Welcome to Helen’s Book Mark…
The Book Mark was started as a paperback book exchange in 1974 by Elaine Fitzgerald and changed hands to Helen Boyd in 2017.
As a long-term customer, I am dedicated to expanding the foundation we were built on in a community of readers old and young. 2024 celebrates 50 years of selling books and puzzles to people from Escondido, San Diego, across the country and around the world so that they “Can Dream With Their Eyes Wide Open” every time they read a book.
What has changed and what has remained the same?
We still are a 95% paperback fiction bookstore but based on customer’s request we are continuing to expand our vintage, hardback, non-fiction, and biographies sections. If you don’t like to keep your books or puzzles, we offer an exchange program. It allows you to bring books and puzzles in for credit, which you then can use to get a discount on select purchases.
If you have large quantities of books to donate (over 2 boxes at a time) please call ahead of time to set up an appointment. Please specify if you are looking to get store exchange credit or if it is a straight donation.
We are dedicated to curating a well-organized, well-stocked, and fun store so that you can walk away with exactly what books or puzzles your heart desires.
We invite you to come on in, grab a book, sit down, and enjoy.
Looking for a special book?
Ask about our BOLO program (Book on the Look Out) if we don’t have a book on your wish list in stock.
Characters:
Helen – Owner – Serving our customers since 2017
- Fun Facts…
- Favorite Childhood Books: The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, Little Women, and Gone with the Wind
- Favorite Genres: Novels, Historical Novels, Gothic and Suspense
- Favorite Authors: Dorothea Benton Frank, Marie Benedict, Riley Sager, Wendy Webb
- Favorite Book Mark Memories: Watching Bella and LuLu Belle interact with everyone and meeting new customers
Lauren – Novels – Serving our customers since 2025
- Fun Facts…
- Favorite Childhood Books: The Babysitters Club and Dr. Seuss
- Favorite Genres: Love Stories, Historical Fiction
- Favorite Authors: Colleen Hoover, Kristin Hannah and Anthony Doerr
- Favorite Book Mark Memory: Basically shocking Helen with a witty comeback. But most of all having my kids be just as excited as I am to be at the bookstore.
