John W. Doull, Bookseller

Wow, these people seem to be very serious on the books. I purchased a 1979 printed edition of the animal farm by George Orwell. #MisterBlair

Went at 2: 20, sign on the window closed at 2 for lunch, okay sure I’ll come back later. Return at 2: 55, sign on the window saying closed early for holiday. Closing for lunch at one point and not an hour later closing for holiday? Very frustrating to make 2 trips out there today.

The proprietor was extremely rude. I regret buying any books from him. How he stays in business with such a poor attitude towards paying customers who finance his enterprise is beyond me. He clearly despises his customers.

I wrote this review four years ago, in 2019. It's still holds true

Owner still requiring masks regardless of noone else requiring them, and no laws or mandates to do so. Just discrimination at this point.

The pandemic is not ongoing, it is over and the majority of the world has gone back to normal.

Oh well, that's $200 I'll spend at another store instead of at this store.

My friend went here today. He walked in and noticed no one was around. He called hello a few times, no answer and decided the shop keeper must be in a backroom and started browsing. Suddenly a woman appeared and said " How the hell did you get in here? " Angrily. My friend is an older, friendly, gentleman author and he was quite taken aback by her tone. He explained he came in the front door of the store. And she continued with the angry tone and said " well get the hell out! " So of course he left but he was flabbergasted. Judging by the website the store was closed today. But if a storefront is unlocked potential customers will innocently walk in during average hours like a Sunday near noon. It is not like it was anything but an innocent mistake, perhaps someone forgot the lock and my friend never thought to check the hours. However, a simple misunderstanding left my friend feeling very mistreated by this angry demeanor. This was not my friend's fault and neither he, nor I will ever be back.

I have bought books from John Doull several times. The prices are good. The selection varies by category. Their fiction section is extensive and organized by nation, genre, and publisher (namely Penguin classics—or “creamsicle” cover). The sections I frequent—TV and film studies, sociology, philosophy, cultural studies, politics, economics—are less extensive but still fair. Oddly the only actual Marx in their Marxism section is The Communist Manifesto; the rest are studies of Marx. They have a good selection of McLuhan, however. Like other used-book stores, they are dependent, I assume, on what customer-patrons bring in; so there is a tradeoff between pricing and the depth of selection. Nota Bene: Masks are required as of February 2023.

They deserve no star but i couldn’t do that
The staffs were incredibly rude. I forgot a mask because it’s literally 2023 so I didn’t wear a mask. They yelled “Did you see the sign outside! ” at me and chased me out, they didn’t even have any masks in store for the guess.
The books are unorganized, the staff doesn’t even know where the books are or what books they have. They told me to go find the books by myself.
The store charge way too much for the books (they are secondhand), i brought one and it was literally more expensive than the price on the back of the book. The book was not in an awesome condition, it was clearly a second hand book with yellowed pages.
Absolutely terrible store, would not recommend for anyone to come here.

Terrible customer service, they seem bothered just by the fact that there are even people in the book store, not even because they are asked questions

Disrespectful employee who I believe was the owner. Asked if he could show me the collection of rare children books as I wanted to buy one for my new born baby girl. He just told me to go online and choose a name of a book. I explained that I don’t have one in mind so he just ignored me and went back to doing nothing sitting on his chair behind the counter. He was rude and abrupt. I went in ready to spend a thousand dollars if not more and I am glad I didn’t because people like him don’t deserve the business.

Be advised.they STILL require masks as of August 2022.
Seriously.
Apparently they want to restrict their clientele to Trudeau-ites and similar pandemic enthusiasts.
#NovaScotiaWeakAndAfraid

Told me he would give me an appraisal on my books but afterwards said that he "only takes donations" but turns around and sells them. This man is a scammer. Wants 60$ from you to TAKE your books so he can sell them at a jacked up price. I have never been so disappointed or disrespected by someone. I was so hopeful going in and I wasn't expecting much but you are better off going elsewhere. Give your business to someone who has honest business ethics.

I'm a book lover and I believe in supporting local book stores, but I have never experienced such poor service from a book seller. I was looking for a particular book for a gift for a foster child who was leaving today. I was pressed for time so I called ahead. The person who answered seemed irritated like I was bothering him. He told me they would probably have the book. I asked if he would mind checking so he did with a giant sigh. He told me theyhave at least one copy. I asked the price and he told me he didn't know. I asked if he would mind checking and he said their books are usually $5 or $10. I started to ask if he would hold it but he had hung up. When I went in, the person working showed me the section without helping me find the book. When he rang it up it was $30. This was for acopy with ripped cover and writing on pages. I told him about the call and offered ten dollars which he refused. I suggested they take more care in what they tell people on the phone and he made it clear that it wasn't him I spoke to but he really doesn't care. The store looked wonderful (on the inside) but the negative experience was not worth it. Got the book new at chapters for $10 from a friendly salesperson.

If I could give no stars I would but unfortunately this is not an option. I am astounded he is still in business considering how disrespectful he is. I went in hankering for a some new good read and left empty
handed and filled with complete shock at how rude I was treated for absolutely no reason.