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From: [e-mail] (evelyn.c.leeper)
Subject: Bookstores in Various Cities List (rec.arts.books)
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Comment added:
    THE BOOK LOVER'S GUIDE TO CHICAGOLAND

Cities added:
    Houston, TX (thanks to Robert Schmunk)
    Providence, RI
    Oxford

Deleted:
    Occult Bookstore (Chicago)

Cities include:
    Chicago, IL
    Denver, CO
    Houston, TX
    New Haven, CT
    Philadelphia, PA
    Pittsburgh, PA
    Portland, OR (see Seattle, WA)
    Providence, RI
    Salt Lake City, UT
    St. Louis, MO
    Seattle, WA (including Portland, OR)
    Washington, DC
    Oxford, England
    Edinburgh, Scotland
    Glasgow, Scotland

[Note 1: Nichael Cramer ([e-mail]) maintains the
Cambridge/Boston list and usually posts it a couple of days after this
appears.]

[Note 2: I collected these comments from a variety of people.  I personally
have no knowledge of many of these places and take no responsibility if you
buy a book you don't enjoy. :-)   Phone numbers and precise addresses can be
gotten by calling directory assistance for the appropriate city.  Call ahead
for precise hours, as even when I list them they are subject to change.]

[Note 3: If you can add information for any of these, in particular addresses
when they are missing, please send it to me.]

Special mention:
    Traveller Food & Books in Union, CT (I-84 at the MA/CT border).
    The upstairs is a restaurant with a gimmick "a free book with every
    meal."  The walls are covered with autographed fan mail from famous
    authors.  The basement is a serious used bookstore.  It's out in
    the middle of nowhere, but definitely worth a visit if you're
    passing by on your way between NYC and Boston, for example.

==============================================================================
Chicago, IL:

Hyde Park Area:
    57th Street Bookstore (57th & Kimbark).  This is a general branch of
        the Seminary Co-op.  Very good children's book section, and
        a nice collection of fiction, sf, and mysteries.
    Ex-Libris (55th next to Louis Kiernan).  Specializing in
        theological and rare books.
    Krochs & Brentano's (53rd & Lake Park).
    Louis Kiernan Books  (55th Street).  Reasonable collection of used.
    O'Gara's (near the Medici).
    Powell's (with one store on 57th, one on Lincoln north of Diversey,
        and a warehouse at 828 S. Wabash).
    Seminary Cooperative Bookstore (Chicago Theological Seminary
        (58th Street & University Avenue).  "Has a good
        theological section but its only connection with the
        Seminary is that it rents space from them.  It is, in my
        opinion, the best academic bookstore in the social sciences
        and humanities in the world, for English-language books at
        any rate.  Anyone can shop there, but members receive a 10%
        discount on most books and may special-order books from
        anywhere in the world.  Membership costs $30 (for three
        shares of stock).  Members also receive an annual dividend
        and an additional rebate on their total annual expenditures
        (in good years; recently finances have been tight), and if
        they really want to, they can cancel their membership and
        cash in their stock after owning it for a year.  To join,
        show up between 8:30 AM and 5 PM, Monday-Friday.
    University of Chicago Bookstore (59th and Ellis).  General books
        downstairs, slightly academic tilt, but reasonable general
        section.

Other:
    Booksellers Row (North side: 2445 N. Lincoln and downtown:
        408 S. Michigan).  Used books.  North side is larger
        selection, one downtown is very easy to get to.
    Guild (and others) (on Lincoln north of Fullerton).  "You should
        hype up Guild books ...  in my estimation.  I've only been
        a couple times, but they have a real nice assortment of
        fiction, poetry, and factual stuff, admittedly leaning
        towards the progressive, but a good source for a variety
        of interesting and often hard to find books (and magazines,
        lots of magazines).  They are so popular that they were
        able to sell memberships when they were having cash flow
        problems!"
    The Stars Our Destination Bookstore (1021 W Belmont, one block
        West of the Belmont L stop, 312-871-2722).  A cheery little
        science fiction haven.  (They moved to this location 5/1/92.)

If you go to one used bookstore on the Northside, just pick up a map
listing the other ones nearby.  There are about 8 or so within 1.5
miles of each other.

Evanston:
    Great Expectations (911 Foster St near the El tracks, a couple of
        streets north of Emerson just east of Sherman).  "It's an
        interesting place with easy chairs and cats scattered around.
        I once overheard the proprietor tell a potential customer
        that the book the customer wanted to order was too easy to
        find.  Better bring along your checkbook though; it ain't
        cheap."
    Bookman's Alley (in the alley at the rear of 1712 Sherman Avenue).
        Roger Carlson has taken three large rooms that used to be
        a workshop or warehouse and converted them into a pleasant
        and fairly spacious old bookland.

Others:
    Aspidistra (N. Clark).  HUGE warehouse of used and some new books.
        Cheap.
    Borders Bookshop (near Rte 83, 1/2 mile N. of the shopping
        center in Oakbrook).
    Barbara's Books (one on Broadway about 2 blocks south of
        Belmont, and one on Wells in Oldtown across the street
        from the adult theaters and bookstores).
    Rizzoli (in Water Tower).  "I always feel underdressed when I go
        in there." The Unabridged Bookstore (Broadway a block north
        of Belmont)

There is also a book compiled by Lane Phalen, THE BOOK LOVER'S GUIDE TO
CHICAGOLAND, ISBN 1-880339-06-4, $14.95) which covers over four hundred
bookstores in the Chicago area.

==============================================================================
Denver, CO:

The Tattered Cover (2955 East First Avenue, Denver CO 80206,
    1-800-833-9327, tdd/v [phone]).  Huge--4 floors.  Over
    400,000 books in stock.  Considered to be the best independent
    bookstore in the U.S.  Also does mail order to anywhere. Free
    giftwrapping.

==============================================================================
Houston, TX
All Books (Richmond at Greenbriar).  Used bookstore with reputedly good
    natural science selection.
Booked Up (Studewood at E 7th).  Used bookstore with good liberal arts
    selection.
Bookstop ('Alabama', S Shepherd at W Alabama).  A large branch of a growing
    discount chain.  Located in what used to be an old movie palace, it's
    a fairly good general bookstore, particularly popular non-fiction.
    Fiction genres (esp. sf and mystery) can be mediocre. Open til midnight.
Bookstop ('Sharpstown', Bellaire at US-59).  A smaller branch of the chain.
    Same sort of selection but the sf section is somewhat better.
Brazos Bookstore (Bissonet btw Kelvin & Morningside).  Eclectic, but known as
    a literary place, with readings.
Brentano's (Westheimer at S Shepherd).  A large, generic bookstore but much
    more pleasant than most, as armchairs and a coffee machine are to be
    found. Good children's and history sections.
Brown Book Shop (San Jacinto at Bell).  Good for science and technical stuff.
Detering Book Dealers (Bissonnet at Greenbriar).  A used bookstore, but for
    literary and rare stuff.
Future Visions (US-290 at Mangum).  Relatively speaking, the Houston source
    for sf and horror.  Due to financial troubles c. 1990, the selection
    has been broadened to include techno-thrillers and the ilk.  Author
    signings every month or so.
Half-Price Books (University at Kirby).  A large branch of the used bookstore
    chain. Pretty good Texana section.
Half-Price Books (Waugh at Hyde Park).  A moderate-sized branch.
Majors Scientific Books (S Main at Dryden).  Good for computer books and
    science texts, *especially* medical tomes.
Murder By the Book (Bissonnet at Morningside).  The Houston source for
    mysteries, especially new stuff. Author signings almost every week.
Nan's Game HQ (US-59 at S Shepherd).  A game and comic shop, but it has a rack
    of new sf, though heavily infested with official D&D pablum.
Rice Campus Store (Rice campus).  Avoid unless looking for something written
    by a Rice faculty member.  Textbooks are expensive and there's not
    much else.
Spectrum Bookstore (Westheimer at Augusta).  A generic bookstore, but a good
    place to hang out while you wait for a movie to start at the
    THX-equipped theater next door.
Third Planet (Bissonnet at Kelvin, preparing to move).  A comic and game shop,
    but they do maintain a very large rack of new and old sf books.
Univ Houston Cougar Bookstore (UH campus).  A large campus bookstore, usually
    cheaper than the Rice store.
Univ St Thomas Bookstore (UST campus).  Reputedly good for literature.

==============================================================================
New Haven, CT:

Arethusa Book Shop (87 Audubon).  Used books, first editions, collectors
    items.  Most are fairly expensive.
Atticus (1082 Chapel).  A rather ho-hum selection of new books.  Its
    virtues are that it's open late (a rarity in this area) and has a
    cafe on the premises.
Bryn Mawr Book Shop (56 1/2 Whitney).  Cheap used books.  Good for picking
    up some light reading (most paperbacks are $.25 apiece).  Open
    limited hours.
Coventry Books (75 Whitney).  Used books, mostly nonfiction or scholarly.
    Also some remainders.  "My personal favorite of the bunch."
Whitlock's (17 Broadway).  Used books on all subjects.
Yale Coop (77 Broadway).  New books, large full-service bookstore.  They
    also have one corner set aside for used scholarly books.

==============================================================================
Philadelphia, PA:

Book Trader (501 South St.) The biggest used book store in Philadelphia
    that I know of.  They also sell black & white posters, used
    records, and have a tiny gallery upstairs.  Open every day till
    midnight.
Hibberd's Books (1310 Walnut St.) Sells new, used, and rare books.
    Interesting item in this store is the bag of books in front of the
    store marked "take a chance, change of your life" filled with used
    books that are unknown until it is opened.
Whodunit? (Chestnut--whatever the main street is--around 20th).  Major
    mystery store, mostly used, some new, excellent supply for
    Sherlockiana for those who care about such things (like me!).

And a couple of people write:
"I recommend the "Chester County Book Company" in West Chester, PA (~20
miles or 50 minutes by bus west of Philadelphia).  They don't seem to
turn over their stock as much as most bookstores: there are more older
books than you usually find (at least in paperback).  They have about
50% more books than their shelves will hold; there are many stacks of
books not on shelves."  "CCBC is a pleasant medium sized bookstore,
always good for something.  They will special order anything, so far as
I know.  They have two stores, one in either of the two WC shopping
centers.  The larger one is the regular store.  The smaller one is
filled with remainders and WCU texts."  They also have a pair of very
large birds, confined to a cage, but they smell and squawk, sometimes
quite loudly.  Each of the shopping centers are immediately off of one
of the three Route 202 WC exits.

"While in the area, look for Baldwin's Book Barn, a converted barn.  It
is possibly the largest used bookstore in the Philadelphia area, and it
is glorious.  Exton (the next town over) has another fine used
bookstore.  Right next to the Burger King next to campus is a little old
ladies' little old books' bookstore.  Not much of a selection, but I
always buy a few from them when I'm in the area.  The Downingtown
Farmers' Market also has a few used bookstores, along with stuff you
just don't find in any other mall."

And in Willow Grove is the Business and Computer Bookstore.  "When
you're in the Philadelphia area, you as might as well also check out
Quantum, Borders, U Penn, Drexel U bookstores, and Lame Duck for used
science books.  If `technical' includes architecture, there's
furthermore a specialty store for just that in Center City.  (I've never
been to the Temple U bookstore, so I can't comment on it.)"

==============================================================================
Pittsburgh, PA:

Atlantic Books.  An okay remainder place.
The Bookworm (in Squirrel Hill).  A good used bookstore.
Borders (5 miles south on US 19).  A very good book store, and compares
    well with any bookstore short of Powell's (in Portland, Oregon)
    that I've visited.
City Books (on the South Side of the Monogahela river across from
    downtown).  Used.
Riverrun Books (next door to City Books).  Smaller than City Books but the
    two put together are well worth a visit.
Eide's Comic Shop.  A better science fiction section than any store in the
    Boston area (specialty or otherwise).
Pinocchio Bookstore for Children (in Shadyside opposite the west end of
    Walnut St).  The selection here is far better than any in any
    general bookstore.  (It's well-chosen stuff for the most part, not
    shelf after shelf of Sweet Valley High).
Skleder's.  Has a reasonable selection of old books, but nothing to brag
    about.
University of Pittsburgh Bookstore.  Pretty good.

There are several more (St. Elmo's and Stonewall probably merit additions as
well).  The CMU-SCS-student's Guide to Living In Pittsburgh gives a long
descriptions of the various kinds of bookstores in the area, but it's probably
more information than you want.  (It would take up a whole posting by itself,
and the bookstore pickings in Pittsburgh are a good deal slimmer than NYC or
the Bay Area.)

==============================================================================
Providence, RI:
Book Store, Murder by the Book, and Other Worlds (1281 N. Main St).  A variety
    of stores occupying the same space.  Wide selection of used science
    fiction and mysteries.
Cellar Stories (190 Mathewson Street).  Good selection of just about
    everything.  Recently doubled its space.  Contrary to its name, it's
    on a second floor downtown, just off of Weybosset.  Can usually be
    spotted by a banner hanging from the upstairs window.
Sewards' Folly (139 Brook Street).  Eclectic selection.  At about fifteen
    years old, this is the longest-surviving of the used bookstores around
    here, so they must be doing something right.  Owned by a retired
    couple named (surprise) Seward, this is a comfortable place to browse,
    and only a couple of blocks from coffee mecca on Wickenden Street, so
    you can conveniently take your purchases and enjoy them over a cup of
    espresso.

==============================================================================
St. Louis, MO:

The Library Ltd. (actually in the suburb of Clayton at Forsyth and Hanley,
    about a half-mile west of Washington U).  A new store, the largest
    bookstore in St. Louis.  A very pleasant store, with couches, chairs,
    and tables for reading areas.  Fills the whole floor of a store which
    used to be a Best catalog showroom.  A large selection of discount-
    price remaindered books, and an extensive display of all varieties of
    current hardbacks, paperbacks, and a reasonable magazine selection.

==============================================================================
Salt Lake City, UT:

Sam Weller's (273 S Main).  A *huge* place with new books on the main floor
    and used books in the basement and on the balcony.  You can easily
    spend half a day browsing in here.
King's English (1500? S 1500 E).  A cozy bookstore with a resident cat,
    armchairs, and free tea and coffee.  New books, strongest in
    fiction and literature.  Best selection of mysteries in town.

==============================================================================
Seattle, WA:

AKA Books & Left Bank Books.  Part of a collective that provides small
    press and alternative titles--former is primarily used books at
    good prices, latter is mostly new titles.
Bailey/Coy Books.  Wonderful, full of good fiction and recommendations
    from staff and customers.
Beauty and the Books.  Run-of-the-mill university used bookstore.
Beyond the Closet Books (1501 Belmont Ave).  The city's best gay &
    lesbian bookstore.
Blackbird Books (3130 E Madison).  Has a good selection of books for the
    African-American community, including toys, posters, children's
    books, and music.
David Ishi, Bookseller (down the street from Elliot Bay).  Lots of old
    hardcovers and memorabilia, but it's a bit expensive.  He
    specializes in fine editions, and will do difficult rare book
    searches on request.
Discount Books.  Has some of the lowest prices, but their selection is
    usually limited.
Elliot Bay Books.  Booklover's paradise. Also has an extensive children's
    section, complete with a playroom for kids as you browse other areas.
Flora and Fauna Books (1st Ave in Pioneer Square).  Best nature/outdoors
    bookstore in town, with both new and selected used/rare titles.
Half-Price (University District).  Large collection of mostly used books.
Lambda Books.  The best place for gay/lesbian titles and postcards.
Magus Bookstore.  Run-of-the-mill university used bookstores.
Mystery Bookshop (117 Cherry).  Large collection of new and used mysteries.
Open Books (Wallingford).  Great poetry selection.
Second Story Book Store (Wallingford Center on N. 45th).  Feminist, new
    fiction, lending library.
Secret Garden Children's Bookshop (Greenlake).  A wonderful selection.
Shorey's Books.  Used bookstore with ancient reference books.  Lots of
    dreck, but the occasional book you can't find anywhere else.
Spade & Archer (1101 E Pike).  Mystery bookstore. The Pike St cinema is
    at the back.
Standard Books (65th in the Roosevelt District).  Great bookstore -- open,
    airy, light, current fiction and non-fiction, heavy on politics,
    history, poetry.  Small children's section.  Free Sunday NYTimes
    Book Review.  Staff super-friendly and involved, newsletter, book
    signings and readings.
Tower Books (Lower Queen Anne).  Large, wide-ranging selection of new
    books, magazines, and papers.  Also sells the cheapest IRISH
    TIMES in Seattle.
Twice Sold Tales (on John, not 45th).  Has incredibly good used fiction
    at good prices.
University Bookstore.  Simply massive, with good people to find the book
    you want, and an extensive children's section. "Better than any
    University bookstore I know (including Harvard Coop) for general
    books."

There are also several used bookstores the university area--one along
University Way and a couple on side streets going East, towards campus.

And of course, you might want to consider a day trip down to Portland
(three hours by car) to get to visit Powell's--probably the largest
bookstore in the world.

==============================================================================
Washington, DC:

Air Land and Sea (Old Town Alexandria at 1215 King St).  New and used
    aeronautical, nautical, and military books, prints (and collectibles,
    and other knick-knacks).
Borders (Rockville Pike near White Flint mall in Bethesda/Rockville).
    The best.  Aside from having a huge selection, it has employees who
    actually know something about books.  Pricey, but a great place to
    hang out.  Borders has just opened an even bigger store in Tysons
    Corner on Leesburg Pike.
From Out of the Past (Alexandria on Richmond Hwy (Route 1).  Eclectic
    mix of books, sometimes overpriced badly IMHO, but *the* place in
    Washington to buy things like old Life magazines.
Kramerbooks/Afterwords (P St. just north of Dupont Circle).
    Smallish bookstore, but good selection & nice cafe in the back.
    Open 24 hours a day.  Also the regular Kramerbooks at 1875 K Street
    inside International square.  Very good collection of political
    science and technical works.  **NOTE**: Another person says
    these are "[n]ot listed as such (under either name) in the
    current D.C. white or yellow pages.  There is an Afterwords Cafe at
    1517 Conn. Ave, N.W., but I have no notion if it is related."
    Can someone clarify?
The Map Store Inc. (Farragut Sq at 1636 Eye St. NW).  An excellent
    source of maps, travel guides, etc.
Maryland Book Exchange (College Park at 4500 College Ave).  An above
    average technical/university bookstore with some used books.
The Newsroom (two blocks up from Kramerbooks on Connecticut Ave).  A good
    selection of national & international newspapers & magazines.
Olde Soldier Books, Inc. (Gaithersburg on N Frederick Ave).  Specializes
    in Civil War books, in which they have a broad stock.  Worth
    checking on any military material for earlier wars, new (some)
    or used (mainly).  They also publish.
Olsson's Books & Records (Main store in Georgetown on Wisconsin Ave. NW.
    Other stores at Dupont Circle on 19th St NW, Metro Center on F
    St NW, Old Town Alexandria on S Union St, and Bethesda on Old
    Georgetown Rd).  Good selection, including some hard-to-find books.
    Also a music store.  Will order from Books in Print, and, at the
    Georgetown store, British Books in Print.  Also a music store;
    mainly classical.
Politics and Prose (Connecticut and Nevada).  A full service bookstore.
    Recent fiction and current affairs, politics.  Often has authors
    speaking.
Reiter's Scientific and Technical Bookstore (2021 K St NW).  They have a
    very broad stock of technical books and are also willing to do
    phone and mail order worldwide [phone] or [phone].
Wonder Books & Video (Frederick on W Patrick St (Route 40 W)).  A large
    used bookstore that I've always found well worth searching.

In Bethesda, just find one used bookstore -- each one has maps
    showing the locations of all the others.

Second Story Books (chain with stores at Dupont Circle on P St NW,
    Rockville on Parklawn Ave, Bethesda on Bethesda Ave, and in
    Baltimore).  Used books (and records). Largest selection of
    any of the used book stores I go to (I look for paperback fiction
    and history, mostly).

For literary stuff, try Chapters, at 1532 K St NW.

For SF, fantasy, and strange odds & ends, try Hole in the Wall
      (a.k.a. Hole in the Wallet) in Falls Church, Virginia.

For theater books, Backstage Inc., 21st & P Streets N.W.

==============================================================================
Oxford:

Blackwell's.  "The typical university bookshop (there are no bookstores in
    England), but often missed is the rare books and special editions that
    Sir Basil Blackwell collected and put on display in a rather pleasant
    country house just south of Oxford.  The problem is, I cannot remember
    the village.  Near Nuneham Courtney?  Clifton Hampden?  Someone will
    know.  Sometimes a special book deserves a special typesetting,
    printing and binding."  Also has various second hand sections.
Book Bargains (2 St. Ebbe St).
Bookshop on the Plain. (cross Magdaelen Bridge and start up the Cowley Rd;
    it's immediately on your left).
The EOA Communist Bookshop (across the road from Bookshop on the Plain).
    Might carry Irish stuff for all the wrong reasons, I suppose, but
    being a Tory I wouldn't know :-."
Thorton's.  "Look out for Thornton's as it's *dear*.
Waterfield's (36 Park End St).  Good philosophy section.

"There's also a large second hand bookshop on the way down to the railway
station, go down the hill from the Westgate centre, past Nuffield College and
the prison, and straight on past the Queen's Arms, it then appears on the
right.  The antiques emporium just before it and the Jam Factory over the road
by the traffic lights also house minor booksellers amongst their other
denizens."

==============================================================================
Edinburgh:

Bauermeisters (on the Bridges).
Castle Books (Canongate).  Used.
Dillons (Princes Street).  Large chain.  Someone claims, "Dillons?  You mean
    Sherratt and Hughes, now known as.....Waterstone's."
Forbidden Planet (Teviot Place).  Science fiction.
Macnaughtons (Haddington Place, Leith Walk).  Used.
Old Grindle's (Spittal Street).  Used.
Second Edition (Canonmills).  Used.
Sheena McNeil (Bruntsfield Links).  Sheet music.
Thins (South Bridge).  One person says: "[Along with] John Smiths, ... [is]
    so far ahead of anyone else there is no point in looking at others.
    Both have a few other branches scattered around their respective
    cities." But another says: "Thins is the worst bookstore I've ever
    had the misfortune of dealing with," and a third says, "It must have
    been a while since you tried looking for anything in Thin's,
    and absence has apparently made your heart go all funny. Thin's is
    a Very Poor Bookshop.  They are also a bunch of hypocrites, handing
    out propaganda in favour of retaining the Net Book Agreement, while
    marking up the prices of Non-Net Books higher than Waterstone's and
    Co."
Tills (Buccleuch Street).  Used.
Waterstone's (Princes Street).  Large chain.
West and Wilde (Dundas Street).  Gay/lesbian
West Port Books (West Port near Lothian Rd.).  Used.
(a couple of shops in Teviot Row).  Medical, new and used.
(a shop in Spittal Street).  Second-hand football programmes.
(a remainder shop opposite Thins).
(a couple of used book stores in Broughton Street and at the top
of Leith Walk and several used book stores in the Grassmarket).

You can pick up a leaflet with a full list of used book stores from any one
of them.
The Assembly Rooms in George St. often holds book fairs on Saturdays
where many of the second-hand booksellers exhibit.

==============================================================================
Glasglow:

Bargain Books (chain of small stores).  Limited stock but excellent bargain
    prices.
Caledonia Books (Great Western Road).  Used.
Church of Scotland Bookshop (Buchanan Street near the Underground Station).
    Near Forbidden Planet.
Centerpeace (Stockwell Street).  Pacifist/feminist/Third World.
Clyde Books (Parnie Street).  Radical/socialist/feminist/green.
Dillons (the Argyle Street/Union Street corner).  A very large branch.
    More modern than Smiths and a great place to pick up book
    bargains.  Close to Smiths and Waterstones.
Dowanhill Books (in a lane off Byres Road opposite Hillhead tube station).
    Used.
Forbidden Planet (Buchanan Street).  Science fiction and comics.
Futureshock.  American imports and OLD paperbacks as well as imports.
Gilmorehill Books (Bank Street).  Used.
Obelisk (Virginia Galleries, Virginia Street).  Used science fiction and
    mysteries.
John Smith and Sons (St. Vincent Street).  Quite close to George Square.
    This is the main branch and is famous enough for you to be able to
    ask directions to it.  It has 5 floors and keeps books on just about
    any subject you can think of.  Main public transport terminals nearby
    (i.e., walking distance) include Central Station (trains), Queen
    Street Station (trains), Buchanan Street Station (buses) and Buchanan
    Street Underground Station.  Close to Dillons and Waterstones.
John Smith and Sons (University Bookshop, University Avenue, Hillhead) (west
    of the city centre).  A strictly academic bookshop, they specialise
    in stocking books on the recommended reading lists for students
    supplied by Glasgow University (who keep close links with the shop).
    Most university courses are in evidence in the shop - medical books
    particularly so.  Main public transport terminal nearby is Hillhead
    Underground Station.
John Smith and Sons (Byres Road Branch, Byres Road, Hillhead).  A mainstream
    three-storey bookshop.  Simply a scaled-down version of the main
    shop.  This shop is located next door to the Hillhead Underground
    Station.  The university shop is 5 minutes away on foot.  A nice area
    in general, well worth a look: there are several famous cafes/coffee
    shops around here too (e.g., The Ubiquitous Chip, The Underground
    Gallery).
Voltaire and Rousseau (Otago Street Lane).  Used.
Waterstones (Union Street very close to Dillons).  Large branch.
    More modern than Smiths.  Close to Smiths.
Word of Mouth (Bank Street).  Food and cookery; this place is amazing.
(a comics shop in Byres Road)
charity shops in Byres Rd, all of whom sell books, starting with Cancer
    Research, Oxfam, Dr Barnado's, Save the Children, Glasgow
    University's settlement(?), as well as the back alley secondhand books
    (next to Oxfam) and occasionally DeCourcy's arcade)

Regarding Smiths, one reader says:
"There are other branches of Smiths, but these three should cover all
your needs wherever you are in Glasgow.  All Smiths shops are tied by a
computer network allowing the facility for quick look up of stocks
elsewhere in the city and quick transfer between branches in the case
where a particular book is not in stock at a certain branch.  They can
also order ANY book in print as long as they can locate the ISBN, and
send it to any address you please.  They have British and Overseas Books
in Print on Microfiche for this purpose."

Regarding some of the other chains, another reader warns:
"AVOID the new, plush bookshops that are branches of big English chains
(Dillons, Hatchards, Waterstones).  These have a limited range of yuppie
best-sellers and their attempts to fuck publishers over through the years
(unilaterally refusing to pay before three months after invoicing and later
attempting to smash the Net Book Agreement) have been very destructive.
They have nothing in stock you can't get from John Smiths or Thins."

W. H. Smiths and John Menzies are huge UK-wide chains that sell magazines
and airport bestsellers.

Evelyn C. Leeper   |   [phone]   |   att!mtgzy!ecl or [e-mail]