Book-Bound: New York City in Independent Bookstores |
A bookstore is one of the only pieces of evidence we have that people are still thinking.
~Jerry Seinfeld
Despite constant competition with corporate megastores, the advent of online shopping, and the failure of Meg Ryan’s Shop Around the Corner in You’ve Got Mail, New York’s independent bookstores are thriving. Whether you’ve visited the same tiny shop for years or you didn’t realize books could be bought from anywhere but amazon.com, there’s never been a better time to discover something new in the city that has it all. The bookstores listed below—just a small sampling—range from all-encompassing to absurdly specialized, but they’re all perfect for browsing or wiling away the afternoon.
Argosy Book Store, Inc., 116 E 59th St. (212-753-4455; www.argosybooks.com). 6-floor bookstore also specializes in autograph and antique prints and maps. Open May-Aug. M-F 10am-6pm; Sept.-Apr. M-F 10am-6pm, Sa 10am-5pm.
Biography Bookshop, 400 Bleecker St. (212-807-8655). Grab a Magnolia cupcake across the street before delving into shelves of bios, memoirs, and more. Open Su-Th 11am-10pm, F-Sa 11am-11pm.
Bluestockings, 172 Allen St. (212-777-6028; www.bluestockings.com). Best known for its extensive nonfiction, including counterculture, feminist, and leftist reads. Open daily 11am-11pm.
Book Culture, 536 W 112th St. (212-865-1588; wwwbookculture.com). Academic bookstore—formerly called Labyrinth Books—has stood the test of both time and Columbia students. Open M-F 9am-10pm, Sa 10am-8pm, Su 11am-7pm.
Books of Wonder, 18 W 18th St. (212-989-3270; www.booksofwonder.com). The bookstore every child—including your inner one—dreams about. Open M-Sa 10am-7pm, Su 11am-6pm.
The Complete Traveller Antiquarian Bookstore, 199 Madison Ave. (212-685-9007; www.ctrarebooks.com). A hardcore explorer’s utopia. Open M-F 9:30am-6:30pm, Sa 10am-6pm, Su noon-5pm.
The Corner Bookstore, 1313 Madison Ave. (212-831-3554). Cozy and personal little shop in the Upper East Side. Open M-Th 10am-8pm, F 10am-7pm, Sa-Su 11am-6pm.
Drama Book Shop, 250 W 40th St (212-944-0595; www.dramabookshop.com). Theater geeks delight in everything from Euripides to Ibsen. Open M-Sa 10am-8pm, Su noon-6pm.
East West Books, 78 5th Ave. (212-243-5994; www.eastwestnyc.com/ewbooks.html) Find your spiritual side in the wide selection of religious and philosophical texts. Open daily 10am-9pm.
Housing Works Bookstore Café, 126 Crosby St. (212-334-3324; www.housingworks.org/bookstore). “Soho’s best-kept secret” houses 45,000 new, used, and rare books on 2 floors. Fantastic for browsing—don’t miss the $1 and $0.50 bins. All proceeds go to helping homeless New Yorkers living with HIV and AIDS. Open M-F 10am-9pm, Sa-Su noon-7pm.
Hue-Man Bookstore & Café, 2319 Frederick Douglass Blvd. (212-665-7400; www.huemanbookstore.com). African-American bookstore has hosted everyone from Maya Angelous to Bill Clinton. Open M-Sa 10am-8pm, Su 11am-7pm.
Kitchen Arts & Letters, Inc., 1435 Lexington Ave. (212-876-5550; www.kitchenartsandletters.com). Forget Martha Stewart—this bookstore knows cooking. Open M 1-6pm, Tu-F 10am-6:30pm, Sa 11am-6pm.
Midtown Comics, 200 W 40th St. (212-302-8192; www.midtowncomics.com). Discover your inner superhero—or that back issue of Batman. Open M-Sa 11am-9pm, Su noon-7pm.
Oscar Wilde Bookshop, 15 Christopher St. (212-255-8097; www.oscarwildebooks.com). Supposedly the oldest—and arguably the best—gay and lesbian bookstore. Open daily 11am-7pm.
Partners & Crime, 44 Greenwich Ave. (212-243-0440; www.crimepays.com). It would be a crime not to check out New York’s best collection of mystery novels. Open M-Th noon-9pm, F-Sa noon-10pm, Su noon-7pm.
Revolution Books, 9 W 19th St. (212-691-3345). Marx, Mao, and Malcolm X fill up the shelves of America’s largest revolutionary bookstore. Open M-Sa noon-7pm, Su noon-5pm.
Spoonbill & Sugartown Bookstore, 218 Bedford Ave. (718-387-7322; www.spoonbillbooks.com). Especially delightful coffee table books and postcards. Open daily 10am-10pm.
St. Mark’s Bookshop, 31 3rd Ave. (212-260-7853; www.stmarksbookshop.com). A hip East Village gem since 1977. Open M-Sa 10am-midnight, Su 11am-midnight.
The Strand, 828 Broadway (212-473-1452; www.strandbooks.com). 18 miles of books—what more do you need to know? Open M-Sa 9:30am-10:30pm, Su 11am-1030pm.
Three Lives & Company, 154 W 10th St. (212-741-2069; www.threelives.com). Perfect for true bibliophiles, this charming shop was called “a pocket of civility” by the Greenwich Village Historical Society. Open M-Tu noon-8pm, W-Sa 11am-8:30pm, Su noon-7pm.
Unoppressive Non-Imperialist Bargain Books, 34 Carmine St. (212-229-0079; www.unoppressivebooks.blogspot.com). Small store, eclectic collection—the name says it all. Open Su-Th 11am-10pm, Fri-Sat 11am-midnight.
WORD, 126 Franklin St. (718-383-0096; www.wordbrooklyn.com). Brooklyn’s best also has a lovely collection of stationary. Open M-Th 11am-7pm, F-Sa 11am-8pm, Su noon-8pm.
As the the 2012 series' Editorial Director for Let's Go, Iya makes Monty Python jokes like it's her job. Also, it is.
For 52 years, we have published the world’s favorite budget travel guides, written entirely by students and updated every year. With pen and notebook in hand and a few changes of underwear stuffed in our backpacks, we spend months roaming the globe in search of travel bargains.
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