Visit New York City's Bookstores

[ NEW YORK, NY - NYC - 7/30/2010 - Last update 4/15/2010 - www.Littleviews.com ]

>>  New York is the publishing, intellectual, and educational capital of the United States and English-speaking world. If you like to read as well as meet others in your field, consider visiting New York just to browse its bookstores and attend readings and lectures!

And books are everywhere! Besides browsing in bookstores, you can also find books in New York's museums, zoos, botanical gardens, large historical sites, large performance centers, and even on street vendor tables. Books are also found in specialty stores, such as those that sell:

• Arts and crafts
• Camping, athletic and sports items
• Dance supplies
• Education (college and university centers)
• Foreign affairs, news, and embassies
• Gardens and plants
• Magazines (extensive reading material from around the world)
• Marine supplies
• Musical instruments and sheet music
• Pet, fish, and/or bird supplies
• Religion
• Specialty items (cooking, home repair, tile, and paint shops)

Many author readings are listed on Littleviews' NY Activities Calendar - Books / Readings topic. You might also try the Storytelling / Poetry topic, too.

List of New York City Bookstores

Links were last checked on October 12, 2009.

Alabaster Books
(used, rare, out-of-print)
122 4th Ave.
212-982-3550

Applause Books
(scripts, screenplays, theater, musicals, monologues, song, speech)
211 W 71st St.
212-496-7511

Archiva Books
(architecture, art, design, decorative arts, gardens, interiors)
993 Lexington Ave., between 72 and 71st Streets
212-570-9565

Argosy
(marine, maps, prints, history)
116 E 59th St.
212-753-4455

Asia Society and Museum
(Oriental, books, gifts, art)
725 Park Ave.
212-288-6400

Bank Street College Bookstore
(education, academic, children's)
610 West 112th St.
212-678-1654

Barnes&Noble
B&N carries books on all subjects. Make a point of looking at their bargain books for great deals, B&N publications, and other outstanding treasures. Depending on your needs, some locations are more spectacular than others. Many have huge magazine sections and large music shops.

Bauman Rare Books
(out-of-print and rare books)
535 Madison Ave.
212-751-0011

Biography Book Shop
(biographies, general interest, large remainders selection)
400 Bleecker St.
212-807-8655

Bluestockings Bookstore
(politics, gender studies, liberation movements, revolutions)
172 Allen St.
212-777-6028

Bookculture
(new releases, bestsellers, mysteries, periodicals, remainders, academic, scholarly)
536 West 112th St.
212-865-1588

Books of Wonder
(children's)
16 W 18th St.
212-989-3270

Borders
The largest shop is in the Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle. This chain appears to be morphing into an Amazon.com division.

Carl Fischer
(sheet music, scores, school band/orchestra scores, classical DVDs and CDs)
65 Bleecker St.
212-777-0900

Center for Book Arts
(fine art books, small publishers)
28 West 27th St.
212-481-0295

Colony Music
(huge selection of sheet music, karaoke, Broadway CDs, musical-related DVDs - this is a large and very interesting store!)
1619 Broadway
212-265-2050

Corner Bookstore, The
(children's, travel)
1313 Madison Ave.
212-831-3554

Crawford Doyle Booksellers
(modern first editions, literature, signed books)
1082 Madison Ave.
212-289-2345

Creative Visions
(gay, lesbian, bisexual)
548 Hudson
212-645-7573

Dahesh Heritage Fine Books
(history, literature, Arabic, Spanish, French, German)
1775 Broadway
212-265-0600

Dashwood Books
(art photography)
33 Bond St. between Lafayette and Bowery
212-387-8520

Drama Book Shop
(theater, film)
250 West 40th St.
212-944-0595

East West Yoga
(Eastern religion, new age, self-improvement)
Info on New York Yoga
78 5th Ave.
212-243-5994

Fashion Design Books
(fashion, sewing, art)
250 West 27th St.

Fil Caravan
(Middle Eastern, European, Russian culture, antiques)
240 E 56th St.
212-421-5972

Forbidden Planet
(science fiction, fantasy)
840 Broadway
212-473-1576

Frank Music Company
(classical sheet music: chamber, full scores, piano, string, woodwind, voice, and study scores)
250 West 54th St.
212- 582-1999

Fred Wilson Chess Books
(chess)
80 E 11th St.
212-533-6381

Gozlan's Sefer Israel
(Hebrew language, Jewish culture)
28 West 27th St.
212-725-5890

Guggenheim, Solomon R. Soho Museum
(art)
536 Broadway
212-219-9939

Hagstrom Map & Travel Center
(publisher, maps, travel books)
51 W 43rd St.
212-398-1222

Housing Works Bookstore
(used, rare, classics)
126 Crosby St.
212-334-3324

International Center of Photography Bookstore
(photography)
1133 Ave of Americas
212-860-1767

J. Levine Jewish Books and Judaica
(Hebrew, Jewish)
5 W 30th St.
212-695-6888

Jeryl Metz, Books
(collectable children's books)
Books viewable by appointment only. 697 West End Ave., Apt. 13A
212-864-3055

Jim Hanley's Universe
(comics)
4 W 33rd St., New York
212-268-7088
325 New Drop Lane, Staten Island
718-351-6299

Hue-Man Bookstore & Cafe
(African-American)
2319 Fredrick Douglass Blvd.
212-665-7400

Juilliard School Bookstore, The
(music, sheet music)
60 Lincoln Center Plaza
212-799-5000

Kinokuniya Bookstore
(Japanese, design, decorating, magazines, paper crafts, children's, gifts)
Note: Their website is mostly in Japanese.
Whether you speak Japanese or not, you'll find their shop very interesting!
1073 Avenue of the Americas, across the street from Bryant Park
212-869-1700

Kitchen Arts & Letters
(cooking, food)
1435 Lexington Ave.
212-876-5550

Left Bank Books
(used, rare, literary, photography, art, film)
304 W 4th St.
212-924-5638

Librairie de France
(French, Spanish, languages, travel)
This store closed in September 2009
Check its website for online book sales.
212-581-8810

Luso-Brazilian Books
(Spanish, Brazil, Portuguese, language, audio books)
560 West 180th St.
212-568-0151

Macondo Books
(Spanish)
This store was closed in 2007. It was located on 221 W 14th Street

Manhattan Books
(independent college bookstore, discount books)
150 Chambers Street
212-385-7395

Mercer Street Books & Records
(used, architecture, design, art, photography, French literature, vinyl records)
206 Mercer Street
212-505-8615

McNally Robinson
(general)
52 Prince St.
212-274-1160

Midtown Comics
(comics)
Two locations: 200 W. 40th Street (Corner of 7th Ave.)
459 Lexington Ave. (Corner of 45th Street)
212-302-8192

Mysterious Book Shop, The
(mystery)
212-587-1011

New York Public Library Gift Shop
(NYC books, current and historical maps, children's books, gifts)
5th Ave and 42nd St.
212-930-0869

New York University Medical Center Bookstore
(medical text books, medical items)
550 First Ave. in the Medical Sciences Building

Oaklander Books
(rare, out-of-print, periodicals, foreign language, posters, vintage advertising arts, type)
548 W. 28 Street, Suite 540
212-594-4210

Oriental Culture Enterprises Company
(Oriental, Chinese)
13-17 Elizabeth
212-226-8461

Oscar Wilde Bookstore
(gay, lesbian, bisexual)
15 Christopher St.
212-255-8097

Partners & Crime
(mystery)
44 Greenwich
212-243-0440

Pauline Books & Media
(Catholic, Christian)
64 West 38th St., between 5th and 6th Avenues
212-754-1110

Posman Books
(publisher's bookstore)
Grand Central Terminal on 42nd St.
212-983-1111

Quest Book Shop
(Theosophy, mysticism, spiritual, new age)
240 E 53rd St.
212-758-5521

Revolution Books
(Marxist, revolutionary struggles)
9 West 19th St.
212-691-3345

Richard B. Arkway
(antique maps, globes, rare books)
59 E. 54th St.
212-751-8135

Rizzoli's
(art, design, architecture)
31 W 57th St.
212-759-2424

Russica Bookstore and Art Gallery (Russian)
174 5th Ave.
212-924-5477

S F Vanni
(Italian)
30 W 12th St.
212-675-6336

St. Marks Bookshop
(fiction, philosophy, art, literary)
31 3rd Ave.
212-260-7853

Sam Ash: the Musical Instrument Megastore
(sheet music, musical instruments)
160 West 48th St.
212-398-6052

Samuel French Bookstore
(Samuel French plays)
45 W 25th St.
212-206-8990

Scholastic Publishing
(children's, education)
Worldwide Headquarters at 557 Broadway
212-343-6100

Shakespeare & Company Booksellers
(new, best sellers, college text books, music)
716 Broadway - 212-531-1330
939 Lexington Ave., between 68th and 69th Streets - 212-570-0201
137 E 23rd St. at Lexington - 212-505-2021

Sister's Uptown Bookstore
(African, African-American)
1942 Amsterdam
212-862-3680

Strand Books
(new and used, art, history, fiction)
828 Broadway
212-473-1452

Teachers College Bookstore
(children's, instructional)
1224 Amsterdam
212-678-3992

Three Lives Book Store
(history, women literary)
154 W 10th St.
212-741-2069

The Complete Traveller Antiquarian Bookstore
(travel, maps)
199 Madison Ave.
212-685-9007

United Nations Bookshop
(world affairs, children's, educational, maps, travel, languages, gifts, world music)
United Nations General Assembly Building
E 45 St. and First Ave.
212-963-7680

U.S. Government Bookstore
(incredible selection in fabulous location)
Room 110, Federal Building,
26 Federal Plaza
212-264-3825

Urban Center Books
(architecture, city planning)
457 Madison Ave.
212-935-3592

Ursus Books
(rare, reference, antique prints, art)
981 Madison Ave.
212-772-8787

West Side Judaica
(Hebrew language, Jewish)
2412 Broadway
212-362-7846



Let me know if you'd like to add a bookstore to this list, or make a correction: karen@littleviews.com

This New York City bookstore list was compiled by Littleviews.com.