If the name of the shop is written in english then they should speak english, yes! A pokey shithole trying to give the impression of a quaint li'l ole bookshop. Pig-ignorant staff, never been greeted with a smile there, nor even greeted. If you must shop here, bring your own bag. 1 star earned for selection and the (for me) convenient location.

You expect them to speak English in a shop called MANDARIN books?

Yea this place blows big time. When I was in Beijing you could get all sorts of books at basically the cover price converted from US dollars to RMB, but at that hole in the wall it can be as much as three times the cover price. I got sick of the human security cam that follows you around on the second floor but can't speak two words of English to assist you. I do Amazon.cn or just do without anymore. Not even a cool browse feeling there and of course they imagine they are so hip and cool. Bad selection. Lazy cashiers. Even try to sell old, damaged books at a rip off price. Still drop in with my wife from time to time to get a little notebook but that is about it.

Agree with previous poster. The shop has a good selection, but in itself is so tiny you feel like you will knock things over every time you move.

Books here seem very pricey. I have been to other bookstores with foreign books for sale, the prices are nowhere near as high as Mandarin books.

This is a nice bookstore with a great selection of materials - specifically on minority languages and cultures. One thing that's very off-putting for me though, is that it is incredibly tight. There's no room to move at all.