/lit/ - Literature

>>21049944
Don't be a raging faggot, please.

>>21049944
not a bookstore
Library of Trinity College in Dublin

>>21049944
A bit touristy, but Shakespeare & Co in Paris.
Also, an esoteric bookstore in Bologna, Italy.
I wish I could visit the used bookstores in the United States.

I've never been to a bookstore. Except for tiny stores titled "Books" with 100 fiction + 30 nonfiction + a shelf of textbooks. So nothing like your magical used book caves with piles and heaps of stuff to rummage through.

>>21050098
Sad, you should.

My local bookstore, The Book Trader in Philadelphia. It's basically just a row home filled with narrow corridors of stacks of books, on two stories. It's mazelike and you can easily lose an entire afternoon just wandering the shelves. Plus they have a cat.

>>21050100
Incredibly sad, but i don't have any nearby

>>21049944
Not store, but library. The one i went to when i was a child. It had a book about wizard, which a child could understand but it went into incredible detail about templars, alchemy, Hermes trismegistus, pop culture parralels with real life history, et etc. One day when i went to get read the book once more, it was gone. I searched, i looked it up, but i couldnt find it. I remember the illustrations and what the book looked like. It had a title something like this "encyclopedia of wizards". No, its not the children's book "wizardology" if any of you thought about that. So yeah i would like to find that book one day. Also the library had lots and lots of rare fantasy books. Very nice.

>>21049944
I dont got to "magical bookstore" beause I'm not a woman or a raging faggot. You read cos you think its """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""Ascthetic""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""". fuck of pseudo.

>>21050104
Is that the one like 2 blocks off of 95 in old city? Think it’s 2nd street?

>>21049944
Not bookstore, but a library, and so far it's been Stanford's Green Library. Got permission to look at, touch, and study 500-year-old copies of the Bible at no charge and without ever being a student.

>>21050757

Is it "the encyclopedia of magic and alchemy" by rosemary ellen guiley

>>21049944
the scholastic book fair

>>21050104
>plus they have a cat
And people wonder why reading seems like a feminine hobby

>>21049944
There’s a book store in Venice that was really cool is incredibly old but I don’t remember what it was called. They have a kind of stair made out of books you can climb up in a back patio that gives you a look into the canal

>>21052007
Yes that’s the one
Check it out sometime phillyanon

>>21052099
Yeah I’ve been there. It’s the type of place to spend an afternoon. It’s like a maze and a little intimidating. I accidentally walked into the gay literature section and made awkward contact with some man. Every time I passed him later he would side eye me. I guess he thought I was a fag who got cold feet

There was a used bookstore on the University of Pennsylvania campus. I used to try to haggle prices with the owner. The owner was actually pretty knowledgeable about the books he was selling
‘Ah that’s classic Walter Benjamin. That’s a steal for 10 dollars.
It’s Blake’s complete poems of course it’s going to cost 12 dollars’
He must not have liked Ezra Pound because all he said was, ‘if you don’t like it don’t buy it.”

I’m not sure if it’s still open I haven’t been there since Covid hit
I’m still reluctant to risk it. Penn campus is infested with Asians and Asians are high risk for disease.

>>21052141
the fumes of upenn students huffing their own farts is enough of a hazard for me to stay far away from anything in university city

>>21052141
>>21052174
Philly meet up when?

>>21049944
Pic related, also:
>Von's in West Lafayette, IN
>Book Soup in Los Angeles, CA

>>21052078
based

>>21052189
dandelion, friday night

waterstones

The one that I work in. Just letting you all know I know when you browse lit. If you come up an ask for anything by Mishima you're outing yourself.

>>21049972
Good answer. Peabody Library in Baltimore is a close American attempt.

>>21050104
Gonna be in Philly for 5 weeks starting in October. I’m gonna check this out. Thanks brother. Any other good tips for Philly? I’m staying in rittenhouse area

>>21050104
Do you mean molly's? they have a cat too. I got this great Kant book when I was there with my gf

>>21049944
A very cluttered and disorganized used book store in Colorado. Felt lIke s huge fire code violation and idk what it used to be but had multiple elevation changes in the floors and illogical kinda twists and turns and along open spaces where you'd have people sitting in comfy chairs reading.

Powell's in Portland Oregon is cool

>>21052189
I’m visit soon phillyanon give me tips >>21052568
I’m staying right here until thanksgiving working semi-remotely. (Am i going to get stabbed? Semi-JK, I’ve already done this same gambit in DC/Baltimore/Atlanta so I’m not really scared of urbanity like most of the yards on this site). I have no friends in Philly. I’ve only been to get cheesesteaks in college. In the first two weeks I will have already been to every museum and park and all the tourist shit by then, so I’m looking for some good deep cut Philly stuff. Thanks.

>>21049944
The Book Thing in the ghetto of Baltimore. You can walk in and get as many books as you want completely for free. The only rule is that you absolutely cannot pay for the books. It's magical because on the drive there you see streets full of niggers (crack whores, homeless, thugs) but as soon as you enter, all the niggers disappear.

>>21052568
>>21052589
If you're into drinking, Monks Cafe is a national treasure, in Rittenhouse area. definitely check that out. great food too. You'll be safe enough in Center City/Rittenhouse/Old City/South Philly. I wouldn't bother with North Philly, unless you want to go to Fishtown, which is fun for a night out. West philly you can pretty much ignore. Hit up the Italian market, take a walk through reading terminal market as well, both are a good time. plenty of great food at both. stop at Yards for a pretzel and a beer. they've got good food there too. it's a fun city with plenty to do.

>>21052648
I feel like Philadelphia has an unfair reputation. When ever I’ve met someone from there in a different state they tend to be really cool and easy to get along with

>>21052611
hahaha

>>21050104
>My local bookstore, The Book Trader in Philadelphia. It's basically just a row home filled with narrow corridors of stacks of books, on two stories. It's mazelike and you can easily lose an entire afternoon just wandering the shelves. Plus they have a cat.
It’s a great bookstore, but that isn’t a rowhome.
It’s a former industrial building, that was likely built to house some sort of store or small industrial shop, given where it's located, and when the building was built.
Before the Book Trader was located in that location, it was on South Street in Philly, at the Northwest Corner of 5th and South,
although the inside looked somewhat similar,
crammed with mismatched bookshelves on two levels.
The owner had to move because the rent got fucking ridiculous, and the old building has probably only been occupied by other stores half the time since the BT left.

For new books I used to like Joseph Fox, but covid caused most of their walk in traffic to cease, and the corporate clients mostly stopped ordering books.
( J F survived having a fucking Borders literally around the corner for close to two decades, and then a B&N, in similar distance, and then hot killed by Covid)

This place half price books. You could purchase furry porn magazines, 10 dollar manga omnibuses, a playboy from the year you were born, Thomas Pynchon's collected works, a Nintendo 64, and a signed copies of a 90 year old book, all in one trip.

>>21052092
>plus they have a cat
>And people wonder why reading seems like a feminine hobby
Bookstore cats have been a thing for centuries.
The cats were supposedly there to prevent mice and tats from eating parchment and leather books and book coverings, or the paper books themselves.

>>21053107
My favorite Half Price Books died before or around COVID (unrelated, more to the issue of rent).
>located in a space that used to be a small department store, with lots of additions over the years
>multiple staircases to the second floor
>individual, small rooms with different genres
>always found winners, every time
I think HP Books is dying, they've closed a lot of stores, prices way out of whack, selection deteriorating.

>>21053141
>multiple staircases to the second floor
Ooohhh I wanna see that one

>prices way out of whack, selection deteriorating.

I've noticed this too, kind of frustrating to be honest. The area I'm in has five within short driving distance though, so I rotate frequently enough to find some choice stuff on occasion.

>>21052069
yes! thank you so much! i wish i could kiss you all over all night long! <3

>>21052219
Looks comfy as fuck

>>21052230
>dandelion
I moved out of PA a couple years back but I love this place, making me nostalgic anon. Place is just comfy. Great pick if you guys do have a meetup

>>21052219
Powell's was great. I visited twice when I was sent to Portland by my job. Just wandering the shelves and browsing was so much fun.

>>21049944
Barter Books, Alnwick, Northumberland. It's in an old Victorian train station. Pretty magical, lots of people milling about being pseudy but I like that so it's okay.
The town also has a charity bookshop which has all sorts, and if you're nice to the ladies there they will let you in the unsorted cupboards at the back to have a right good old rummage; Henry Williamson hard backs for a quid and all that.

The Charing Cross Road shops are pretty nice

>>21053095
"rowhome" was charitable but it sells the idea. it's a narrow, tight building.

>>21053194
Funny to see so many Phillyanons/former Philly anons in this thread.

>>21052230
Fuck I wish I could go. I would take a train from DC up to the philly station but I'm afraid I'd have to stay overnight in philly and leave the next morning. Wish I still had my car

>>21052092
What's your reasoning for cats being feminine?

>>21053465
That looks pretty nice

D G Wills in San Diego (La Jolla)

entire town is just a dozen bookshops and a couple cafes
occasional book fair when the weather's good
creaky wood flooring in ol' granite houses, very comfy

Logos in Santa Cruz was a wonderful bookstore. Really miss it now that it's gone.

>>21054439
Based

>>21050008
do you remember what the one in Bologna is called or where it is located? I'm going to Bologna soon and would like to visit.

>>21050008
>>21054738
was the one in Bologna by any chance Libreria Esoterica Ibis on Via Castiglione, 11/B, 40124 Bologna BO, Italy?

>>21054725
Damn, get fucking WRECKED Karen.

>>21054725

>>21052565
>Peabody Library in Baltimore
Surprised the Balti niggers haven't looted this yet.

>>21050104
>The Book Trader in Philadelphia
I've been there, and the owner is major faggot. Good selections, though.

>>21052611
>It's magical because on the drive there you see streets full of niggers (crack whores, homeless, thugs) but as soon as you enter, all the niggers disappear.
Imagine choosing to live in a shit stain of a city like Baltimore, Maryland.

>>21055074
I went there shortly after the Ukrainian invasion. I didn’t see any Dostoyevsky or Tolstoy. It’s a maze in there so I’m unsure if I just didn’t find it but they were absent in the fiction section

>>21055096
Big names get cleared out often at popular used book stores desu, especially in cities. there's always a market for them.

>>21050757
>>21052069
>>21053176
Sometimes this site still makes me smile.

>>21050104
I think about moving to Old City sometimes. If you're ever out near West Chester, there's an interesting store called Baldwin's Book Barn.

>>21052678
No, it's fair. Live here long enough and that becomes perfectly clear.

>>21055835
I love Old City but too expensive for me. Hell most of the city is now. I'm in south Philly paying 2019 rent since my landlord hasn't raised it in years but if ever chooses to normalize to today prices I'll have to find somewhere else. Maybe up near West Chester.

>>21049944
https://discord.gg/BcFm4Xhr

>>21054738
>>21054752
Nice to see this thread still up. Yes, it was Libreria Ibis :) Absolutely magical place.
Another one you should visit is Libreria Galliera.

>>21050104
>Plus they have a cat.
Cute, but from a commercial point of view it's not a good idea, given how many allergic individuals there are today.

>>21052568
are you a 4th year medical student

>>21049944
The Comet Ping Pong Bookstore in Tel-Aviv.
Lovely family owned business.
Be sure to ask for the "children's books" section goyim

>>21050104
Sounds really cool.

>>21052581

It's an incredibly well-organized and clean store for its size. Plus the rare book room is fucking awesome.

>>21052580

Are you talking about Poor Richard's in Colorado Springs?

The US is a country of retards but no one can deny they have amazing bookstores

>>21049944
How many silverfish and book lice make their home in used book stores?

Armchair Books in edinburgh is quite nice, I was there during COVID though and they told me I had to wear a mask and they had "checked with their lawyers" that it was okay to enforce this rule. So I'm boycotting them.

>>21050104
sounds like the downstairs portion of my library. there was a time when they'd let you go downstairs and get a book for free when you signed up for a card. it was comfy until I realized 90% of the books were kinda trash. I choose a book of common prayer just for the novelty

>>21056601
If they told you so, it's probably because they had the feeling it was a bullshit rule, but had to ask advice to be sure. Kinda cute.

Title Page in Bryn Mawr is comfy. Grabbed a nice stack of classics last weekend. Philly bros rise up

>>21049944
Where you Philly anons at? I’m technically not in Philly but I’m a 5 minute walk from the border in Huntingdon Valley

>>21056771
Radnor

>>21055070
They can’t read lmao why would they steal books? No one but white people who can afford to rent it for weddings even knows it exists.

>A stunning 77% of students at a Baltimore public high school are reading at the elementary school level – many at the kindergarten level, according to that city’s FOX45 News.

I used to bartend at the Peabody, picrel.

>>21056273
No, just a remote worker /trv/ programmer who went through a horrible breakup and I can’t stand to be in my own city anymore so I’m doing 4-12 week AirBnBs, and Philly is next because I want to see some old shit and ride a train.

>>21056916
If you have some money you should check out an Eagles game besides the touristy stuff. Philly is getting excited about them this year and the games are always a great experience

>>21049944
Blackwell's in Oxford. The basement level was really cool, comfy and filled with books on every academic subject. There's really nothing like it where im from.

>>21056941
I’ll find some scary Philly short-term gf and check it out. I am desperately hoping of going to a Phillies game, I love watching baseball live.
I don’t know shit about MLB… what are the chances the Phillies play a home game anytime after October 14? And what are the chances I can find any tickets for less than $100, for such a game, if it were to exist?

>>21049944
When I was in my late teens and getting into HPL and Arkham House, it was really rare to see a physical AH book (apart from the newly issued ones). I was driving to the beach (probably route 110 in Mass) trying to pick up some kind of Innsmouth/Arkham vibe and saw a used bookstore sign so I thought I'd check it out. It was a weird place, but when I asked about a "horror" section (cringe), the guy claimed he had all the old AH books, including "The Outsider And Others". I think he said it was $800, which might as well have been a million to me at the time, so I didn't even ask to see it. But that was a weird, semi-magical bookstore. I never even bothered trying to find it again, don't know why.

>>21056993
It’s up in the air if the Phillies even make the playoffs. If I remember correctly, since they are a wildcard team, they wouldn’t even be guaranteed a home game. Both Mil and the Phillies are struggling down the stretch and neither team seems to want it. Oct 14th would mean they are making a fairly deep run so I think it’s unlikely

>>21057083
Thanks for the analysis sir. I like attending physical games but I simply cannot into sports trivia/knowledge/understanding. So I lean on sport-nerd chads like yourself to know about this shit + whatever goes on with playoff football so I can talk to my one boomer coworker about it (he can’t seem to talk about anything else but he’s a nice guy so I just repeat everything my brother says)

>>21049944
I am from the Philippines and going to the Barnes & Noble in Las Vegas in 2012 was a formative experience. I didn't know that you could have Criterion DVDs, Moleskine notebooks, MAD magazine, a Starbucks, and hardcover copies of The Complete Winnie-The-Pooh all at the same place. Maybe it just shows how deprived third-worlders are of any good bookstores or maybe it's an indication of just how much the average first-worlders have access to; nevertheless, it was a real Stendhal syndrome type of experience to a store that most Americans see as mundane.

>>21056771
Manayunk

>>21050104
In Centre County we have Websters which has a higher volume of academic texts due to being next to Penn State. Otherwise it's got enough of generally everything, considering it's basically the only book store between Harrisburg and Latrobe

>heckin local businesses!

The only independent bookstore in my town looked cool from the outside but then I walked in and discovered it was a total shithole, most of the books were genre fic from like the 70s, majority fantasy, and rotting encyclopedias or whatever. And all these heavy bookshelves caused parts of the floor to collapse, so walking around the tiny aisles was like being on a giraffe's back. Then I asked the owner about some non-fiction book, he spoke to me like I was more of an annoyance than anything else, so I looked him up on facebook and it seems like he's just some well off boomer who owns this shitty unprofitable shop as a hobby (some kind of front?) and doesn't care.

Looks like it's back to Amazon for me!

>>21056905
kino

>>21052219
>went to Powell's once during the height of covid shit
>90% of the store was closed off

>>21049944
amazon.com

>>21049944
When I was a kid there was a bookstore at ny local fleamarket called Carl's where paperbacks were 10 cents each. Inflamed my obsession with 60s and 70s mass market paperbacks

Bookfinder.com

>>21053108
This is true. I hate living in CT, but one of the few bright spots is The Book Barn in Willimantic. It's an old farmhouse converted into a gigantic bookstore where the books are put into their own "Genre Barns". For example, walk the path to the back and you have the Mystery & Horror barn, The main building has all the nonfictions and Histories, there is another barn for new arrivals. You could literally spend the whole day there and not see every book they have. They have so many books they had to expand and now they have like three more Classic buildings downtown to store and sell them all.

and yes, there are cats in all of the barns

>>21059312
Scratch that, the Book Barn is in Niantic, my bad.

>>21059361
Nice

>>21057898
>I am from the Philippines and going to the Barnes & Noble in Las Vegas in 2012 was a formative experience. I didn't know that you could have Criterion DVDs, Moleskine notebooks, MAD magazine, a Starbucks, and hardcover copies of The Complete Winnie-The-Pooh all at the same place. Maybe it just shows how deprived third-worlders are of any good bookstores or maybe it's an indication of just how much the average first-worlders have access to; nevertheless, it was a real Stendhal syndrome type of experience to a store that most Americans see as mundane.
In the US, the US Postal System has something called “Media Mail”.
Media Mail gives low cost Postal rates for books, movies, DVDs, CDs, etc., basically making it fairly cheap to ship these items compared to the items weight.
Also, some major publishers, like Penguin Random House, are owned by conglomerates that also own or publish movies and music.
I’m not sure what store started the trend first, maybe Borders Books, but the major booksellers started selling movies and CDs to get additional sales instead of just book sales.
Since books music and movies could all get shipped at the media mail rates, it just sort of made sense.

I'm going to spam some of my favorites, I've only been to bookstores in Argentina and Japan. Starting with El Ateneo Grand Splendid.

>>21059514
EternaCadencia

>>21059523
Libros del Pasaje

>>21059532
Kitazawa Bookstore