Basically Books

Basically Books More than a Bookstore! Open 10-5, Mon-Sat. Closed Sunday. Historic Downtown Hilo. Special orders are available.

A family owned specialty bookstore that focuses on Hawaii with books about Hawaii, Hawaiian Music CDs and DVDs, maps of Hawaii and the world, books in Hawaiian, children's books and toys, island-themed gifts, and souvenirs. A selection of classic and popular fiction and books by local authors can be found.

On this day in history: On June 14th, 1900, the Territorial Government of Hawai'i officially began. Sanford B. Dole was ...
06/14/2026

On this day in history: On June 14th, 1900, the Territorial Government of Hawai'i officially began. Sanford B. Dole was appointed the first Governor of the Territory of Hawai'i by President William Mckinley. Dole was later appointed as a district court judge until he retired in 1915. Learn more about Hawai'i's history at Basically Books.

06/13/2026

It’s just over a week until Father’s Day!
Don’t forget to show your fathers (dads, mentors, and dad-friends) some love.
Looking for a gift? We’ve got some suggestions from dad jokes to cookbooks to soaps to gadgets.

06/12/2026

Craft Night meets Silent Book Club!
Come hang out with other crafty audiobook lovers Monday evening at Basically Books on June 22nd from 4-6 pm.
Bring your own craft (or just come hang out) and your own audiobook.
Between books, or not yet discovered the joy of audiobooks?
We’re hosing this Audiobook Month event in conjunction with Libro.fm, and we’ll have a limited number of FREE audiobook credits on a first-come-first-serve basis!
Please RSVP on our Facebook event page so we know you’re coming!

Happy King Kamehameha Day!
06/11/2026

Happy King Kamehameha Day!

Support your local library this summer and win some awesome prizes! Join the Hawai'i State Public Library Summer Reading...
06/10/2026

Support your local library this summer and win some awesome prizes! Join the Hawai'i State Public Library Summer Reading Program (June 1st-July 31st) for your chance to win books, gift cards, and other amazing prizes from reading 8 books OR reading for 800 minutes. Reaching certain goals also puts you in the grand prize drawing! Learn more about the program at librarieshawaii.org/summerreading/!

Make learning fun this summer with some of the awesome educational toys at Basically Books! ...
06/09/2026

Make learning fun this summer with some of the awesome educational toys at Basically Books!

NEW at Basically Books! Find "HIKT Hiker Guide to the Big Island, Hawai'i" with the hiking and travel guide books at Ba...
06/08/2026

NEW at Basically Books! Find "HIKT Hiker Guide to the Big Island, Hawai'i" with the hiking and travel guide books at Basically Books! This book has detailed instructions on hiking Hawai'i Islands King's Trail. Find this book and so much more at Basically Books!

06/07/2026

Punctuation fun.

June 7th-13th is National Garden Week! Find so many amazing gardening books at Basically Books! ...
06/07/2026

June 7th-13th is National Garden Week! Find so many amazing gardening books at Basically Books!

06/06/2026

We love audiobooks, and now we’re partnered with .fm so you can get your audiobook fix, and support your local bookstore at the same time!
Libro.fm offers both memberships and a la carte purchases, a portion of which comes back to your designated local bookstore. (Us? 😏)
June is also Audiobook appreciation month, and libro.fm is offering a variety of incentives including an extra credit if you sign up for an annual plan, or 3 credits for the price of 1 with code SWITCH.

Address

334 Kilauea Avenue
Hilo, HI
96720

Opening Hours

Monday 10am - 6pm
Tuesday 10am - 6pm
Wednesday 10am - 6pm
Thursday 10am - 6pm
Friday 10am - 6pm
Saturday 10am - 6pm
Sunday 10am - 3pm

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