Last Updated on July 21, 2019 by Ran
I’m tired. I just got home from book-hunting.
It’s the first time I visited Bookay-ukay, even though I’ve been meaning to visit it ever since I first moved to Manila for college.
I remember the time when my dad was touring me around, giving me instructions because he was worried I wouldn’t be able to go home by myself. “Dad, I’m a college girl now,” I told him. “I can handle myself.”
He told me that I shouldn’t be too careless just because I’m in college now. And that was when we drove by Bookay-ukay. I could only stare in longing as it disappeared into the corner of the street.
The moment I set my eyes on the store, I just knew I had to check it out sometime.
Table of Contents
Bookworm since birth
Hey, I’ve always been a huge fan of books.
You could leave me in a book store all day and I wouldn’t even complain. I wouldn’t be reading in there, either. I just love searching for all sorts of books. I actually like used bookstores better because the books usually have no plastic wrapper; I’m a super conscientious person when it comes to the paper quality of books and notebooks (yeah, yeah, I know) so I like running my hands on the pages first before deciding whether or not I would buy that copy of the book. I have a huge issue with the binding of books as well. 🙂
But anyway, today was our final exam in a major subject, and I’ve been so stressed lately that I decided to take a break for the rest of the day. I first went to Trinoma, where I visited and browsed all three bookstores there, and then to SM North, where I (again) checked out Booksale. I didn’t stay there for long, though, since I had just been to Booksale yesterday with Ate Grae.
I then got this crazy idea to FINALLY check out Bookay-ukay. I don’t know why it took me so long to check it out. I shouldn’t have waited!
Discovering Bookay-ukay
Bookay-ukay is a small book shop located along Maginhawa St. in Diliman, Quezon City.
It’s a really, really tiny place, as in really it’s really, really cramped in there, but nevertheless, I instantly fell in love with the place. It’s filled with all sorts of books! I think I actually spent a good hour browsing the shelves, looking for something I’d like!
I actually found what I was looking for, which is a book for foreign reading practice. I’m sort of a language enthusiast, so I always like “reading” foreign language books even though I can’t understand most of what I read.
I was originally looking for a Japanese book, but I couldn’t find one, unfortunately. They did have a lot (kinda) of Italian books though! Most of the grammar and dictionary books there were either Spanish or Italian. I saw at least three Italian classics there, as well as a hardbound copy of Dan Brown’s Codice Da Vinci, which was retailing for only ₱350. Man, if only they had a copy of a Japanese Haruki Murakami book or something!
Manga and manhwa paradise
They also had a lot of manga! I saw the Vol. 1 of Shounen Jump’s Bleach there for only ₱150. Too bad I’m not a fan of Bleach. If only it was Naruto or One Piece.
I did get a copy of Clamp’s Cardcaptor Sakura, in raw Japanese, for only ₱120. It’s totally a steal! I wish they had more. They had like three Rorouni Kenshins in there, but they were all Chinese, much to my chagrin.
Oh, and they’re selling Archie’s Double Digest for only ₱80. ONLY ₱80! I am also a huge fan of Archie, and I think that price is simply wonderful. <3
YA picks for everyone
Aside from that, I also saw a couple of other things. They have a ton of Sweet Valley pocketbooks there. By a ton, I mean a ton. I think two whole level of a shelf was actually meant for Sweet Valley pocketbooks.
They also had some RL Stine books, which is a nice blast from the past.
Meanwhile, for YA lovers (which I’m not), Bookay-ukay also offers a lot of goodies. They had the Crescendo (Hush, Hush?) series in there… Selection… Divergent… and lots more. I don’t really remember since I’m not a fan of those kinds of novels.
I also found some that I actually liked, like Ghost Girl, Harry Potter books (both paperback and hardbound, but in Korean) and the Chronicles of Narnia.
Man, suddenly I regret not taking pictures of my trip to Bookay-ukay!
Next time I go there– and I most definitely will– I’ll make sure to take a picture!
Happy reading!
