Cracks In Sidewalks

When I think about bookstores or record stores for that matter, I think about independent bookstores and record stores.  I think about walking into a store and having it have its own personality.  Of being able to talk to a salesperson about books, get suggestions, and having that person be knowledgeable about the subject matter.  I look to these people for inspiration and I consider them to be experts who can guide me and lead me in an interesting direction.  Unfortunately the independent bookstore has become a rare commodity, and the independent record store is just as rare if not rarer.  With the likes of Tower Records and Virgin Records closing you can imagine how hard it must be for mom and pop books or records to stay in business and I rally my support around those who do and have stayed open.  They all can use our support.

I also need to mention a little independent video rental store in my neighborhood in NYC, Chelsea.  It’s called “Alan’s Alley,” and it’s the best!  Blockbuster moved in close by and couldn’t keep its doors open.  It was a really proud moment!  “Alan’s Alley” will have been open for 20 years this coming November and Alan is always a fixture in the store.  Everyone knows him and not only can you get great suggestions, but they have a large selection of smaller independent films and also a large collection of foreign language films.

In Santa Cruz, where I use to live there was “Bookshop Santa Cruz,” always at the end of the downtown mall on Pacific, that is until the 89 earthquake when it was forced to move to another spot on Pacific and into a great new store.  People in Santa Cruz wouldn’t know what to do without “Bookshop Santa Cruz.”  It’s a part of the town and therefore everyone supports it.  No one wants it to be gone, so they continue to buy their books, their calendars and their coffee at the store and use it as a meeting place for friends.

In New York City there is still the “Strand Bookstore” in the village that has been around for 80 years.  They advertise that they have 18 miles of books, new books, used books, rare books, out of print books, art books, etc.  Still family owned the bookstore now occupies 55,000 square feet, has an outlet down at the South Street Seaport, runs the kiosks in Central Park and does a thriving online business.  But still it is independent and one of a kind and no other store can resemble the “Strand”.

And in San Francisco there is the legendary independent bookstore “City Lights Books,”
founded by poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti and partner Peter Martin in 1953.  It’s been a destination for booklovers around the world and has stood as alternative culture’s literary landmark for decades. Their masthead reads “A Literary Meetingplace since 1953.”  City Light is also unique in that it has a publishing division as well.  “City Lights” carries a wide range of books on a wide variety of subjects but goes out of its way to stock titles from harder-to-find specialty publishers.

So those are just a few, and you know who they are in your own neighborhoods.  Don’t forget them.  Don’t just shop online or order “on demand.”  Support your local independent stores.  They need us and we need them.  I rely on them to be experts where I am not and I like talking to a human being about music, books, and movies.  Any thoughts?

Alan’s Alley
207 9TH Ave (btwn 22nd and 23rd)
New York, NY 10011
Phone: (212) 645-0999

Bookshop Santa Cruz
http://www.bookshopsantacruz.com

The Strand Bookstore
http://www.strandbooks.com

City Lights
http://www.citylights.com/

This entry was posted on Friday, September 5th, 2008 at 6:34 am and is filed under Daily Crack. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.