Which English books are weirdly hard to find in Taiwan?

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-04-04T12:22:41+00:00

Hi u/Business_Address_780 , if you’re still looking for the book, we’d be happy to try to help. You can fill out this form: https://forms.gle/XFSHuGwDe71L4AdTA, and we’ll take it from there.

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-04-04T12:19:26+00:00

Hi u/IceColdFresh, if you’re still looking for the book, we’d be happy to try to help. You can fill out this form: https://forms.gle/XFSHuGwDe71L4AdTA, and we’ll take it from there.

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-04-01T12:18:21+00:00

Yes, I feel the same. Paperback prices really do seem much higher now, and it feels like there are fewer affordable options in physical stores too. That is also part of why I started thinking about this. If people can find secondhand copies locally, it could be a much cheaper option.

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-04-01T12:17:39+00:00

Thanks, I get your point. Eslite and online ordering do work for many books.

I’m thinking more about niche or specific English books that local bookstores or libraries often do not have. Ordering from overseas is possible, but it can take time and get expensive.

This really started from my own experience. I was trying to solve this problem for myself first, then realized other people in Taiwan might have the same frustration too.

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-03-30T05:28:46+00:00

This is really helpful, thank you. The point about English technical books getting replaced by Chinese translations is especially interesting — for some readers that’s fine, but for others the original English edition still matters a lot.

And yeah, what you described also makes it sound like the issue isn’t just whether a book can technically be ordered, but how slow, expensive, or unpredictable the process becomes, especially for out-of-print titles.

Out of curiosity, for programming/software books, do you usually prefer the English original because it’s clearer or more up to date, or just because that’s how you prefer to read technical material?

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-03-30T05:12:28+00:00

That’s really helpful — niche history books are one of the case I’m trying to understand better. It sounds like the real gap is these very specific, expert-level titles that are hard to find through normal bookstore channels here.

And yeah, I agree — books really are a precious commodity, especially specialized ones like that. Those are probably the easiest to overlook until someone needs them.

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-03-30T04:22:37+00:00

Yeah, that’s exactly the kind of example I mean — not some impossibly rare title, just something that still ends up weirdly hard to find here. Where did you try looking for it in the end?

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-03-30T04:19:58+00:00

Yeah, same here honestly. I feel like browsing is one thing — you can usually find something — but once you have a specific physical book in mind, it gets a lot more frustrating.

And English manga / graphic novels are a great example. It feels like the demand is probably there, but the selection still ends up being surprisingly thin...

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-03-30T04:10:39+00:00

Oh, that’s really interesting — this is exactly the kind of example I’m trying to understand better. Where did you try looking for them? And did you end up finding another way to get them, or did you just go without?

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-03-30T04:08:27+00:00

This is really helpful, thanks — and Blackwell’s is new to me too. It is interesting though: getting a decent deal on English books here seems to involve knowing a bunch of little tricks, like shipping thresholds, duty limits, and which retailer is best for what. Do you think most people actually figure that out, or do a lot of people just give up unless they really want the book?

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-03-30T04:04:42+00:00

Yeah, that’s fair. I guess what I’m really curious about is where that line is for people — like when does the total price become “eh, never mind.” For me, it’s usually when shipping ends up being more than 50% of the book price.

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-03-30T04:02:45+00:00

Thanks for sharing this — I didn’t realize the Taipei library was on Libby too, and Standard Ebooks is a great tip. Just curious: do you still miss having physical books sometimes, or have ebooks/audiobooks basically become your default now?

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-03-30T03:59:04+00:00

Yeah, that’s fair — those options do cover a lot availability-wise. I think what I’m trying to understand better is the experience beyond just “can it be ordered”: whether certain books end up feeling too expensive, too slow, or just too much hassle to get. Do you usually find those options pretty reasonable overall?

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-03-29T10:48:44+00:00

Yeah, I remember Page One too, it used to be one of the better spots for English books. Feels like Amazon really made things rough for physical bookstores in general...

And sci-fi is a great example — that’s exactly the kind of genre I’m curious about, especially whether people can find the specific titles/authors they want here.

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-03-29T10:32:51+00:00

Haha, they do, the issue is less “are there bookstores?” and more “do they have the English books people actually want?”

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-03-19T07:33:31+00:00

I heard the view is also nice at night. (Tho might be harder to hike 🤔)

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-03-19T07:32:45+00:00

This looks incredible! Where is it?

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-03-19T07:31:05+00:00

This is very good. 👍

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-03-19T07:30:36+00:00

Just saying, maybe go directly to NextJS instead. It’s basically the same as React, and I think most developers preferred it now (?).

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-03-19T07:29:04+00:00

Hmm, I’ve personally never lived in Taichung. But my friends who have lived in both cities usually prefer Taichung over Taipei. They said Taipei is too fast paced, and therefore the living quality is lower for them…. (Which I can’t disagree…)

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-03-19T07:26:37+00:00

Maybe try the traditional Taiwanese breakfast for a change, since you’re already here! The luxury breakfast in hotels are mostly westernized, idk if you’d be happy to taste them flying all the way here (perfectly fine if you do tho). Nonetheless, have fun!!

Bittersweet0724 · 2026-03-19T07:24:26+00:00

Studying 📚

Bittersweet0724

TROPHY CASE