Listed are some of the coolest books shops around.
To begin, select a metropolitan area from below.
The stores associated with your selection will appear right here and on the map.
Adobe Books
When a local artist wanted to do an art installation by rearranging all the books in a bookstore by color, Adobe Books agreed and the result was magical. Can you imagine a corporate store ever...
Argonaut Book Shop
Between the Gold Rush and the 1906 earthquake, the Mexican American War and the OJ trial, we say California has had more history than some centuries-old nations. Argonaut Book Shop is the...
Arundel
Do you really need a 150,000 square foot mega-bookstore to have something for everybody? Arundel Books proves that you don't. The store stocks new, used and rare books but does so in way as...
Arundel
Do you really need a 150,000 square foot mega-bookstore to have something for everybody? Arundel Books proves that you don't. The store stocks new, used and rare books but does so in way as...
Ballenford Books on Architecture
Writing about music may be like dancing about architecture, but writing about architecture seems as natural as dancing to the music. At least if the sheer number of architecture titles as...
Black Oak Books
If you go to a bookstore to drink a caramel cinnamon super-moca-fraza-chino-mundo and peruse the magazine section then we just can't recommend Black Oak. It seems that the staff and clientele...
BookCourt
For all its eat-or-get-eaten sensibility, New York is home to several neighborhood bookstores that are thriving despite the odds. BookCourt is one such establishment. The bench out front, the...
BookPeople
From the exterior, BookPeople looks just like a generic book chain. In the interior, all resemblance is lost. The 3-floored behemoth is not only the largest bookstore in Texas, but is also...
Book Soup
Lest you think that Los Angeles is devoid of culture enter Book Soup, a heady, vibrant space that looks more like an expansive personal library than a retail book store. Floor to ceiling shelves...
Bound Together Books
Harkening back to Haight Ashbury's counter-culture roots Bound Together is a bookstore that does the '60s proud. The volunteer-run collective mainly stocks books, zines and other...
Brattle Book Shop
What would one of the oldest cities in America be without a nice used bookshop? Brattle Book Shop is not merely a nice shop, it is the oldest in the country, its proprietor Kenneth Glass an...
Builders Booksource
With the proliferation of home-improvement shows it seems that if you have a thousand dollars and a can of paint you can turn any room into a designer showroom. For anyone who is looking for a...
Builders Booksource
With the proliferation of home-improvement shows it seems that if you have a thousand dollars and a can of paint you can turn any room into a designer showroom. For anyone who is looking for a...
Capitol Hill Books
Dewey (think decimal system) would like have a coronary if he ever found his way to Capitol Hill Books. The cozy two-story house is overrun with books, with no nook left unfilled. The books are...
City Lights
When is a store not just a store? When it plays a pivotal role in a major American literary movement. Opened in 1953 by poet Louis Ferlinghetti, City Lights quickly became a favorite hangout of...
Crawford Doyle
Crawford Doyle is the type of general-purpose bookstore that you might expect to have been put of out business by the national mega chains. But the feisty store has persevered by preserving a calm,...
Dashwood Books
Dashwood Books covers the world of photography books in unparalleled depth. Young Japanese photographers, classic American photo-journalism, avant-garde German artists, if it's not at Dashwood...
David Mirvish Books
There's a subtle art to picking the perfect coffee table book--it must be substantive, but easy to digest, intriguing, yet relatable. David Mirvish Books has about a thousand iterations of...
Diesel
For those that are used to independent bookstores of the cramped and cluttered variety, Diesel is a breath of fresh air. The design conscious, fiercely independent bookstore stocks new and used...
Diesel
For those that are used to independent bookstores of the cramped and cluttered variety, Diesel is a breath of fresh air. The design conscious, fiercely independent bookstore stocks new and used...
Dog Eared Books
Phoenix, Dog Eared, and Red Hill Books represent a type of bookstore that's fast fading into extinction. They're big, lively, a bit messy and generally a good place to spend an hour or...
Equator Books
Equator Books is one of the most beautiful bookstores you're likely to come across. The center of the tall, airy store includes a gallery wall featuring monthly exhibitions of original...
Family
Think of Family as the official library of a sprawling, makeshift family of artists from Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, or Tokyo. Here the staggering creative output of the talented group is...
Flora & Fauna Books
Because we can't all have green thumbs. That appears to be the crying call of appropriately subterranean Flora & Fauna Books. For the horticulture enthusiast looking for more information...
Giant Robot
If Giant Robot the magazine began as an ode to Asian pop culture, then Giant Robot the store is now a mecca for the same. Alongside copies of the latest issue of GR you'll find all sorts of...
Giant Robot
If Giant Robot the magazine began as an ode to Asian pop culture, then Giant Robot the store is now a mecca for the same. Alongside copies of the latest issue of GR you'll find all sorts of...
Giant Robot
If Giant Robot the magazine began as an ode to Asian pop culture, then Giant Robot the store is now a mecca for the same. Alongside copies of the latest issue of GR you'll find all sorts of...
Giant Robot
If Giant Robot the magazine began as an ode to Asian pop culture, then Giant Robot the store is now a mecca for the same. Alongside copies of the latest issue of GR you'll find all sorts of...
GR2
If Giant Robot the magazine began as an ode to Asian pop culture, then Giant Robot the store is now a mecca for the same. Alongside copies of the latest issue of GR you'll find all sorts of...
Harvard Book Store
When you open a book store across the street from the most heralded institution in American academics, it better be one damn fine shop. Fortunately, Harvard Book Store lives up to its high...
Hejfina
Hejfina has elegant modern living down pat. For clothing expect avant-garde Japanese brands, ultra-exclusive New York brands, next to creative selections from Brazil, England and France. These are...
Here
Reader Suggested: Here Gallery showcases indie designers, zines and more. They also have a gallery that features many up and coming artists!
Housing Works Used Books Cafe
A used book store where all the books are donated and the proceeds go to charity, Housing Works Used Books Café is more posh than most for-profit book stores we've seen. Beautifully paneled...
Idle Time Books
Idle Time Books is not the most extensive used book store you're going to find, but there's something about the cozy environs that draws you in and makes you want to linger. Its shelves...
König.Taschen
Begun as a humble comic book store, Taschen has become an unrivaled publisher and seller or art and design books. Taschen's lavishly illustrated titles display a blatant disregard for how much...
Kramerbooks & Afterwords Cafe
Sure you can get a Mocha-soy-fritzo-latte at just about any bookstore, but how many serve bourbon? Kramerbooks & Afterwords does, its full bar squarely centered among its shelves. Oh, they...
Metsker Maps of Seattle
Ignorant of the world. Self-centered. These are some of the many adjectives our friends from across the world use to describe Americans. If only they'd seen Metsker Maps of Seattle. The map...
Michael Thompson Books
An old fashioned storefront in what has become a hectic fairway of furniture and fashion, Michael Thompson Books provides its customers a calm, comforting place to peruse rare and antiquarian...
Modern Times Bookstore
Bill O'Reilly's head would probably explode upon walking into Modern Times Bookstore and can we all agree that that's a good thing? The decades old bookshop fills it shelves with...
Moe's Books
While a grand old piece of history itself, Moe's Books is a great steward of literary history as well. The four-storied bookstore is full of new, used and rare books. The used book section...
Myopic Books
There's something lovingly old school about how Myopic Books keeps its space. The several floors of used books. The people reading and drinking coffee on the upper floors. The obligatory...
Mystery Pier Books
The mystery in Mystery Pier Books could be referring as much to the narrow, dark passageway one must traverse to reach the shop than to the number of rare, first-edition mystery and crime novels...
New Museum
Without the space of more well-to-do cultural institutions, the New Museum shop aims for maximum impact. The main attraction is naturally the wall of art books and magazines. The cosmopolitan,...
OK
OK is the one expression you really can't use to describe OK. Gorgeous, hip, beautiful, classy, stunning--these would do better. The gallery is an ode to exquisite design. Learn a thing or...
Oscar Wilde Bookshop
Widely recognized as the first gay bookshop in America, Oscar Wilde Bookshop has not lost its luster. Tucked away in a quiet corner of Christopher Street, the store is full of new gay and lesbian...
Pages Books
Pages Books opened for business before Queen Street West was the epicenter of hip it is today. Now surrounded by indie clothing stores and modern furniture shops, the outpost is an anchor of the...
Peter Miller
Go to Bilbao to see the Guggenheim, to Stockholm to see the "Twisting Torso." Then come to Peter Miller to learn who designed them, how they were built and why. The store stacks its...
Phoenix Books
Phoenix, Dog Eared, and Red Hill Books represent a type of bookstore that's fast fading into extinction. They're big, lively, a bit messy and generally a good place to spend an hour or...
Powell's Books
Reader Suggested: This is the first place out-of-towners go after getting off the airport. Powell's is said to be the largest bookstore in the US, maybe in the world. It sells both new and used books, so one...
Powell's Books
Reader Suggested: This is the first place out-of-towners go after getting off the airport. Powell's is said to be the largest bookstore in the US, maybe in the world. It sells both new and used books, so one...
Powell's Books
Reader Suggested: This is the first place out-of-towners go after getting off the airport. Powell's is said to be the largest bookstore in the US, maybe in the world. It sells both new and used books, so one...
Powell's Books for Home and Garden
Reader Suggested: This is the first place out-of-towners go after getting off the airport. Powell's is said to be the largest bookstore in the US, maybe in the world. It sells both new and used books, so one...
Powell's City of Books
Reader Suggested: This is the first place out-of-towners go after getting off the airport. Powell's is said to be the largest bookstore in the US, maybe in the world. It sells both new and used books, so one...
Powell's Technical Books
Reader Suggested: This is the first place out-of-towners go after getting off the airport. Powell's is said to be the largest bookstore in the US, maybe in the world. It sells both new and used books, so one...
Quimby's
Before every high school and college student had a blog, zines were a favored form of expression for young people. At Quimby's, the zine gets its due credit and is honored for all that it can...
Red Hill Books
Phoenix, Dog Eared, and Red Hill Books represent a type of bookstore that's fast fading into extinction. They're big, lively, a bit messy and generally a good place to spend an hour or...
Robin's Bookstore
Founded in 1936, Robin's Bookstore is Philadelphia's oldest independent bookshop. But that's not the only reason it's a favorite among Philadelphia bookworms. The store is...
Second Story Books
Specializing in rare and out-of-print titles, Second Story Books does not have that flea market feel of other used bookstores. Here, books past their prime are given their due TLC. Titles are...
Second Story Books
Specializing in rare and out-of-print titles, Second Story Books does not have that flea market feel of other used bookstores. Here, books past their prime are given their due TLC. Titles are...
Second Story Books
Specializing in rare and out-of-print titles, Second Story Books does not have that flea market feel of other used bookstores. Here, books past their prime are given their due TLC. Titles are...
Skylight Books
Skylight Books knows its neighborhood and its city. In the bohemian Los Feliz neighborhood of LA the independent shop is heavy on books on art, film, LA History (even if some consider LA History to...
Soap Plant/Wacko
Soap Plant/Wacko is the only kind of art gallery fit for La-La Land. Sure there are a few demure rooms of hardwood-floored, white-walled gallery space. But that is among a huge store of...
Spoonbill & Sugartown
Competing with superstores and online shops with impossibly large warehouses is useless if you're a small bookseller so Spoonbill & Sugartown did the only thing it could do: focus. Art...
St. Mark's Bookshop
If you put a general bookstore in the hands of an artist, St. Mark's Bookshop is what you would get. Among the black shelving and exposed ducting are a nice selection of new fiction and...
Swipe
Ask your local bookstore where the "retail design" or "typography" sections are and watch them return a blank stare. Ask the people at Swipe and they'll likely follow-up...
Taschen
Begun as a humble comic book store, Taschen has become an unrivaled publisher and seller or art and design books. Taschen's lavishly illustrated titles display a blatant disregard for how much...
Taschen
Begun as a humble comic book store, Taschen has become an unrivaled publisher and seller or art and design books. Taschen's lavishly illustrated titles display a blatant disregard for how much...
Taschen
Begun as a humble comic book store, Taschen has become an unrivaled publisher and seller or art and design books. Taschen's lavishly illustrated titles display a blatant disregard for how much...
Taschen
Begun as a humble comic book store, Taschen has become an unrivaled publisher and seller or art and design books. Taschen's lavishly illustrated titles display a blatant disregard for how much...
The Bookworks
In the shadow of historic Wrigley Fields, The Bookwooks offers other forms of history. Foremost are tens of thousands of books of the used and often rare variety with a focus on, what else,...
The Elliott Bay Book Company
The Elliott Bay Book Company is the very definition of a quality neighborhood bookstore. High ceilings, wood floors and room after room of books await you. The books are brought to life with...
The Globe Corner Bookstore
The travel bookshop is a thing of fantasy in America. You'll see them in England, or in movies set in England, but in America we prefer our bookstores generic and massive. If you happen to...
The Mysterious Bookshop
Book shops like this aren't supposed to exist anymore, certainly not in expensive Manhattan real estate, but here The Mysterious Bookshop is, selling an unequaled collection of new, used and...
Traveler's Bookcase
The American worker takes an average of 10.2 vacation days after three years on the job. While we would certainly love go on about what the rest of the world is doing (see: Europe, ENTIRE MONTH of...
Zakka
Zakka is a one of a kind shop and gallery, collecting design books from many different design disciplines. Furthermore it keeps an office Japan and thus is in tune with what's happening in...
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3166 16th Street
San Francisco CA 94110
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-415-864-3936
786 Sutter Street
San Francisco CA 94109
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-415-474-9067
Hours: Mon-Fri: 9-5 Sat: 10-4 Sun: Closed
1001 1st Street
Seattle WA 98104
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-206-624-4442
Hours: Mon-Sat: 10-6 Sun: Closed
8380 Beverly Boulevard
Los Angeles CA 90048
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-323-852-9852
Hours: Mon-Sat: 11-6 Sun: Closed
600 Markham Street
Toronto ON M6G 2L8
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-416-588-0800 or 1-888-588-0806
Hours: Mon: 12-5 Tue-Sat: 10-6 Sun: 12-5
1491 Shattuck Avenue
Berkeley CA 94709
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-510-486-0698
Hours: Mon-Sun: 10-10
163 Court Street
Brooklyn NY 11201
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-718-875-3677
Hours: Mon-Sat: 9-10:45 Sun: 10-9
603 North Lamar Boulevard
Austin TX 78703
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-512-472-5050 or 1-800-853-9757
Hours: Mon-Sun: 9-11
8818 Sunset Boulevard
West Hollywood CA 90069
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-310-659-3110
Hours: Mon-Sun: 9-9
1369 Haight Street
San Francisco CA 94117
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-415-431-8355
Hours: Mon-Sun: 11:30-7:30
9 West Street
Boston MA 02111
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-617-542-0210 or 1-800-447-9595
Hours: Mon-Sat: 9-5:30 Sun: Closed
1817 4th Street
Berkeley CA 94710
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-510-845-6874 or 1-800-843-2028
Hours: Mon-Sat: 8:30-7 Sun: 10-7
900 North Point Street
San Francisco CA 94109
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-415-440-5773
Hours: Mon-Sat: 10-8 Sun: 11-7
657 C Street SE
Washington DC 20003
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-202-544-1621
Hours: Mon-Fri: 11:30-6 Sat-Sun: 9-6
261 Columbus Avenue
San Francisco CA 94133
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-415-362-8193
Hours: Mon-Sun: 10-12
1082 Madison Avenue
New York NY 10028
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-212-288-6300
Hours: Mon-Sat: 10-6 Sun: 12-5
33 Bond Street
New York NY 10012
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-212-387-8520
Hours: Mon-Sat: 12-8 Sun: 12-7
596 Markham Street
Toronto ON M6G 2L8
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-416-531-9975
Hours: Mon-Wed: 10-6 Thu-Fri: 10-7 Sat-Sun: 11-6
5433 College Avenue
Oakland CA 94618
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-510-653-9965
Hours: Mon-Thu: 10-9 Fri-Sat: 10-10 Sun: 10-6
3890 Cross Creek Road
Malibu CA 90265
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-310-456-9961
Hours: Mon-Thu: 10-7 Fri-Sat: 10-9 Sun: 10-6
900 Valencia Street
San Francisco CA 94110
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-415-282-1901
Hours: Mon-Sat: 10-10 Sun: 10-8
1103 Abbot Kinney Boulevard
Venice CA 90291
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-310-399-5544
Hours: Mon-Sun: 10-10
436 North Fairfax Avenue
Los Angeles CA 90036
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-323-782-9221
Hours: Mon-Sun: 12-9
3212 West Government Way
Seattle WA 98199
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-206-623-4727
Hours: Mon-Sat: 10-6 Sun: Closed
618 Shrader Street
San Francisco CA 94117
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-415-876-4773
Hours: Mon-Fri: 11:30-8 Sat: 11-8 Sun: 12-7
2015 Sawtelle Boulevard
Los Angeles CA 90025
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-310-478-1819
Hours: Mon-Sat: 11:30-8 Sun: 12-6
4017 West Sunset Boulevard
Los Angeles CA 90029
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-323-662-4752
Hours: Mon-Sat: 11:30-7 Sun: 12-7
437 East 9th Street
New York NY 10009
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-212-674-4769
Hours: Mon-Thu: 12:30-8:30 Fri-Sat: 12-9 Sun: 12-7
2062 Sawtelle Boulevard
Los Angeles CA 90025
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-310-445-9276
Hours: Mon-Sat: 11:30-8 Sun: 12-6
1256 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge MA 02138
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-617-661-1515
Hours: Mon-Thu: 9-11 Fri-Sat: 9-12 Sun: 10-10
1529 North Milwaukee Avenue
Chicago IL 60622
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-773-772-0002
108 Stokes Croft
Bristol
BS1 3RU
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 44-(0)11-7942-2222
Hours: Mon: Closed Tue-Sat: 12:30-6:30 Sun: Closed
126 Crosby Street
New York NY 10012
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-212-334-3324
Hours: Mon-Wed: 10-8 Thu-Fri: 10-9 Sat: 12-9 Sun: 12-7
2410 18th Street NW
Washington DC 20009
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-202-232-4774
Hours: Mon-Sun: 11-10
Jebensstrasse 2
10623 Berlin
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 49-(0)30-31-80-85-58
Hours: Mon: Closed Tue-Wed: 10-6 Thu: 10-10 Fri-Sun: 10-6
1517 Connecticut Avenue NW
Washington DC 20036
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-202-387-1400
Hours: Mon-Thu: 7:30-1 Fri-Sat: 24 Hours Sun: 7:30-1
1511 1st Avenue
Seattle WA 98101
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-206-623-8747 or 1-800-727-4430
Hours: Mon-Fri: 9-6 Sat-Sun: 10-6
8312 West 3rd Street
Los Angeles CA 90048
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-323-658-1901
Hours: Mon-Sat: 10-6
888 Valencia Street
San Francisco CA 94110
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-415-282-9246
Hours: Mon-Sat: 10-9 Sun: 11-6
2476 Telegraph Avenue
Berkeley CA 94704
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-510-849-2087
Hours: Mon-Sun: 10-11
1564 North Milwaukee Avenue
Chicago IL 60622
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-773-862-4882
Hours: Mon-Fri: 11-1 Sat: 11-1 Sun: 11-10
8826 West Sunset Boulevard
West Hollywood CA 90069
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-310-657-5557
235 Bowery
New York NY 10002
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-212-343-0460
Hours: Mon-Tue: Closed Wed: 12-6 Thu-Fri: 12-10 Sat-Sun: 12-6
8303 West 3rd Street
Los Angeles CA 90048
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-323-653-3501
Hours: Mon-Sat: 11-6:30 Sun: 12-6
15 Christopher Street
New York NY 10014
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-212-255-8097
Hours: Mon-Sun: 11-7
256 Queen Street West
Toronto ON M5V 1Z8
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-416-598-1447
Hours: Mon-Fri: 9:30-10 Sat: 10-10 Sun: 11-8
1930 1st Avenue
Seattle WA 98101
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-206-441-4114
Hours: Mon-Sat: 10-6 Sun: Closed
3950 24th Street
San Francisco CA 94114
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-415-821-3477
Hours: Mon-Sat: 9-9 Sun: 9-8
8725 SW Cascade Avenue
Beaverton OR 97008
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-503-228-4651
Hours: Mon-Sat: 9-9 Sun: 10-7
3723 SE Hawthorne Boulevard
Portland OR 97214
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-503-228-4651
Hours: Mon-Thu: 9-10 Fri-Sat: 9-11 Sun: 9-9
7000 NE Aiport Way Suite 2250
Portland OR 97218
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-503-228-4651
Hours: Oregon Market Location: Mon-Fri: 6-10 Sat: 5-8 Sun: 6-10 Concourse C Location: Mon-Wed: 6-8 Thu-Sat: 5-8 Sun: 6-8 Concourse D Location: Mon-Fri: 5-4:20 Sat: 5-3:30 Sun: 5-4:20
3747 SE Hawthorne Boulevard
Portland OR 97214
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-503-228-4651
Hours: Mon-Sat: 9-9 Sun: 9-8
1005 West Burnside Street
Portland OR 97209
Site: Official Site
Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-503-228-4651
Hours: Mon-Sun: 9-11