Been in a couple of bookstores in kunming but not came across any with english language books...
Anybody know one that I could visit, just looking for some Chinese language help books, maybe local history/culture to!

XinHua on RenminLu, opposite Carrefour. On the top floor there is an area under the upper mezzanine floor that has international and language learning section.
Manadarin books on WenHua Xiang has many foreign language books.
One of the cafes on Wenlin Jie as you go towards the Uni has a book store.
Also do a search on this site, there is a book seller who often puts up notices on here.

Thanks for advice, will check out today. :)

Lol I just found out my girlfriends cousin is the manager of that xinhua store, she didn't know they sold apparently as I'd already asked her where to get :)

Nice thing about Mandarin is that the people who own it actually read, and know about the books they sell, unlike any staff you may find in most bookstores in China. Mandarin has also published some English-language books (often through Hong Kong), and plans to continue doing so. The regular staff at Mandarin, on the other hand, perhaps don't do so much reading.

Think I'll check out that mandarin books on wenhua Xiang tomorrow as didn't have to much luck with xinhua when it came to learning chinese books!

loada chinese learning books and other stuff on torrents.

Be going back to uk for a month soon so make sure I bring my laptop back with me this time as downloading some from torrents sounds best way forward :o)
Simple idea not thought of as usual lol

We have bookshelves with used English books in Vintage Cafe (on Wen Lin Jie across from the elementary school), Prague Cafe, Beichen and Silver Spoon, also on Beichen's Pedestrian Walkway. We have some books about Chinese culture and one or two books about Chinese language study. Write us at thebookexchangekunming@gmail.com for more specific info.

Vintage Books/Prague Beichen Books/Silver Spoon Books

Here are China-related books at Silver Spoon Books:
Searching for Shangri-la, by Laurence J. Brahm
A Bitter Revolution, by Rana Mitter
The Summer Palace: Long Corridor Pictures by Li Nianpei
K: The Art of Love, by Hong Ying
Mainland China After the Thirteenth Party Congress, by King-yuh Chang
Three Novellas, by Fang Fang
The True Story of Ah Q, by Lu Xun
1421: The Year China Discovered America, by Gavin Menzies
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, by Lisa See
Understanding Confucius, by Ding Wangdao
Think Like Chinese, by Zhang Haihua and Geoff Baker
China Wakes, by Nicholas Kristof & Sheryl Wudunn
China Entrepreneur, by Juan Fernandez & Laurie Underwood
The Traveler's Guide to Asian Customs & Manners, by Elizabeth Devine & Nancy L. Braganti
The United States and China, by John King Fairbank
Red Star Over China, by Edgar Snow
Stillwell and the American Experience in China 1911-1945, by Barbara W. Tuchman
The House of Lim: A Study of a Chinese Farm Family, by Margery Wolf
Analects of Confuscius, by Various Authors
The Girl Who Played Go, by Shan Sa
Will the Boat Sink the Water, by Chen Guidi and Wu Chuntao
China Pop, by Jianying Zha
Awakening to Tao, by Liu I-Ming
The Great Wall, by John Man
Chinese at a Glance, by Barron's,

The Hundred Secret Senses, by Amy Tan,

When A Billion Chinese Jump, by Jonathan Watts,

The Mah-Jongg Spies, by John Trenhaile,

Mao's Last Dancer, by Li Cunxin,

Here are China-related books available at Vintage Books:
The Story of Mencius, by Cao Raode and Cao Xiaomei
Study on the Problems of Rural and Agricultural Development in the Reform Process of Poland and China, by Various Authors
Slow Boats to China, by Gavin Young
A Certain Smile, by Judith Michael
The Warlord, by Malcom Bosse
A Fortune-Teller Told Me, by Tiziano Terzani
My Country and My People, by Lin Yutang
Myself a Mandarin, by Austin Coates
The Easternization of the West, by Colin Campbell
Eat a Bowl of Tea, by Louis Chu
Inequality and Poverty in China In the Age of Globalization, by Azizur Khan & Carl Riskin
The Chinese Alchemist, by Lyn Hamilton
Behind the Wall: A Journey Through China, by Colin Thubron
Opening Up, by James Farrer
Family Catastrophe, by Wang Wen-Hsing
Live & Work in China, by Jocelyn Kan & Hakwan Lau
Practical Traditional Chinese Medicine & Pharmacology, by Geng Junying & Su Zhihong
Naxi Pictographs Copybook, by He Limin
Ethnic Minority Issues in Yunnan, by Sam Mitchell
China's Minority Nationalities, by Ma Yin
Shanghai's Best Restaurants 2007`, by Shanghai Tatler
Food in China, by Zhongli Tumei
One Billion Customers, by James McGregor
Will the Boat Sink the Water?, by Chen Guidi & Wu Chuntao
Chinese Business Etiquette, by Scott D. Seligman
Wolf Totem, by Jiang Rong
Biting the Bamboo, by Dr. Tan Lai Yong
Outlines of Chinese Symbolism & Art Motives, by C.A.S. Williams
The Aristocratic Families in Tibetan History, by Tsering Yangdzom
Lost Horizon, by James Hilton
The Continuing Heart Cry for China, by Ross Patterson
Chinese Character Fast Finder, by Laurence Matthews
Confessions of a Taoist on Wall Street, by David Payne

Here are China-related books at Prague Café, Beichen:
River Town, by Peter Hessler
Oracle Bones, by Peter Hessler
The Writing on the Wall: China and the West in the 21st Century, by Will Hutton
A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers, by Xiaolu Guo
The Coming Collapse of China, by Gordon G. Chang
Stick Out Your Tongue, by Ma Jian
Iron & Silk, by Mark Salzman
China Asean Relations, by Theresa C. Carino
My Country and My People, by Lin Yu Tang
A Glimpse of the Chinese Culture, by Feng Lingyu & Shi Weimin
The Joy Luck Club, by Amy Tan