Bookstores.
Some of the most magical places in the world for people (like me) who love books and treasure hunting.
While the big box bookstores (few and far between as they are now) are okay, they just can’t hold a candle to the little used bookstores. And really, it’s not a good idea to hold a candle IN a little used bookstore. Especially not the one I found last weekend.
Abbs Volume I in Littleton ( 6905 S. Broadway) is just the kind of bookstore that you dream of finding. It’s very unprepossessing on the outside – two rocking chairs by the front door in a strip mall. But on the inside, it looks like this:
And this:
And this:
And this:
It took up two buildings, and I totally got lost in it. When MKL came in to meet me, he had to look for five minutes to find me, and finally had to ask the woman at the desk if there was a woman in there somewhere. He found me buried in the stacks, with ten books in my arms and a blissful smile of joy in my eyes. I was so excited!
Finding a great used bookstore is like finding a treasure chest. A treasure chest that is so deep you could spend a whole day digging through it and only have scratched the surface.
Insert sigh of pleasure here.
As you can see from the images above, it was a little hard to see all the titles because things were stacked so high from the floor up. But it was very well organized by category, and that was nice. While paperbacks were only $2 each, and that is the bulk of their inventory, they also had a large selection of older books, some rare, some not so rare, but all somewhat overpriced. Still, when you find an old copy of a book you’ve wanted to read for years, you sometimes splurge a bit.
We tried to hit one other bookshop that I spent ten minutes in about 14 years ago and have always remembered and yearned for but had no clue where it was. We found it next to the Gothic Theater a few months ago, and I was super excited! But unfortunately, it wasn’t open when we stopped by. It strikes me as the sort of place that is only open when the quirky proprietor gentleman is in the mood to tolerate other people.
So, I still have that weird garden of delights awaiting me. Yea!
Kelsea and I always like finding cool bookstores on our travels. We adored Powell’s in Portland. We were passionate about Hay-on-Wye in Wales, which I know I’ve mentioned before. And we found ourselves in some waaaay seedy neighborhoods in San Francisco where bookstores were supposed to be, but weren’t. Next time we travel and make a cool bookshop find, we’ll share it with you.
I used to follow a blog by someone who was going to visit and blog about all the bookshops in London. I think she let it fall by the wayside, because I can’t find it anymore (TBM, are you up for a new challenge?). Perhaps I’ll try to do a similar thing in Denver. I like that idea!
Happiness is burying yourself in a book in a big cozy chair on a chilly winter night.
10 comments
Comments feed for this article
February 7, 2013 at 9:24 am
slpmartin
I just love the old style bookstores…stacked high with books…far more fun than the new ones.
February 7, 2013 at 10:02 am
TBM
I wonder if I’ve been in that one. Don’t tell the better half, but our home will look like that someday.
February 7, 2013 at 10:44 am
Seasweetie
It looks like it’s been around for years. I promise I won’t tell!
February 7, 2013 at 8:02 pm
Ali
That sounds like a marvelous dream. Powell’s in Oregon is my neighborhood bookstore there is also this great quirky place called Longfellows which is small and overpopulated with dusty novels. If you’re ever in Portland check it out.
February 7, 2013 at 8:34 pm
Seasweetie
Thanks for the tip, Ali -I loved Portland (and Powell’s)and hope to get back there. Will definitely check out Longfellows.
February 7, 2013 at 9:40 pm
georgefloreswrite
There’s one in West Palm Beach, FL named The Bookworm that looks just like that. The wooden shelves, the narrow aisles, the floor …Great Scott! They might be the same store connected via wormhole!
February 7, 2013 at 10:33 pm
Seasweetie
I like that idea, george. But I’m going to have to post pictures of our Bookworm here – it sounds like yours! Yet another wormhole???
February 8, 2013 at 8:46 am
georgefloreswrite
🙂 They might all be connected! Even though I’m in Florida, we have probably said “excuse me” to each other a thousand times already when we’re trying to navigate those narrow aisles. Does yours have a handprinted sign letting you know that you are now in the “woo-woo” section?
February 8, 2013 at 9:17 am
Seasweetie
🙂 It doesn’t yet, but now that you’ve planted that seed, you can bet I’m going to be putting one there just like a stealthy ninja!
February 8, 2013 at 7:28 pm
georgefloreswrite
lol Stealthy Ninja, I wish you success on your mission!