A History of the American Bookstore 

By Evan Friss

Favorite quote: “When customers (of Three Lives & Company Bookshop, NY) send Christmas cards, postcards, letters, and snacks, they address them not to a person. They are for the shop. Calling them “customers” doesn’t even sound right—probably because many of them, some of whom come nearly every day, hardly ever buy anything.

Instead, they stop by to linger, to talk books, and to talk about more than books. Three Lives isn’t just another retail outlet. The quintessential “shop around the corner” … has charm, personality, and soul.”

From the publisher: An affectionate and engaging history of the American bookstore and its central place in American cultural life, from department stores to indies, from highbrow dealers trading in first editions to sidewalk vendors, and from chains to special-interest community destinations.

Hardcover

6.25 x 9.25 | 403 pages