[Fraulein]

I have found many rare classics and philosophy books on Ebay. You might want to give it a try.

[CatoRenasci]

I do use e-bay, and amazon's used z-shops as well, which is very good. However, I have a pretty good idea what I'm looking for, I fear for those who are just learning to do scholarly work. Where is the ability to browse scholarly stuff (other than in a library), compare things and check out the bibliography before you buy?

[L_Von_Mises]

I have found many rare classics and philosophy books on Ebay. You might want to give it a try.

Another great place to buy books inexpensively is Strand Books in New York. It is an old style bookstore with very tall tightly spaced shelves packed with used books. The store looks cluttered but I have made some amazing finds in there. I literally spent an entire afternoon just going through their history section (and I was selective about which countries I looked through). Their prices are very good and as an added bonus they sell reviewer copies of all the new books at 50 percent of the cover price. It would probably take a full day to go through that section alone. They have a website now that allows purchasers to search their collection. Their saying is "eight miles of books" but the major downside is I always buy more than I will probably read.

[my_pointy_head_is_sharp]

One of the best books I found on ebay was a biography on Trelawny (Shelley's friend -- the one who reached into the pyre for his heart). What a story! Trelawny was a pirate -- what an incredible life he lived! If you want to read a good swashbuckling tale that is totally true, look no further than Trelawny by Margaret Armstrong. You'll be daydreaming for days. And yes, his life was totally un-PC, which is why it's so fascinating.

(If you buy it on ebay, make sure you get it from a smoke-free home, and make sure it's not musty -- or you won't be able to read it.)