Independent Bookstore: Mercer Street Books

The third independent bookstore I wanted to check out was Mercer Street Books, featured in a Seattle Times article about a year ago. From that article, I discovered that there has been a bookstore in that space for longer than I’ve lived in Seattle. But I’d never been to it before. And that was a situation that required remedy. Finally, on a Wednesday afternoon in October, I got around to visiting. And I’m really sorry I waited so long.

Mercer Street Books

Mercer Street Books is an old-fashioned neighborhood used bookstore. It doesn’t have a specialty or themes or gimmicks. But it’s got a lot of great books. And it’s got a great vibe. Although it’s a used bookstore with tall bookshelves that require stepladders to view fully, it doesn’t feel dusty and there’s no sense that the books might tumble down on your head. (I actually love that kind of bookstore too, with its sense of hidden treasures.) Instead, the overall feeling is bright and spacious. I think that is largely due to the impeccably organized shelves and the selective inventory. Even the paperbacks are all in good condition, and every shelf is neat. There are no overstuffed shelves or stacks of books. The shorter shelves have plants and decorative objects on top of them instead of extra books. But because most of the shelves are so tall, there is still a sense of bookish abundance.

Selective Selection

Those tall shelves and preponderance of hardbacks also make the store feel like an antiquarian bookstore instead of a regular used bookstore. And I did find a first edition Steinbeck for $45 shelved right next to his paperbacks. That way you can still discover treasure even though the books are so well organized that if you’re looking for something specific, you can find it right away.

There’s a large literary fiction section, and some highbrow and academic specialized sections. But ultimately, it’s a neighborhood bookstore. There are whole bookcases of genre paperbacks. They even had a section for my favorite genre – books about books. My kid found goodies in the sizeable YA section, and I came away with the second hardback volume of the graphic novel Saga.

Queen Anne

Mercer Street Books is a fabulous neighborhood bookstore. Unfortunately, lower Queen Anne is not my neighborhood and parking is pricey. I never go there just to hang out. But I am often there for events at McCaw Hall, the Opera Center, or even KEXP. And I have a feeling that in the future, I may be attending some of those events with a shopping bag full of newly purchased books in my hands.