Randy's Book Exchange

A lovely cosy place for book lovers and lovers of micro bookshops. It’s really cool to see how bookshops owners around the world run their shops. Yes, the shop is humid etc etc and many books are photocopies, but I dare say that’s part of the charm, besides, humidity is a staple in this part of Asia. We spent half an hour browsing the English section upstairs, and went off with Dumb Luck by Vu Trong Phung - it’s hard to find very SEAsian-centric books back home in Singapore despite our well-stocked libraries. Philip/Randy was lovely to talk to, and kind. Strangely, I kept thinking of a song by Grateful Dead while in the shop....to my surprise when I opened the book later on, I found Randy’s stamp with the Grateful Dead logo incorporated within. Such serendipity!

If I could convert our house to a book exchange/store, it would look like Randy's. It had a great selection of English books that were categorized and in alphabetic order and the lady working the till was friendly

Randy is the real deal and a wonderful conversationalist! Thanks for sharing a precise classics collection that is unmatched anywhere in Da Nang. Truckin' travelers will continue to share their literature and stories as the collection grows! Thanks!

Fantastic selection of English books. There was also a good selection of books in European languages, as well as Vietnamese. Owner was very friendly and helpful.

Splendid place, and a very helpful chap. We came by in August 2018 with our two girls and Randy was great: he recommended authors who they might I or whether he had them in stock or not! Very reasonable prices considering the scarcity of foreign books in Vietnam.

Great spot. Cute cat. Comfy chair to acquaint you with their book selection. Would return.

Great selection of second hand books. Friendly owner who even managed to hunt down a book for me in less than a day.

As others have mentioned, there are copied books and overall the selection is a bit pricier than your tipical second hand collection in western countries. However a little research (or simply asking the owner) shows that books are hard to come by due to strict government control. We have also had a lot of trouble even finding book stores during our time in Vietnam. As for the copy books, the alternative is a smaller selection, I bought one and they are perfectly elligable.

That considered Randy's books store has an impressive collection and is definitely worth a visit if you find yourself in Hoi An.

Randy's place is a staple of the expat community here in Hoi An. He has converted his house into a large bookstore with thousands of titles. And if you want something he doesn't have, he is happy to try to order it for you. It is, by far, the largest collection of English language books in the city. Well worth a visit if you are looking for something new to read.

He had a book there by an author I had been looking for for a long time, so that was a good find. Also, it was nice and cool inside - a very welcome relief from the heat. I am very pleased to have found this bookstore. Unfortunately, the guvner was having lunch when i was there, so i did not get the benefit of his recommendations for a good historical novel. However, as i said, he had one old copy of a Gary Jennings book, one of my favourite authors, so that gave me a good "Aha!", exactly what i was looking for!

I'm not too sure what a few of the reviewers were expecting from a second hand book store/exchange, but I wasn't disappointed. Admittedly I had to do a bit of searching for something for a long plane trip back to Melbourne but found a book by Josh Bazell called Beat the reaper, good read and well worth the hunt; cost about AU $10, a bit tatty but what do you expect in a second store, Googled it when I got home and a new copy would cost me AU $28, no complaints from me. Randy was helpful, friendly and welcoming.

We'd lost a book earlier in Vietnam and came across Randys Books hoping to find something to read. We were blown away not only by the wide variety of books, but also by Randy himself. He struck up a conversation and had several very good recommendations that really paid off. Honestly one of the most memorable parts of Hoi An for us, and as a bonus we were also able to see his cats.

A wonderful little hide away for book lovers. We were searching for a good book on holiday and found a good selection to choose from - especially great thriller collection! Definitely come check it out if you're stuck for a book while away. Track it down on Google maps so you don't get lost!

This was a hidden gem in Hoi An! Great for travelers as this place was cheap and second hand. Great English selection. Zipper the bookstore cat was there to greet us and keep us warm as we sat in the comfy chairs. Great find! You can exchange your books as well! We will be coming back

A great little bookstore with an ample selection of English titles (and many other languages). The owner was kind and helpful! The atmosphere is quiet, cool and calming! Found what we wanted as the shelves were very organized!

Great second hand bookshop just a short walk away from the old town. It houses a good range of genres. Randy is very friendly and gave us great reccomendations for the local area.

This is an amazing bookstore. Firstly, it was so cool and a nice escape from the hot weather. Its very mysterious, and tucked away down the alleyways of hoi an. I was only there for a short period of time today, but the owner seemed lovely also. I went looking for a book by a specific author and found it!

Popped in to grab a book but was well worth the chat with Randy and the cat with a huge personality 'zipper' alone! Perhaps just slightly off the beaten track but we had bicycles anyway (which as a side note are perfect for seeing all of Hoi An).

Nice shop in the little streets of Hoi An, easy to find with Google map. The shop has a nice range of English books, as well as some French books. Cool atmosphere and reasonable prices.

Great little jem of a bookstore. Very good fiction selection. The books on Vietnam might be a bit dated but the one I got from here, Shadows and Wind, is still a treasure trove of information

Great little bookstore. Quite a the selection. Found a book I could never find in a Chapters back home. Friendly employees (I'm guessing Randy and his wife?). Would return if I was back in Hoi An. Thanks so much guys!