A Book Apart Brief books for people who make websites

Frequently Asked Questions

Where’s my book?

Orders ship within 24 hours of being placed. Shipping time in the US is usually less than a week; in the UK and Canada, shipping time is generally 7-10 business days. Elsewhere in Europe, shipping time can be 3-4 weeks. To all other locations, please allow 4-6 weeks for your book to arrive.

Where do you ship to?

We ship books worldwide.

What do you charge for shipping?

Shipping is calculated during checkout after you enter your shipping address; you will be able to review the shipping charges before placing your order. In the US, you may choose between the USPS or UPS for shipping for small orders; for orders over 10 books in the US, UPS shipping is required. Outside the US, orders ship via the USPS.

Note that we charge for shipping in line with our costs, and work to keep those costs as low as we can. International shipping prices are higher than we would like them to be, and we are looking into other options to reduce these costs — including a European distributor. But for now, the USPS remains the most affordable way to get physical books to you around the world.

What’s my tracking number?

For orders shipped via the USPS, no tracking information is provided; for orders shipped via UPS, tracking information will be sent to you when the order is shipped.

How do you handle international customs, taxes, or duties?

We attach the appropriate customs forms to every international shipment and clearly label the contents as “books;” many countries do not levy customs taxes on the importation of books, so in most cases, no customs fees will be applied. That said, any import taxes charged by the destination country are your responsibility. Customs policies vary widely from country to country so if you have any concerns before you order, we recommend that you contact your local customs office.

Oops! I gave you the wrong shipping address.

Ok; let us know your order number and the correct address, and we’ll do our best to get it fixed up for you. Orders ship out very quickly, so there’s no guarantee we’ll be able to make corrections to an order before it ships.

I have a shipping address with non-Latin characters. Can you ship to it?

Unfortunately, we can only accept addresses using the Latin alphabet due to the rules of our shipping partners. All non-Latin character addresses will result in the order being non-deliverable.

I ordered the ebook. When will I get it?

Shortly after your order for the ebook goes through, you’ll receive an email with a link to download your book. Check your spam folder if you don’t see it right away.

My cat ate my ebook files. Can I download the ebook again?

Yes, of course. Just visit this page and enter your order number and the email address used to place the order. We’ll give you a new link to download the files.

My download link expired; how can I download my ebook?

Drop us a line with your order number (or the email address used to place the order), and we’ll reset your download link.

I have a coupon code. Where do I put it?

When you checkout, you can apply your coupon code after you enter your shipping and billing information (but before you confirm your order).

How can I read the ebook?

When you buy an ebook, you will receive three DRM-free file formats: ePub, Mobi, and PDF. Ebooks are accompanied by a readme file with instructions for installation on the more popular platforms. For ePub, you can use iBooks on your iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch, and Aldiko or Cool Reader on your Android devices. (Note, however, that ePubs containing video are only supported in iBooks on iOS devices.) Mobi works on all Kindle models, and Kindle for Mac or PC. PDFs can be read on Adobe Acrobat or Preview, as well as Sony Reader and Nook devices.

What is your return policy?

Neither paperbacks nor ebooks are returnable.

Do you sell to bookstores?

Yes, we sell to bookstores on a nonreturnable basis, at a 30% discount off the retail price; for details, please contact us.

Can I get a discount for my class or book club?

If you are assigning one of our books to your class or book club, we will be happy to provide a discount for your group. Coupon codes will work for a set amount of time and/or maximum number of orders. Please contact us with the details of your group and we’ll be happy to oblige.

Can I get a discount if I want to buy a lot of books?

Of course; if you are buying 10 books or more, we will be happy to provide a coupon code for a bulk discount. Drop us a line and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.