Hard To Find Books

Over thirty years of rare, collectable and interesting books!

The very first Hard To Find (But Worth The Effort) Quality Secondhand Bookshop opened in 1983 in a garage in Ponsonby, then as a store in 1984 when Warwick relocated a small part of his book collection to a basement in the south Auckland suburb of Onehunga. Intended as a supplement to his hand-operated letterpress printing and publishing business (Hard Echo Press), the shop was a popular success. It moved to a street frontage in 1988, gained employees, and steadily grew and improved.

More than 30 years on,they are the largest privately owned bookstores in New Zealand (Auckland and Dunedin) stocking around 500,000 titles.

Even now, Warwick will react with surprise if you call him a "businessman." He doesn’t own a suit and still prefers to go barefoot. He attributes the continued success of the bookstores to quality books, realistic prices (both buying and selling), quality personal friendly service with integrity, a genuine passion for books, and the strengths and loyalty of a dedicated and talented team of employees.

The Internet business is constantly expanding, with over 118,000 books online as at July 2017, and many more to add. In recent years the business has also returned slightly to its publishing roots, assisting in the hardcover first editions of several authors (both NZ and International) including Mark Danielewski (USA), Elizabeth Knox, Rupert Morgan (UK), Tom Petsinis (AUS), Anthony McCarten and Craig Marriner.