This North Carolina Used-Book Paradise Is So Loved People Drove Nearly 570 Miles For It

Book lovers know the danger of saying, “I’ll only be in there for ten minutes.”

That promise has absolutely no authority here.

Somewhere in North Carolina, a used-book store has enough shelves to make time disappear without warning. One aisle turns into another, then another, and suddenly the afternoon is looking very negotiable.

The real fun is not knowing what will show up next.

A title you forgot existed can stop you cold. Something completely random can become the best find of the day.

That unpredictability is what keeps people wandering.

You may arrive looking for one book and leave with a stack that needs both arms.

At that point, the only thing left to do is accept what happened. The store won.

And honestly, book lovers probably will not mind.

Give Yourself Plenty Of Time Because These Shelves Keep Going

Comfortable shoes suddenly make a lot of sense once you see how much ground there is to cover.

McKay’s moved its Winston-Salem store to 745 Jonestown Road in 2020, expanding well beyond its smaller former location. The larger building provides plenty of room for an extensive selection of books and other media.

Inside, books remain organized into categories that make focused browsing possible, but sticking to one category can be surprisingly difficult when music, movies, games, toys, electronics, and collectibles are waiting elsewhere.

McKay’s itself describes each visit as unpredictable because everything on the shelves originated with other customers.

That means you can search efficiently if you have a particular genre in mind, yet wandering is arguably more interesting. Current summer hours help with that approach: through Labor Day, McKay’s is open from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday.

There is little reason to rush.

You Can Trade Your Old Books For Credit Toward New Finds

Bring a box from home and your bookshelf can help finance its own replacement. McKay’s operates a formal buy-and-trade system in which customers submit eligible items for evaluation and receive an offer that may include cash or McKay’s Trade, the company’s version of store credit.

Books are only the beginning.

The current acceptance list covers books, comics, manga, textbooks, CDs, records, DVDs, Blu-rays, and other media. McKay’s also accepts items such as LEGO, puzzles, games, consoles, electronics, cameras, phones, tablets, and musical instruments.

To submit an order, customers place their items in McKay’s provided totes and receive an order number from the greeter desk. Larger submissions follow a separate process, and wait times can vary.

McKay’s also notes that offers are not negotiable and that valid government-issued identification is required before payment can be collected. Store credit can be used on merchandise at McKay’s locations except gift cards.

The system is particularly handy for readers who have finished a stack of books and would rather turn that shelf space into another round of browsing than let everything collect dust at home.

Dig Through Used Titles Without Knowing What You Will Find

Forget checking an online inventory before you leave home. McKay’s specifically says it cannot tell customers whether a particular item is currently in stock, and there is a straightforward reason for that: the merchandise comes from what other people bring in.

One afternoon might produce several books by an author you collect, while the next visit could steer you toward a completely different corner of the store.

Fiction and nonfiction share the broader inventory with children’s books, young-adult titles, manga, graphic novels, comics, textbooks, cookbooks, and other categories.

That constant customer-driven turnover is much more defensible than promising rare treasures or rock-bottom prices in every aisle. You may find an unexpected bargain, but price and scarcity depend entirely on the item in front of you.

Browsing works best when the search is flexible. Start with an author, subject, or genre, then give yourself permission to abandon the plan when something unfamiliar catches your attention.

A used bookstore built around incoming trades naturally rewards that kind of curiosity. Half the enjoyment comes from finding what you wanted.

The other half comes from discovering something you did not know to look for.

Look Beyond Books For Records Games Movies And Collectibles

Turn away from the novels for a few minutes and the “bookstore” label starts feeling much too narrow.

McKay’s buys and sells music, movies, games, electronics, collectibles, and musical instruments alongside its books. The selection includes vinyl records, DVDs, Blu-rays, LEGO, puzzles, gaming systems, board games, figures, and more.

The Winston-Salem store has also promoted used guitars, keyboards, and brass instruments through its own social channels. Because virtually all of this merchandise arrives through customer trades, the selection can swing dramatically between visits.

One week might be especially good for records, while another could turn up a board game or older game system that was nowhere to be seen last time.

That variability is more interesting than claiming every decade, console, or collectible category will always be fully represented.

Serious collectors may not find the exact piece they want on demand, but they have a reason to keep checking. Someone who arrived only to browse paperbacks can easily lose another hour among records, games, toys, or instruments.

At McKay’s, books may be the foundation, but they are nowhere near the whole building.

Check Different Sections Twice Because Inventory Changes Constantly

Circle back if you have time, especially if you are already waiting for a trade order to be evaluated. McKay’s inventory is shaped by incoming customer merchandise rather than by a fixed catalogue, and new orders arrive continually as people bring items to sell or trade.

That does not mean an empty shelf will magically refill in the hour between your first and second pass, but it does mean the store is unusually fluid compared with a conventional bookstore receiving standardized shipments.

Today’s selection reflects what people in and around the region recently decided to part with.

Tomorrow’s may look noticeably different. The company even warns shoppers that it cannot confirm whether a particular title or item is currently available because stock changes too quickly for that kind of service.

Regular visits therefore make more sense here than they might at a store carrying the same new releases month after month. Look through your favorite genre first, wander somewhere completely unrelated, and return later if you still have browsing energy.

The worst result is that nothing changed. The better result is spotting an item you overlooked on the first pass or discovering something that had not reached the shelf when you initially walked through.

See Why Hundreds Of Fans Once Turned McKay’s Into A 568-Mile Road Trip

July 9, 2024 turned McKay’s loyalty into something measurable in highway miles.

McKay’s celebrated its 50th anniversary with the Ultimate McKay’s Road Trip across all five locations operating at the time. Adults collected stamps in Mebane and Winston-Salem, North Carolina, along with Knoxville, Chattanooga, and Nashville, Tennessee.

Completing all five stops that day earned cumulative prizes totaling $800 in McKay’s Trade along with commemorative items. The end-to-end route was widely reported at roughly 568 miles and around nine to ten hours of driving before accounting for stops.

Hundreds of people showed up, with particularly large crowds developing in North Carolina. Participation became so intense that McKay’s issued updated instructions during the event to help manage the situation.

Fans were celebrating the entire McKay’s chain, and Winston-Salem formed one chapter of an unusually ambitious bookstore pilgrimage.

Knoxville has since closed, leaving four current McKay’s locations, but the 2024 event remains an impressive demonstration of the following the company had built over five decades.

Bring A Wish List But Expect To Leave With Something Completely Different

Write down what you need, then prepare to ignore at least part of the list. McKay’s cannot guarantee inventory because its shelves depend on customer trades, which makes a rigid shopping mission less reliable here than at a conventional bookstore ordering specific new titles from a distributor.

You could arrive hoping for one novel and instead spend the afternoon comparing vinyl records, looking through manga, checking board games, or wondering whether an unexpected musical instrument would fit in the car.

That unpredictability is not a flaw in the business model; it is essentially the point.

McKay’s began with the idea of recirculating previously owned materials, and the current trade system still sends one customer’s finished book, game, record, or movie back onto the shelves for someone else.

A wish list remains useful because the store is large enough that some direction helps, but leave space for discovery.

There is also no guarantee that an unfamiliar item is objectively rare or an unbeatable bargain, so browse with the same judgment you would use anywhere else. The best surprise is simply finding something interesting enough that you are glad the original plan changed.

Lose An Afternoon In The Kind Of Bookstore That Rewards Wandering

Eventually you stop checking the time and start checking the next aisle. That is probably the clearest way to describe the appeal of McKay’s Winston-Salem without turning it into something mystical.

The store puts books beside music, movies, games, toys, collectibles, electronics, and instruments, while the customer-driven inventory means there is always a practical reason to explore beyond the section you know best.

Families can split toward different interests, collectors can revisit favorite categories, and solo browsers can move through the store without needing an itinerary.

Current summer hours are generous, with doors open from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Sunday. Starting Labor Day, Monday through Thursday shifts to a 9 p.m. closing while Friday and Saturday remain open until 10.

The official address is 745 Jonestown Road, Winston-Salem, NC 27103, and the current phone number is 336-606-3559. You do not need to recreate a 568-mile anniversary road trip to understand the enthusiasm.

One long browse through the Winston-Salem store makes the much simpler case for returning.