Books in Stardew Valley are a fantastic resource for increasing skill EXP and gaining permanent character buffs. However, finding them requires digging artifact spots for books or purchasing them from a bookseller. Here’s how to find a bookseller in Stardew Valley.
Where is the Bookseller in Stardew Valley?
The bookseller is an NPC in Stardew Valley located on the northeast side of town, just north of the museum and JojaMart. Upon reaching JojaMart, you’ll find a stairway leading directly to the bookseller. However, you can only access this vendor on days when the bookseller is visiting town, which you can check by looking for a notification in the bottom-left side of your screen or by checking your calendar for a blue hot air balloon icon.
Once you find the bookseller, you can purchase or trade in books. Buying books allows you to pay a one-time flat gold fee, ranging from a few thousand to over 25,000 gold. Although it’s a hefty fee, the skill and perk benefits often outweigh this. Alternatively, you can trade in books in exchange for items. The items you use to exchange books include cooked dishes, rare items for valuable books, and materials like wood, coal, and bait for skill books.
The book options change each time the bookseller visits, with duplicates having a thumbs-up icon to avoid you buying them twice. The exception to this is skill books, which you can read repeatedly for multiple EXP boosts. If you read a skill book but have a maxed-out skill, you’ll gain mastery points instead. In other words, you’ll have to revisit the bookseller multiple times to get mastery quickly or unlock every book perk.