The Book Cellar

Located in Lincoln Square in Chicago, the Book Cellar is the sort of indie specializing in new books that I imagine would succeed here in Bloomington-Normal. I was having this discussion with a friend of mine, as we toured this store and the used bookstore Ravenswood just down the street, wondering how indie store can compete these days with the big boxes, the Barnes and Borders, and online e-readers. This store focuses on books, but also attracts customers with their paper and cards, as well as coffee.

Overall I was very impressed by Lincoln Square's bookstore selections overall. The Bookcellar contrasted perfectly with Ravenswood, offering customers two wildly different experiences in just a few blocks- the spacious new and modern that is Bookcellar vs. the ancient rambling maze of unexpected discoveries that is Ravenswood. And just across the street from the BookCellar is a fun store specializing in brain games and puzzles. Definitely worth a visit.

Bookcellar
4736-38 North Lincoln Avenue
Chicago, Illinois 60625
773-293-2265
http://www.bookcellarinc.com/

Ravenswood Used Books

On the Saturday of our July 4th weekend excursion to Chicago, we walked around Lincoln Square a bit after viewing there the Spain-Paraguay game of the World Cup. We came across this quirky bookstore, its name not at all prominent in the store front, that reminded me of Paul's bookstore in Madison but much more intense. I've never seen a bookstore so crowded with books, a "Kafkaesque maze," as my friend who also visited the store put it. Narrow passageways wound around the store, oftentimes leading to small nooks and crannies and dead ends, with books sometimes hanging precariously above you on wooden planks. The store had quite a selection of obscure used books, making for a great way to distract oneself for hours. I bought a book of Mark Twain's lesser known non-fiction works, a somewhat dated history of Mexico in the 20th century, and a book entitled The Mind of the Dolphin. What a visit! With yesterday's find, and now this store, Chicago is proving to be quite the place for independent bookstores!

Ravenswood Used Books
4626 North Lincoln Avenue
Chicago, IL 60625-2071
(773) 593-9166
http://chibooks.blogspot.com/

Tres Americas Books, Inc.

I happened to see Tres Americas as we drove into Chicago this past weekend and feel fortunate that I did! I have to say, this store is one of the most impressive I've visited in awhile. When I noticed the storefront, we were heading down Pulaski Street to meet friends at BadDog's Bar, for a beer and burger lunch. We found some time later that afternoon, before the Dale Watson concert, to head back and check the store out.

Tres Americas has an impressive collection of books in Spanish, including fiction, nonfiction, dictionaries and other useful reference books, and even books for children. It is the largest such bookstore I've seen so far in the states, with the old Resource Center of the Americas in Minneapolis (now out of business, I think) coming in as a close second. This is a store we'll continue to patronize, given its extensive collection of hard-to-find Spanish books. From what the owner told us, he'll even do orders through the mail.

I ended up buying a gigantic narrative biography of Pancho Villa by Paco Ignacio Taibo II and an anthology of literature. Tres Americas will be on our list of destinations every time we're in Chicago, I'm sure.

Tres Americas Books, Inc.
Libros en Español
4336 N. Pulaski Rd.
Chicago, IL 60641
Tel: 773-481-9090
www.tresamericasbooks.net

Revolution Books (Chicago)

When in Chicago for the Blues Fest, I wanted to attend a progressive indie bookstore, since I never had visited one before in Chicago. The store closest to downtown, and on the "L," was the RCP party bookstore, Revolution Books. I had visited the RCP bookstore in NYC a few years back and was impressed with their political selection. From my own experience and what others have told me, I knew in advance that their members can be a little aggressive, in the way they zealously promote their organization. But, to be fair and nonsectarian, I wanted to judge by my experience at the store; afterall, I've been political before, in a progressive vein, so maybe my activity get similarly construed. Turns out that the day I decided to visit, there was a meeting that morning, before the store was to open, and so people had to decide if I would be allowed to browse or obliged to come back later. I had no problem coming back an hour later, which is what I did. Luckily there was a little coffee shop down Ashland Street where I read and had one too many coffees.

When entering the store an hour later, many RCPers were in discussion after the meeting. I talked to a few folk, got invitations to a discussion the next day on Chairman Bob's latest thinking, and browsed. Everyone was very friendly. The big difference between this store and the one in NYC was in size. The NY store was much bigger, with a huge selection. The Chicago store seemed more focused on party events and party building. One prominent bookstore worker told me that the small selection was not by choice but due to financial constraints.

Of their book selection, I thought their shelf on evolution and atheism was the best, but I couldn't buy any of these books because I was traveling light with just a backpack that was already stuffed. I bought a thin book of poetry, and to be nice, a copy of their newspaper. I have to say, though, that as a leftist myself, I don't subscribe to their camp, which automatically makes me not that interested in much of the RCP offering. But, hey, to each their own.

Revolution Books (Chicago)
1103 North Ashland Avenue
Chicago, Illinois 60622
(773) 489-0930

Prairie Avenue Bookstore

Over the weekend of June 12-14 I was in Windy City for the Chicago Blues Festival, where I stayed at the very nice Youth Hostel in the loop for the entire weekend. My first time heading out to the festival, which involved only a 10 minutes walk from the hostel to Grant Park, I noticed this stately little bookstore called Prairie Avenue Bookstore, a store specializing in books on architecture.

Entering the store, I was a little nervous, not terribly so, but just a tad since architecture is a topic about which I know very little. You can tell as soon as you enter the store that Pabook knows architecture. The books in display cases lining the entrance walls vary greatly and include what I imagine are historical items and antiques, in addition to what would be more appropriate for a layperson like myself. After being asked to have my backpack held behind the front counter (it contained all my clothing, books, and travel toiletries, which would have made stealing impossible even if I were less than ethical, but I understand and agree with this common policy), I freely browsed for about 20 minutes throughout the quite extensive collection. The atmosphere of the store is very plush and elegant, with green the dominant theme, adorned with heavy wooden antique furniture. Right away I noticed that there were three main levels, the front counter level, a second larger level were the majority of books are located, and third level.

I started at the second level and browsed a good number of books. There is no doubt that this is the place to go in Chicago for anything architectural; contrary to the myth that the big boxes have "everything," stores like this are proof that it is best to start with the indies. Many of the books, like art books in general, were very colorful, big, and overall beautiful. I knew that I wouldn't be able to buy any of these books, as I was traveling light with only my backpack that was already stuffed, but I looked nonetheless for that book that would be perfect for me. Books were organized along the walls by architectural designer in some cases, along the back wall there was a section that specialized in books on specific cities. I looked for Bloomington-Normal, to no avail, but I was interested in buying this book on Tucson architecture. If I were still living there, and could see the designs in person, I would've no doubt bought it.

I next browsed the third floor landing, a very small level that contained the books out of print and antiques. The older books didn't take my attention; what did were the huge architectural portfolios and old journals, none of which I touched. I wasn't even sure if you were supposed to touch them, but even if you could, my fear would be that they would disintegrate or tear easily. These old tomes are always very mysterious and intimidating, I feel.

On the first floor, I noticed that there were many books for the specialist and layperson alike, but it catered more to the specialist. There were many new academic books, some I noticed with the focus on green design, and a variety of textbooks. When leaving, I saw somebody ask about a particular volume, no doubt an architect seeking a source for his business or work.

In the end I didn't buy a book from Prairie Avenue, which goes against the indie bookstore code of an old friend of mine: You should always buy something when visiting an indie, even something small. Of course I had the excuse of the stuffed backpack, but I probably could've bought a magazine from the rack I saw upon exiting. Well, there is always next time!

Prairie Avenue Bookstore
418 South Wabash
Chicago, Illinois 60605
800-474-2724 (Toll-Free)