Path: nuchat!menudo.uh.edu!swrinde!gatech!howland.reston.ans.net!spool.mu.edu!olivea!news.bu.edu!news.bbn.com!news.bbn.com!nichael From: nichael@bbn.com (Nichael Cramer) Newsgroups: rec.arts.books Subject: R.A.B BOOKSTORES LIST: CAMBRIDGE/BOSTON Date: 2 Sep 93 10:50:20 Organization: BBN, Interzone Office Lines: 551 Distribution: world Message-ID: Reply-To: ncramer@bbn.com NNTP-Posting-Host: kariba.bbn.com R.A.B BOOKSTORES LIST: CAMBRIDGE/BOSTON [Updated: 1SEPT93] [NOTE: The Bookcase in Harvard square has also gone west. --N] This is a list of many of what are, to my mind, some of the better/larger/ more important bookstores in the Cambridge/Boston area. I've tried to be somewhat selective and this list is far from exhaustive. Each entry contains the name of the bookstore, address and (if appropriate) nearest T-Stop together with a short description of the bookstore. Sections: GENERAL/FULL-SERVICE BOOKSTORES USED BOOKSTORES UNIVERSITY (BOOKSTORES AND PRESSES) POETRY FOREIGN BOOKS THEOLOGY/RELIGION CHILDREN'S BOOKS TECHNICAL BOOKSTORES MALL/MEGA-STORES MISCELLANY MAGAZINES, ETC. RELATED NON-BOOK STUFF o I've received lots of excellent comments, etc. I've incorporated a great deal of this below, sometime quoting wholesale if I knew nothing about the store in question or there was a significant difference of opinion. Also, I have kept a list of all comments (which is actually twice the length of the original list) and will be glad to email on request. o CONCERNING HARVARD SQUARE [Hereafter: HSq]: In this list there is a lot of emphasis on Cambridge, and in particular on Harvard Square. I'm assuming that most people using this list (tourists, weekend-visitors, etc.) probably want the biggest book-buying bang per buck. And around here that clearly means Harvard Square. o BTW, Most HSq bookstores carry the "Bookstores of Harvard Square" guide. Pick up a copy; it'll make getting around a whole lot easier. o Information concerning phone numbers, discounts, etc. is intended to be correct and up-to-date. However I'm only human, so all Standard Disclaimers[tm] apply. Nichael ncramer@bbn.com -------------------- GENERAL/FULL-SERVICE BOOKSTORES WORDSWORTH, 30 Brattle St. [TStop=HSq Ph=354-5201] The flag-ship of HSq book shops. 100,000+ titles. All books (except texts and special orders) discounted (10% off paperbacks, 15% off hardcovers (except texts) and 35%? off on NYT bestseller hbs) Knowledgeable, friendly staff. Open early, open late (Mon-Sat 8:30-11:30, Sun 10-10:30). Recently expanded. Also recently opened a separate posters/calendar shop down the street. If you have time for only one stop, come here. HARVARD BOOKSTORE, 1256 Mass Ave. [TStop=HSq] Full-service bookstore. Nice classical and remaindered sections. A fairly good used-book section (and remaindereds) in the basement. (In spite of name, not associated with Harvard so far as I know.) Currently doing a stamp-your-ticket-for-every-$10-and-get-30%-off-you-next-purchase-after- ten-stamps sale. HARVARD COOP, 1400 Mass Ave. [TStop=HSq Ph=492-1000] Pronounced "koop". The official "college bookstore" of Harvard. Three floors of books. (Also clothes, school supplies, etc.) Currently has 10% discount even for non- coop-members (text probably not included). Good source for that weird anthro text you've always wanted. Also has a good music store and poster shop. M.I.T. COOP, 3 Cambridge Center. [TStop=Kendall Sq Ph=491-4230] The (smaller) M.I.T. analogue of the above. BARILLARI BOOKS, One Mifflin Place. [TStop=HSq Ph=864-2400] Another largish HSq bookstore. Overall: ho-hum. A weird case. In 99% of the world, this would no doubt be the best place in town. But here it just comes off as another Wordsworth wannanbe. Upstairs is primarily a coffee-table book shop. Pretty nice children's selection. Also has an espresso bar, and patio if your tastes run that way. Also they're open late, too (ala Wordsworth). [I tend to agree, but they seem to have instituted a permanent policy of 25% off on every new (non-remaindered) book except for 35% on NYT bestsellers. If on a serious binge, that extra 10-15% over Wordsworth can add up...although you'll probably have to go to Wordsworth to find what you can't find there. --tyg] [Barillari's has gotten better with age. Making the upstairs more books (and fewer gift-y books) helped a lot. Still not Wordsworth, but definitely worth checking out. -- NLC] CHARLESBANK BOOKSHOP, Kenmore Square, Boston. [TStop=Kenmore Sq] *Huge* store. Contains, as a single component, the Boston University Bookstore. Books, magazines, maps, etc. etc. [Better than either the Harvard or MIT Coop's for serious non-fiction. Also a place of last resort for obscure technical volumes (they had the only copy of a Human Genetics text in the city). --William Loos] HARVARD BOOKSTORE CAFE, 190 Newbury Street, Boston. [TStop=Copley Sq] Restaurant and bookstore in one. WATERSTONES, Corner of Exeter and Newbury, Boston. [TStop=Copley Sq] The Boston branch of the famous London bookstore. Again, hmmm... I dunno. Very tony: lots of nice carpets and pretty bookshelves. Plenty of books, but they could have made the store one-third its present size. A friend summed it up best: "A nice bookstore, not a great bookstore". READING INTERNATIONAL, 47 Brattle St. [TStop=HSq Ph=864-0705] [RIP -- NLC] -------------------- USED BOOKSTORES [NOTE: Often the phrase "used book store" is used to mean something like "paperback junk shop". This is not true in these cases; Harvard Square alone has four[*] great used book shops.] [* Sigh, make that three now] PANGLOSS BOOKSHOP, 65 Mt Auburn. [TStop=HSq Ph=354-4003] Focus on humanities and social sciences. Seems to be primarily hardback. Weird double shelving scheme. Nice selection of "small" journals and magazines that you'd never see anywhere else. [Several people report that Pangloss has been sold. I've not been there yet, but I've been told there is some effort to carry on the old spirit. --NLC] MCINTRYRE AND MOORE BOOKSELLERS, 8 Mt Auburn St. [TStop=HSq Ph=491-0662] General used books. They have an excellent selection of history and other non-fiction, but their fiction section is relatively small. My personal favorite (i.e. I can find something here I want a tad more often than the other places listed). THE BOOK CASE (AND ANNEX), 42 Church St. [TStop=HSq Ph=876-0832] [R.I.P --N] STARR BOOKSHOP, 92 Plympton. [TStop=HSq Ph=547-6864] In the back half of the Harvard Lampoon building. Be sure to check out the "new" used book section (i.e. first dibs before these new acquires get shelved --this seems to be a default place to dump review copies). Surliest staff on the east coast. BRATTLE BOOKSHOP, 9 West St, Boston. [TStop=Park St] Ancient. Also has "antiquarian" paraphernalia; e.g. autographs, etc. Nice old/used magazine selection. [Again, strongest on history and other non-fiction. Most of their paperbacks are $3/1 on a big unsorted table; you can usually find some good ones if you take the time to weed through it. --Sandra Loosemore] [They've added a section on science fiction, three shelves of which are paperback. It's not large but some quite good stuff has shown up in it. The reason, of course, is that their contacts are so good that a significant percent of all used books being sold sort of funnel to them automatically. --William Loos] AVENUE VICTOR HUGO, 339, Newbury St, Boston. [TStop=Hynes Convention Center/I.C.A.] [The best in Boston for used science fiction but they have much more. The shelves are about 12 feet high set in rows 40 or 50 feet long. The sf is half of one row (hardcover on one side, paper on the other), which is a huge selection , but only about 10% of the total. (And not just run of the mill sf either -- in one haul there I found four by William Morris, two by Charles Williams, and one by George MacDonald.) The overall selection contains something of everything. This is the place where *I've* found more stuff than any other. The prices though tend toward the high end. --William Loos] [He's added a section of "Collectable Paperbacks" -- the prices are what we've come to expect from him -- that is, not actually out of line, strictly speaking, but pushing the very high end of the range... --William Loos] HOUSE OF SARAH BOOKS, 225 Hampshire St., Cambridge. Ph: (617) 547 - 3447; [Small but *quite* good -- all the stock is in good condition (*and* very well ordered, which helps immensely). There tends to be a wide variety of topics with comparatively fewer in each topic. However, fiction, general religion, and history are fairly large. A specialty is Women in Religion (get it? "House of Sarah" as opposed to the "House of Abraham"). The owner is also quite nice. The prices on balance are toward the low end of this group of stores. --William Loos] BRYN MAWR BOOKSTORE, 373 Huron Ave. [Ph=661-1770] [A wide selection. All profits go to establish scholarships at Bryn Mawr and for this reason they don't buy books but only accept them as donations. One result is that a portion (but only a minority) of the books are not in as good condition as one would like. Another is that everything is significantly cheaper, being closer to 1/3 list price rather than the 1/2 which is the norm. --William Loos] ZEMBLA BOOKS, Davis Square, Somerville. [TStop=Davis Square] [Pleasant small store w/used books, some good finds in the way of new review copies. Plus a truly literary weekly in-store quiz. -- Mark Eckenwiler] [Yet another good small one. It's most like the House of Sarah, in size, price, and quality of books. Being small, it's easier to keep things in order. All the books are in good condition and the prices tend towards the lower side. A good chance of finding something. --William Loos] [What! What! No listing for the Boston Book Annex? (something Beacon Street, at the Boston/Brookline border, where the C-branch of the Green line surfaces) Of course, I haven't been there in a year or so, although I try to go everytime I'm in town. Used books. Small, but I usually find something unexpected and entertaining. --Lisa Chabot] ARLINGTON BOOKS, 212 Massachusetts Ave. Arlington, 643-4473. [An eclectic mix of scholarly and general interest. Somewhat disorganized but a determined search can yield good books at reasonable prices. Note: closed Saturdays, open Sundays. --Keith Morgan] [Bus route 77 (note: _not_ 77A) from the Harvard Square station goes right by it; the store is about 5 blocks or so from the Cambridge/Arlington boundary, on the same block as the Capitol theater. -- Terry Gaetz] DISKOVERY, on Brighton Avenue, between Harvard Street and Linden. [You get both used books and used music here. This is quite a small shop, but it is an honest sort of smallness, not to be sneered at. The place is a mess, which makes it ideal for browsers. Comes complete with a middle aged Peruvian woman who plays rap most of the time and authentic black bookstore cat, as lazy as the best of them. --Gaurav Shah] -------------------- UNIVERSITY (BOOKSTORES AND PRESSES) HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESS DISPLAY ROOM, 1354 Mass Ave. [TStop=HSq Ph=495-2625] The name says it all. A whole *roomful* of Loeb Classics (at a small discount, even). [More than a small discount. There's a whole section of books discounted due to damage. However, the damage is often slight. It's worth checking out, though the amount that different books are discounted seems to vary wildly. My impression is that it has to do with how long they've been trying to unload a given book. Very nice staff here also ... --William Loos] MIT PRESS BOOKSTORE 292 Main St. [TStop=Kendall Square Ph=253-5249] 'nuf said. [The MIT Press "Xpress": the annex to the main building. They have been there since around December. They mostly sell remaindered MIT Press books with some others (notably Harvard U Press thrown in). The store is at 55 Hayward Street, Kendall Square, 253-4707. Open Mon.-Sat. 10-6. --Keith Morgan] -------------------- POETRY GROLIER BOOK SHOP, 6 Plympton St. [TStop=HSq Ph=547-4648 or 1-800-234-POEM] I don't know what all to say about Groliers. As the sign on the door says "minimum of prose". Poetry to the ceiling. Like Ralph, if Louise doesn't have it --or know about it-- you can probably get along without it. Has to be seen to be believed. (BTW, they also do mail/phone/fax orders.) -------------------- FOREIGN BOOKS SCHOENHOF'S FOREIGN BOOKS, 76A Mt Auburn St. [TStop=HSq Ph=547-8855] Foreign language books; literature, non-fiction, language learning, etc. 160 languages in reference section. [I don't think the listing really does this place justice. Simply put, this is THE foreign bookstore for the entire east coast. Smartest sales staff in HSq, bar none. --Mark Eckenwiler] [See also Loeb classics at HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESS DISPLAY ROOM, above] -------------------- THEOLOGY/RELIGION [NOTE: These stores are not "Religious" bookstores, per se; rather they are bookstores that function as sources for the many seminaries and religious schools in the Greater Boston area.] DIVINITAS, 5 Magazine St. [TStop=Central Sq Ph=354-1114] Nice selection. Often has good prices on remaindered/damaged books. HARVARD DIVINITY SCHOOL BOOK STORE, Francis St. [TStop=HSq] Again, name says it all. MASSACHUSETTS BIBLE SOCIETY BOOKSTORE, 41 Bromfield, Boston [TStop=Park St] Smallish. Very "bible" oriented. ISRAEL BOOKSTORE, 410 Harvard Street, Brookline. [Ph=566-7113] [More specialized, but worth mentioning. In their domain, they have an excellent selection. They give Starr a good run for least helpful staff, though. --Jonathan Delatizky] -------------------- CHILDREN'S BOOKS CHILDREN'S BOOK SHOP, 237 Washington, Brookline. [TStop=Brookline Village] Excellent selection. SAVANNA BOOKS, 858 Mass Ave. [TStop=Central Sq Ph=868-3423] (Note: I've never actually been here, but I've been told it's quite good.) [My impression is that they have children's books from all over the world, with special emphasis on the Third World and Africa in particular. --William Loos] [See also BARILARI and WORDSWORTHS above] -------------------- TECHNICAL BOOKSTORES QUANTUM BOOKS, 4 Cambridge Center. [TStop=Kendall Sq Ph=494-5042] Large selection of physics, math, etc. Rather computer-heavy. [They will give a 10% corporate discount, depending on where you work. I buy all my technical texts there, since the Wordsworth discount does not apply to textbooks. -- Dennis A. Franciskovich] [See also MIT COOP and MIT PRESS BOOKSTORE above.] -------------------- MALL/MEGA-STORES BORDERS' BOOKSTORE (in Framingham, RTE9, near Shoppers' World.) Another instantiation of the growing mega-chain. As giant chain stores go, this Borders is pretty good. (It remains to be seen, though, how well they survive the take-over by K-Mart.) My advice: don't make a special trip, but if you're (way!) out west, this'll probably be your best bet. A differing, more favorable opinion: [Borders is just about as good as any bookstore in the area. It has almost anything you're looking for, and has a nice, comfortable atmosphere, that encourages brousing. If you are on the T, you can probably do slightly better in Harvard Square (though not much better). However, if you are not convenient to the T, Borders is a much better bet than Harvard Square since they have lots of free parking. I talked to the manager about the K-Mart purchase. He thinks it won't hurt and may actually help. For example, they have been unable to add any new publishers to their extensive list in the last 6 months or a year due to software problems. The mananger thought K-Marts resources would allow them to fix this problem, and pick up yet more specialty publishers. -- Jim Mann] BARNES AND NOBLES, Downtown Crossing, Boston. (Also, an huge, new B&N has opened across from Burlington Mall, next to smallish Tower Records; well, smallish for Tower. Rumor has it that one is also opening in Newton Center.) A giant example of the famous chain. Basically a B Dalton's with a growth disorder. -------------------- MISCELLANY GLOBE CORNER BOOKSTORE, 49 Palmer St. [TStop=HSq Ph=497-6277] Travel books, maps (USGS, ATC, NOAA, DMA), globes, atlases, related paraphernalia... If you're having trouble getting around Cambridge/Boston, this is the place for you. A branch of the original store, which is at the (suprise!) corner of School and Washington in downtown Boston. SEVEN STARS, 58 JFK St. [TStop=HSq] Standard college-town occult/new-age bookshop. GLAD DAY BOOKSTORE, 673 Boylston. [TStop=Copley Sq] I forget what the acronym stands for (Gay and Lesbian ). On the second floor so it can be a little easy to miss. Has sort of a split personality: as you enter, the back half is basically an adult bookstore. The front is what one might call a full-service gay bookstore (i.e. they seem to carry about any book available that has so much as a single gay character). Postcards, records, tapes, etc. ASIAN BOOKS, 12 Arrow St. [TStop=HSq Ph=354-0005] Large selection of books, cards, prints, etc. on history, language, literature, architecture, art, etc. of Asia and Islamic world. NEW WORDS, 186 Hampshire St, Cambridge. [Ph=876-5310 TDD=876-3340] [One block from Inman Square, down Hampshire St, towards Kendall Sq] Feminist/women's bookstore. Cards, journals, music. KATE'S MYSTERY BOOKS, 2211 Mass Ave, Cambridge. [Ph=491-2680] [If you're going to take the T you best shot is Davis Square.] KATE'S is to mysteries what GROLIERS is to poetry. The bottom half of a house filled with books. Great black cat collection. Seems to have lots of readings and signings. (See if you can find the secret panel/doorway in the back room.) SPENCER'S MYSTERY BOOKSHOP, ?? Newbury St. [TStop=Hynes Convention Center/ I.C.A.] [It's about a block down Newbury St. from the Avenue Victor Hugo. The selection and atmosphere isn't quite the same as Kate's, but it's a more convenient location. Both places have a good selection of used books, too. --Sandra Loosemore] REVOLUTION BOOKS, 38 JFK St. [TStop=HSq Ph=492-5443] Well, it _is_ Cambridge... [It was suggested that I make clear that "revolution" in this context does _not_ mean "as in 1776". The store is run by the RCP (the Revolutionary Communist Party). --NLC] Others seem to prefer the following: RED BOOK STORE, Jamaica Plain. [TStop=Orange Line to Green Street] Red Book has no formal political affiliation. PANDEMONIUM BOOKS, 8 JFK St. [TStop=HSq Ph=547-3721] The kind little SF shop that you would expect to find in HSq. [On JFK over the Wursthaus. Devoted to sf/fantasy/gaming and has 10% discounts. They carry some specialty press stuff not available elsewhere the Square. And they'll discount at least some of it. Picked up a copy of the new edition of the SF Encyclopedia, a list $75 book, for 15% off before sales tax last month. --tyg] BUCK-A-BOOK, 1001 Mass Ave [HSq] (and various other locations). TONS of remaindereds at one dollar (some for more). The ones I've been in seemed to have no discernable shelving system. Great for the fanatic browser, or if you need to buy gifts where poundage is the prime concern. Way cheap, but you get what you pay for. [I've been *swarmed* by mail from people who love Buck-a-Book and feel I'm giving it short shrift. Again, I'm not terribly impressed by it, but lots of people swear by it. Son gout and and all that...] WGBH LEARNINGSMITH [HSq across from Wordsworth] (Also a slightly larger one in Chestnut Hill Mall.) Not really books, but still interesting. Mostly tie-ins for various PBS series. Educational toys, games, puzzles. *Lots* of videos (where else you going to find a complete copy of the Masterpiece Theater production of "Love for Lydia"?) NEW ENGLAND MOBILE BOOK FAIR, 82 Needham St, Newton. *Huge* warehouse of a store. It has three sections: hardbacks, paperbacks and remaindereds, each section being as big as any other bookstore you've probably ever been in. All at discount prices. (Warning: except for a few specialty sections, most books are sorted by Publisher alphabetical by *TITLE*! This makes browsing nearly impossible, and it can be pretty overwhelming your first time there, but if you know what you want, it can be a good deal. Copies of _Books in Print_ all over the place.) No one seems to why it's called "Mobile". -------------------- MAGAZINES, ETC. OUT OF TOWN NEWS, 0[!] Harvard Sq. [TStop=HSq] A Cambridge Fixture. Newspapers from all over. Good Magazine selection. NINI'S CORNER. [TStop=HSq] Right across the street from OUT OF TOWN NEWS. Better magazine selection. -------------------- RELATED NON-BOOK STUFF There are also a lot of nearby sites you may want to check out. Henry (and Alice and William Sr and Jr) James' graves in Cambridge Cemetery. "Authors Ridge" at the cemetery in Concord (the graves of Thoreau, Emerson, L M Alcott and [?]). Out at Amherst is the Emily Dickinson house and grave. Walden Pond is just down the road at Concord. If you come, be sure to bring a rock with you (really!). At the site of Thoreau's cabin is a cairn of rocks that has built up over the years by people who have brought rocks from their homes. [It might be getting a little far afield but since you mention Emily Dickinson in Amherst, I would plug for Edith Wharton's and Melville's homes in the Berkshires. Wharton's is especially lovely and since she lived there for a time before decamping for Europe there is a good sense of her presence. --Keith Morgan] [Charlesbank, Wordsworth, Harvard Bookstore, Borders', and Kate's are very strong on author appearances and readings and visitors might want to call up and find out if anyone they're interested in is doing one while they're in the area. Waterstone's may also be, but I'm less sure on them. --tyg] [Also, while there's no central local source for listing for readings, etc, you can usually get some idea what's happening in the Globe's Weekend section (put out on Thursdays) and The Phoenix --NLC] [Might want to mention that The Phoenix is also out on Thursday. Last Phoenix of the month has their Literary Suppliment, including a calendar for the next month of readings and signings in the area. The Tab chain also has a similar monthly calendar, but I'm less sure on when it's out. --tyg] [And related sites...Cambridge Common, floating across it like a transparent eyeball (Emerson, no?) ...the grave of the woman who might have been the model for The Scarlett Letter, next to Kings Chapel ...The Old Manse, in Concord (mosses and all) ...The Customs House, in Salem, where Hawthorne worked ...The House of Seven Gables, also in Salem (a bit of a tourist trap) ...The Salem Witch museum, which used to lift large portions of Arthur Miller's "The Crucible" whole (and probably without permission) for the narration in their chamber of horrors history of the witch trials ...The Grist Mill (Longfellow) in Marlborough --Lisa Chabot] -------------------- Comments, corrections, additions, etc, from: Ron Newman Sandra Loosemore tyg (Tom Galloway) tyg@hq.ileaf.com Dave Murphy Scott Drown drown@alliant.com LOOS@Frodo.MGH.Harvard.EDU (William D.B. Loos) eck@panix.com (Mark Eckenwiler) Jonathan Delatizky Dave Murphy gary@futon.SFSU.EDU (Gary Hoo) Dennis A. Franciskovich (daf@loghost) Evelyn C Leeper (ecl@mtgzy.att.com) Keith Morgan (kamorgan@Athena.MIT.EDU) Lisa Chabot (Lisa.Chabot@Eng.Sun.COM) Jim Mann (mann@vineland.pubs.stratus.com) Keith Morgan (kamorgan@Athena.MIT.EDU) Terry Gaetz (gaetz@cfa.harvard.edu) Gaurav Shah As always, corrections, comments, additions, etc., actively solicited. --N