhere official.
New, used and rare bookstoreA Good Read
341 Roncesvalles Ave, Toronto, ON
On Roncesvalles, a shop selling new, used, rare and collectible books under one roof, singled out in The Green Line's August 6, 2026 rare-books piece for its signed first editions and its friendly dogs. It never pays cash: drop off up to four boxes with a tag, wait anything from a few days to two weeks, and the credit arrives at 25 cents for some kids' titles and pocket paperbacks, $1 to $2.50 for most trade paperbacks and hardcovers, and 20 per cent of the price for anything it will resell above $10. Its home page flags the closing time as variable on four evenings: Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday.
Hours: Sun–Thu 11am–7pm, Fri–Sat 11am–8:30pmWebsite Used books and recordsShe Said Boom! (Roncesvalles)
393 Roncesvalles Ave, Toronto, ON M6R 2N1
A short walk north of A Good Read, the Roncesvalles She Said Boom!, named after a song written by Caroline Azar and performed by the Toronto band Fifth Column and run separately from the College Street shop. Its site says it buys secondhand books, records and CDs, asks sellers to email first, and lists sections from literature, theatre and poetry to cookbooks, graphic novels, kids' books and psychology. The Green Line's July 30, 2026 guide gave both addresses under the one name.
Hours: Mon–Wed noon–6pm, Thu noon–7pm, Fri 11am–8pm, Sat 11am–7pm, Sun noon–6pmWebsite Used books and recordsPandemonium Books & Discs
2920 Dundas St W, Toronto, ON M6P 1Y8
In the Junction, about 7 km west of downtown, a books-and-discs shop trading since 2000 that tripled its floor when it moved to 2920 Dundas Street West in July 2012, its About page says. The Green Line's July 2026 list flagged a generous stash of children's books and displays running from history to science fiction and philosophy. Its buying page is blunt: Pandemonium is not buying books, records, CDs or DVDs, though you can phone about an interesting collection, and donations need a call ahead and must be free of mould.
Hours: Mon–Wed noon–6pm, Thu–Fri noon–7pm, Sat 11am–6pm, Sun noon–5pmWebsite Film books and movie postersHollywood Canteen
1841 Danforth Ave, Toronto, ON M4C 1J3
On the Danforth near Woodbine, 1.9 km east of Circus Books and 6.3 km east-northeast of Nathan Phillips Square, a film specialist whose site claims the world's largest selection of film books, in and out of print, next to scripts, posters and photos; the ABAC's member directory has it down as an open shop whose specialties are cinema, film, movie memorabilia and posters. Its history page traces a 1980 poster shop in the Beaches that moved to Broadview and Danforth in 1984 and branched heavily into books, and its events page lists the 2026 shows it was booked into, the Old Book and Paper Show at the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre on March 29 and Niagara Falls Comic Con in June among them. Titles go online through AbeBooks and Alibris as well, so the shop suggests phoning or emailing ahead, or simply coming in to browse.
Hours: Tue–Sat 11am–6pm; closed Sun and MonWebsite Used, rare and antiquarian booksUnique Books Inc.
1182 Kennedy Rd, Toronto, ON M1P 2L1
In Scarborough's Dorset Park on Kennedy Road, 14 km northeast of downtown, a shop that the Kennedy Road BIA welcomed in May 2023 for its hand-picked stock of used, rare and antiquarian books. A fire closed it for part of 2025, and the BIA's Instagram announced on October 7, 2025 that it was opening its doors again, with promotional prices on books from $3. Its web address forwards to a Facebook page, and the BIA directory's 10-to-3 grid from Monday to Saturday is the one timetable in circulation, so phone before the trip.