Not the biggest in Australia, there is a place in Brisbane with over 1,000,000 second hand books, but Berkelouw’s are really cool. I first discovered them in a country barn, off the highway from Sydney to Canberra, 30 years ago and now they are back in the city. They had a tea room providing food and drink long before any other book store I know of.
Although it’s a chain, Waterstone’s has impressive bookstores. I’ve been to their Dublin store, and it was great. The store they used to have in Boston was great! It filled the old Exeter Street Theater with over three flooors of books, and when it opened it instantly outclassed the other bookastores in the city. They also opened a branch at Quincy Marketplace and in the suburbs at Burlington.
Then they closed all their American stores, except for the ones at airports. Bummer.
Sad to say, Bostonm has no really great bookstores, although it’s got some worthwhile ones – The Harvard Bookstore and the Coop in Harvard Square (And at the Harvard Press Bookstore you can buy all the Loeb Classical Editions!!). A lot of spexcialty bookstores and used bookstores have closed in Boston and Cam,bidge, but the Brattle Book Store is still there (although its original, quiky home burned down years ago)
If you get to Salt Lake City, Sam Weller’s used to have an awesome collection of used books. I hope they’re still there.
It’s not a single bookstore, but it may as well be 
I should add for Aussie Dopers that I am now a great fan of Borders.
I recently cashed in all my Amex points as they had a sale on gift vouchers. So I bought myself a pile of Borders vouchers.
When I went to buy my books I was asked if I wanted to receive their email newsletter. I signed up for it and now every week I receive an email with 2 to 4 vouchers for discounts. This week’s were 50% off any kid’s book and 30% off any DVD. Last week’s, among others, was 40% off any book.
Since you can print multiple copies I have never payed full price since the first visit I made.
Someone at work was going there to buy a book recently and I got her to register on their site for the emails and she received a discount voucher for doing that.
Half Price Books, lotsa places in Texas and other states. In addition to buying and selling used books, they’re dedicated to recycling and literacy programs. Their stores are also among the cleanest and most-organized used book stores I’ve ever seen.
You still can.
Perhaps not surprisingly, the atmosphere of the store changed rather after the fire in 1990. It’s still a landmark, though.
Foyle’s, in London. An old-fashoned firetrap with the world’s least knowledgeable staff. Lot’s of fun.
Wonder Book & Video, in Frederick, Maryland. Excellent collection of used books, well-arranged and with a wonderful staff.
In 2000 through 2001 I was living in a San Angelo in West Texas. A wonderful small town, with lots of odd shops, junk stores and weird little thrift stores.
One day I wandered into a used book store on the main drag. It’s the kind of book store I love. Things piled willy nilly. No rhyme or reason to any kind of filing. You just wander around smelling old books and every once in a while you come across a treasure. Like a first edition “To Kill a Mockingbird.” or “Slaughterhouse V”
She also had stacks and stacks of old “gentlemen’s” magazines, and boxes of naughty cartoons like my grandfather had in the bathroom.
On my first visit, I picked up a couple of books on Haunted Texas, and as I was paying for them, the little old lady who ran the place let me know that this wasn’t your average everyday bookstore. In order to make ends meet, she gave massages in the back. “Shoulders, neck, legs, even down there, where most places wouldn’t touch you with a ten foot pole.” Then this nice little grey haired old lady proceeded to give the international symbol for a hand job. My jaw was on the floor. Totally gobsmacked I stammered something about my wife not liking me stepping out on her, and got out as fast as I could.
I went back about two weeks later, just browsing and looking for anything interesting, and when the bell rang as I opened the door, I heard a voice from the back say “Be with you in a minute!”
I looked around, picked up a macramé’d Olympia beer can hat, and about five minutes later a man brushed by me, heading for the exit. This nice little old lady came out from the back, adjusted her wig, snapped off her latex gloves and rang up my purchase.
As she was doing so, she ran the same spiel again, how to make ends meet she offered massages and more in he back. I again said my wife wouldn’t like it, but thanks for the offer, and left. I visited about a dozen more times before I left town, sometimes she had a client, sometimes she didn’t, but every time, she offered here services.
Best bookstore evar!
For my money, it was Gotham Book Mart in New York . . . But it looks like it might be closing . . .
I noticed that store in Before Sunset and wondered if it was related to the one on NYC. I see from the link that non, and that there is in fact more than one of the unrelated NYC one.
Baggins Book Bazaar, Rochester, Kent, UK.
It’s like something out of a Charles De Lint story.
I love Berkelouw’s too. My parents live in Bowral, about fifteen minutes’ drive from the Book Barn and we often pop over there on weekends and spend a couple of hours browsing.
My favourites in Sydney are Abbey’s in York Street and Kinokuniya.
Science-fiction specialty store: Uncle Hugo’s in Minneapolis.
Adjacent, Mystery speciality store: Uncle Edgar’s.
Wow, you are quick Twickster. The Strand was the first store that came to my mind. They have many pre-publish books* and a huge selection of used books. They have most new books and many rare and signed copies.
The Strand is a great book store, worth a trip into NYC just to visit (and buy of course).
I have not been to it in years, but the Flagship Barnes & Nobles in Manhattan was an almost magical place when I was a teen in the 80s. It seemed to have every book in print and multiple levels that went up high in the sky. A huge used book section took up a space worthy of a large gymnasium.
Jim {I want to visit Baggins Book Bazaar from your description Boulter’s Canary.}
- I am not sure, are these called proofs? I cannot remember.
Wat? No mention of Denver’s Tattered Cover??? I haven’t lived there in several years, and I don’t think they have a full million volumes, but I think their model of doing business significantly influenced the industry. Here’s their Wikipedia article. They get my vote, even now, due to their fighing government snooping of what people read:
Hay-on-Wye is pretty cool too, but as has been noted it’s a bunch of little stores, not one big one.
I don’t know if it’s necessarily world-class, but Kramerbooks in Washington, DC is pretty neat. (www.kramerbooks.com). Small, eclectic collection, a very well-stocked bar, and a decent restaurant as well. One of my favorite places in the city, and well worth spending some time there. A bit cramped, though.
My daughter works there. They have excellent employee policies, and treat their workers well.
I’m not sure if the name is accurate, but I’ve always been a fan of the ‘World’s biggest bookstore’ in Toronto. In fact, I’m getting a little bummed about the fact that I was walking right past it last week when I was in TO for training, and didn’t make time to go in.
Well, at least I still have one round-trip to toronto on my train ticket, two subway tokens, and a vacation next week!!
Its been ages since I was in that store. Back when I was a teenager it was the number one place to get a lot of science fiction that was not on the shelves at coles bookstores , pre chapters era.
Fond memories of picking up a couple of books for ten bucks an heading to the food court at the eaton center.
Declan
I have to side with Powells also - even though the Strand is in second place, it’s very definitely in second place.
One of the things I miss about living on the east coast is that I no longer get to visit Powells.