text: Changing Hands is the perfect bookstore These types of places just do not seem to exist but Changing Hands has managed to survivennAllow me to begin by saying that this bookstore does not have anywhere near the selection of a Barnes and Noble or probably a Borders but I do not go into that garbage store and cannot be sure With that said there are a few reasons to shop herennFirst and most importantly they have well priced used books I believe most of their used books are They are also all in pristine condition Now used is not always that great for a paperback You can do better online quite often What is notable however is that their hardcovers are typically as well This is a fantastic price and is hard to beatnnSecond the location of CH is perfect This is one of the best plazas out there Wildflower Trader Joes Macs Jamba Juiceyou cannot go wrongnnThird and finally Changing Hands is a local store and many good things come with that The staff is extremely friendly From what I can tell they are all hardcore book nerds and you have to love that The store also has a very welcoming feel to it Once you are in you will realize how extremely friendly everyone is No not just the staffthe customers Everyone is talkative friendly and just seems to be happy They are all indulging in one of their hobbies in one of the most inviting stores I have ever seen Someone will ask the staff who wrote such and such The staff will almost assuredly spot a regular and ask him or her who wrote such and such If he does not know someone else will probably pipe up It is this type of thing that makes it a great store Overall it just has a great atmospherennThe only negative comment I can make about Changing Hands is how hippy it is There is a ton of books on spiritual techniques new age methods buddhism and whatever the hell else hippieshipsters think makes them look more cultured Of course this just goes along with the Tempe Trader Joes and book reading demographic so I cannot blame them for meeting the inherent demand