Located in the heart of downtown Lincoln, just two blocks from the University of Nebraska city campus, we are surrounded by coffee shops, restaurants, and boutique retailers. Make a day of it: grab a bite, have a drink, ride the trolley. Lose yourself & find treasures!

In 1991, college seniors Cinnamon Dokken and Bryan Peterson took a leap of faith and opened A Novel Idea Bookstore with a stock of 2000 books. Shelves were made from scrap lumber.

~Making an In-Store Appointment~ Please email us photos of your books ~ group shots, so we can see the spines. If your books are a good fit for our store, we will offer you an appointment for you to bring them in.

Within the continental US, shipping/handling rates (media mail) are $3.99 for the first book & $1 for each additional book. Heavy items will cost more – but we will always try to make you the best deal possible on all orders.

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I’ve worked in the bookstore my entire life, having been trained by the Master Bookstore Cat, Eddy. In my 5 years here, I’ve learned that the customers really come here to see me and that the stack of Shakespeare books on the high window shelf is a comfy place to sleep.

We’ll be open ’til 7:30pm on Friday night. PARRISH STUDIOS is having gallery openings upstairs, 7pm-10pm. Take a break from the heat and get some artistic inspiration in the AC! Thanks to everybody helping with ZooFest – it’s an iconic music festival and one of Lincoln’s treasured traditions. We love being a part of it!

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Sep 18, 2020 · We talked about culturally responsive reading in the context of book clubs and used The Help as an example of a book that sanitizes the South of the 1960’s. It’s hard to know what we don’t know – but reading a variety of book reviews can help broaden our perspective.

About 6 years ago, A Novel Idea (along with the Sheldon Art Gallery, the UNL libraries and music departments, and the Journal Star) took a week to celebrate one of Nebraska’s lesser known artists.