Customer Service

About Northwest Passages

Northwest Passages is the world's only bookstore specializing solely in Canadian fiction, poetry, drama, and literary criticism. By focusing on such a specific niche, we are committed to being the complete antithesis of the online superstores; rather than trying to address some of the needs of everyone, we have chosen to focus on all of the needs of a particular group of readers. By staying within our area of expertise, we can work to meet our goal of providing excellent, informative, and highly personalised service to our customers, something the superstores are simply unable and unwilling to achieve.

Ordering books from Northwest Passages

The easiest way to place an order with us is to do so electronically. Search our database, choose the title(s) you wish to purchase, and click on the buy button. When you reach the checkout, you will arrive at the site of our affiliate, Netcheckout.com, where you will be able to place your orders and submit your payment information in a 100% secure setting. If you wish, you may also place your order by phone, fax, or e-mail. If placing an order by e-mail, NEVER send your credit card number. We will contact you after we receive your order and direct you to call or fax us with that information.

We can be reached in the following ways:

• orders and customer service: info@nwpassages.com
• by phone: 1.877.7CANLIT (N. America toll-free), 1.604.254.1972
• by fax: 1.604.251.4774
• by mail: 2507 Franklin St, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V5K 1X5

Northwest Passages accepts payment by VISA, Mastercard, and money orders payable in either Canadian or US funds.

Sarah Bagshaw is in charge of customer service and order fulfillment. As our many regular customers already know, Sarah is always happy to answer any questions you might have about your order or about any of the books listed on our site. Because we are an online bookstore, we do work irregular hours and are sometimes unavailable to answer the phone. In such cases, we will respond to your message as quickly as possible.

We value all of our customers and will always go out of our way to help you find the books you want.

RETURNS

Individuals can return books with 10 days of receving them for a full refund of the cost of the book. We are happy to provide replacements of books damaged in transit. Returns must be shipped by Canada Post or the US Postal Service and must be clearly marked as "RETURNING MERCHANDISE". We will NOT accept international returns (US and rest of the world) shipped by courier companies as they charge customs clearing fees. Items returned by courier will be returned to sender.

For institutional returns please see our institutional services page.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

While we are always happy to answer any questions about Canadian books and Canadian literature in general, PLEASE consult the following list of questions we get asked on a near daily basis in case the answer you need is right here.

Q: There's a book that I want, but I don't see it listed in your database.
A: If it's currently in print, we can bring it in for you. If it falls within our mandate, we'll also make sure to add it to our database immediately. Please contact us if there's a book you want but don't see on our website.

Q: I am a book publisher/author and would like my books listed on your website.
A: Please e-mail us at info@nwpassages.com and we will instruct you on how to get your books on our site as quickly as possible.

Q: I want to pay with a card other than Visa or Mastercard, but you do not accept it. Why?
A: While we are unable to process other credit cards, we now accept Paypal. PayPal allows anyone with an e-mail address to send or receive money securely via their credit card (Visa, American Express, and Discover) or bank account. This free and easy-to-use service is available in 38 countries and has over 25 registered million users. To obtain a PayPal account, simply visit www.paypal.com.

Q: The prices on the site are all in Canadian dollars, but I want to pay with my non-Canadian credit card? How does that work?
A: When we put a transaction through on your card, we charge the amount in Canadian dollars. Your credit card company then processes the transaction and calculates the cost in your currency based on the current exchange rate.

Q: Dear [insert name of any author for whom Northwest Passages has written a profile page], I'm so glad to see you are now on the Internet. Would you please come to read at my upcoming event/tell me what you were thinking when you wrote [insert name of famous novel]/send me, by tomorrow morning, an explanation of the water imagery in your book [insert the name of famous novel]?
A: You've reached Northwest Passages, not the personal website of your favourite author. To contact any of the authors listed on our site, you will need to contact them via their publisher. We have the most extensive set of Canadian literary links on our links page and will likely have a link to the website of the publisher you are looking for.

Q: Dear Northwest Passages, please send me a plot summary/series of photocopied articles/analysis of the water/fire/childbirth theme in [insert name of famous novel being taught in a course being taken by the sender of the e-mail].
A: While Paul Martin does have a PhD in Canadian literature, he can only point you to some sources you could read for further information on this topic. His fee for writing other people's essays is $5000, or $10 000 for people who are willing to pay $5 000.

Q: Dear Northwest Passages, the next time you are talking to Rohinton Mistry, would you please tell him how much A Fine Balance changed my life?
A: Um... no. Seriously, though, we rarely have any extended personal contact with the writers whose books we sell. To contact your favourite writer, send all letters, e-mails, and unusual requests to their publishers, NOT to Northwest Passages.

Q: Dear Northwest Passages, I am a permissions and research editor from a major American press, please send me permission to include a short story by Alice Munro in an upcoming book.
A: We are not a publisher, we are a bookseller. For all foreign rights inquiries, please contact the author's publisher. A research editor, eh? :) Sorry, we couldn't resist.