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Thursday, August 23, 2012

Books Re: City of Books

Posted by Alison Hallett on Thu, Aug 23, 2012 at 12:14 PM

genius signage at Bingo Used Books.
  • genius signage at Bingo Used Books.

Erik and I went to about a bajillion bookstores for our feature this week, which compiles a list of Portland bookstores that AREN'T named Powell's.

Some backstory on the article: For about five years now, Erik and I have been talking about taking a day to visit all of the Portland bookstores we'd never been to. We'd typically have this conversation while driving through Hollywood—we'd pass Second Glance Books on Sandy and remark on how weird it was that neither of us had ever been inside. Because here's the thing: If we didn't live in Portland, if we weren't accustomed to going to Powell's for our book-buying needs, we'd definitely be on familiar terms with our neighborhood used bookstore. So finally, spurred on in part by recent disclosures from ex-Powell's employees about how that company's work culture has changed for the worse, we decided to turn that long-running conversation into an article. Our bookstore field trip took two days, and brought us from Sellwood to Vancouver (with a bonus detour to Tigard, when I couldn't resist a "One Dollar Book Fair" sign). Turns out that Second Glance Books is a very charming little bookstore, with an improbably large romance section, a very solid collection of literary fiction, and a store dog named Maggie who thumps her leg when you scratch her.

I'm annoyed with myself for forgetting Ampersand Books—it was on the list, and just fell off it at some point—and we heard about Belmont's Paper Moon Books a little too late to do anything about it. I'm sure there are others we overlooked as well, and if you think of any, please head over to the comments and let us know.

After the jump, a couple more crappy iPhone photos.

I spent $5 at Tigards One Dollar Book Fair. JEALOUS?
  • I spent $5 at Tigard's One Dollar Book Fair. JEALOUS?

Wallace Books in Sellwood <3 <3
  • Wallace Books in Sellwood <3 <3

Interstellar Overdrive. Did not buy.
  • Interstellar Overdrive. Did not buy.

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