2nd Act Books is on the historic Charlottesville downtown mall, across from the Paramount Theater, at the location of the former Read It Again, Sam. The store carries thousands of hardback and paperback second-hand books in all genres. Parents can read to their children in the kids’ section, and teens and tweens can find hundreds of Young Adult titles. 

Having opened in 2019 and hung on during Covid, 2nd Act is proud to be celebrating its 3rd anniversary. Extensive community support allowed kept the doors open through the worst and the best of times.

Owner Daphne Spain taught in the Department of Urban and Environmental Planning at the University of Virginia for thirty years before retiring in 2016. While still teaching, she volunteered to dust books at Read It Again, Sam. And look where it got her -an academic’s ideal second act!

Interested in donating books or getting book credit?

If you are seeking credit, we accept two tote bags or two small boxes at a time. We are interested in mysteries, children’s books, fiction, history, and non-fiction of all types

We are NOT interested in:

Former library books, cracked spine books, travel (beyond five years old), hardbacks without dustjackets, underlined or highlighted books, diet books, self-help books, partisan politics, water-damaged books, romance novels, and books on business, computers, or finance.

If you need help delivering books, pull up to the loading zone on 3rd St. off Water St., put on your flashers, and call us at the number below so we can come out with a dolly. Weekdays after 2:00 PM are best unless other plans have been made.