One of my favorite places to
browse while in
Manhattan is the
Strand Book Store,
Broadway and
12th St.
The Strand touts itself as "
8 Miles of
Books", but this assertion is
difficult to gauge. Books are piled on books, frequently on squat
bins
more in keeping with a
closeout store than a
library. People
scramble
about in a mad
beehive dance, skipping past
chess books to
theological
texts, arguing over
authors, fighting their way to the
cashier. It's
a
madhouse, an updated
Forum of the ever so slightly
anxious.
Books are roughly organized by
rarity,
binding type, and
subject.
The upper floor contains mostly
non-fiction and some more expensive items;
the lower level holds
children's books,
textbooks, and
fiction including
oddities such as
publisher advance release copies. The store feels like
a gigantic
maze, winding rows of
shelves thrown up wherever convenient.
It's easy to follow a row of shelves only to find a
dead end or, worse yet,
pipes and
ducting. Add to the fact that the
employees are constantly
renewing the
stock, and one has the makings of a huge
traffic jam.
I wouldn't say that the Strand has the best
bargains in books. Those
addicted
to getting the best
price would do better to go to a
thrift store.
But for
hard to find books, this store is very
handy. Those who need
books for
academic research may do well to visit; especially those in
disciplines like
classical languages where it is not easy to find certain
authors needed for
coursework.
Yet, there is no
website.