Listed are some of the coolest rare 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.
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...
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...
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...
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...
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,...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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...
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,...
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...
Argonaut Book Shop
http://www.jargol.com/images/stores/us/ca/san_francisco/argonaut_book_shop_1_web.jpg
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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 unofficial keep of said history. The antiquarian book focuses it's collection on the Western Americana in general and California in particular.
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Address: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
Arundel
http://www.jargol.com/images/stores/us/wa/seattle/arundel_books_1_web.jpg
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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 to not artificially bulk up their shelves with any book they can get their hands on. Their limited retail space is filled with a nicely edited selection of titles from a variety of topics, though...
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Address:1001 1st Street
Seattle WA 98104
Site: Official Site Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-206-624-4442
Hours: Mon-Sat: 10-6 Sun: Closed
Arundel
http://www.jargol.com/images/stores/us/ca/los_angeles/arundel_books_1_web.jpg
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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 to not artificially bulk up their shelves with any book they can get their hands on. Their limited retail space is filled with a nicely edited selection of titles from a variety of topics, though...
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Address: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
Brattle Book Shop
http://www.jargol.com/images/stores/us/ma/boston/brattle_book_shop_2_web.jpg
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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 authority on antiquated books. Along with three levels of used of books, there is special section for rare and first edition titles. Old editions of Time, Life and other magazines line the walls, while...
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Address: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
Crawford Doyle
http://www.jargol.com/images/stores/us/ny/new_york/crawford_doyle_1_web.jpg
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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, sophisticated atmosphere. The store carries a well-edited collection of new literary fiction and non-fiction heavy in world affairs and politics. It also has a coveted collection of first editions...
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Full Details
Address:
1082 Madison Avenue
New York NY 10028
Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-212-288-6300
Hours: Mon-Sat: 10-6 Sun: 12-5
Equator Books
http://www.jargol.com/images/stores/us/ca/venice/equator_books_1_web.jpg
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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 artwork. The gallery space is flanked on either side by long, tall bookshelves. One side holds used art, design and architecture titles, sold in collectable condition, wrapped with a protective archival...
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Address:1103 Abbot Kinney Boulevard
Venice CA 90291
Site: Official Site Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-310-399-5544
Hours: Mon-Sun: 10-10
Michael Thompson Books
http://www.jargol.com/images/stores/us/ca/los_angeles/michael_thompson_books_1_web.jpg
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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 books. Fashioned like a library, the warmly lit store is filled to the brim with rare books from a variety of disciplines. However, the store specializes in books about mathematics, history of science...
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Address:8312 West 3rd Street
Los Angeles CA 90048
Site: Official Site Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-323-658-1901
Hours: Mon-Sat: 10-6
Moe's Books
http://www.jargol.com/images/stores/us/ca/berkeley/moes_books_1_web.jpg
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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 is the draw here. Lose yourself in the 100,000 or so neatly organized titles. If you're looking for something a bit more special, head on up to the fourth floor to take a look at their...
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Address:2476 Telegraph Avenue
Berkeley CA 94704
Site: Official Site Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-510-849-2087
Hours: Mon-Sun: 10-11
Mystery Pier Books
http://www.jargol.com/images/stores/us/ca/west_hollywood/mystery_pier_books_1_web.jpg
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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 inside. A humble landmark in the center of West Hollywood, the shop curates a collection of rare books that not only covers mysteries, but also American and British literature at large. While...
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Address:8826 West Sunset Boulevard
West Hollywood CA 90069
Site: Official Site Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-310-657-5557
Spoonbill & Sugartown
http://www.jargol.com/images/stores/us/ny/brooklyn/spoonbill_and_sugartown_1_web.jpg
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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 and design in its many forms (film, photography, architecture, painting) are the focus of a new and used book selection that includes everything from rare, hard-to-find design titles to hip magazines....
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Address:218 Bedford Avenue
Brooklyn NY 11211
Site: Official Site Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-718-387-7322
Hours: Mon-Sun: 10-10
The Bookworks
http://www.jargol.com/images/stores/us/il/chicago/the_bookworks_1_web.jpg
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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, sports. Also around are bins of vinyl records, used CDs and vintage photographs. If you can find what you're look for, chances are you'll get it for a good price.
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Address:3444 North Clark Street
Chicago IL 60657
Site: Official Site Online Shopping: No
Phone: 1-773-871-5318
Hours: Mon-Thu: 12-10 Fri-Sat: 12-11 Sun: 12-6
The Mysterious Bookshop
http://www.jargol.com/images/stores/us/ny/new_york/the_mysterious_bookshop_1_web.jpg
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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 rare mystery, suspense, crime and detective titles. The charming space holds no shortage of new titles, but the collection of rare books and signed first editions is the most interesting.
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Full Details
Address:58 Warren Street
New York NY 10007
Site: Official Site Online Shopping: Yes
Phone: 1-212-587-1011
Hours: Mon-Sun: 11-7
