Shopping for books online is not nearly as fun as shopping for books in person. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll still browse for books all day online, but I love the feeling of standing next to shelves of books and flipping through physical books. In addition to recently making reading books my entire personality, I’ve also decided that I’ll be living in a house full of books. Zach and I love to go everywhere with Milo and unfortunately, libraries are smart enough not to allow pet dogs in, so we spend a lot of time book-shopping at local bookstores.
These are some of our favorite stores. As a note, being “dog-friendly” is at the store’s discretion. We usually check in with someone at the front desk to ensure they’re ok with us bringing in our curious corgi, however that doesn’t mean they will always permit dogs. I also believe that everyone has a responsibility to assess whether their pet is well-behaved enough to enter a retail establishment and not rely on “dog-friendly” to excuse any behavior that could make any business owner decide to stop allowing this privilege. I like being able to bring Milo everywhere with us and wouldn’t want to take advantage of this.
Walden Pond Books in Oakland
We’re definitely here at Walden Pond Books the most out of all the nearby stores. Milo does hate their floors (he thinks they’re slippery), but he’ll politely walk around with us. They have a rare book room that is open certain hours (no dogs in this part of the store) and the rest of the store has both used and new books. They have a great sci-fi and fantasy section of used books and quite a few signed modern fiction copies about the floor as well!
They also buy books for cash or trade value so we’ll pop by every few weeks once we’ve read through some of the books we own but aren’t keeping. Their buy values are the most generous we’ve seen. We also keep our books in pristine condition though, so that could be a part of it. They have a fairly sized record collection too with used options as well. Great multi-purpose bookstore for sure! Nearby parking is all paid parking, but we’ve never had a difficult time finding parking so that’s reason enough to drop by.
- Website | 3316 Grand Avenue, Oakland, CA 94610
- Paid parking lot (small) + Paid street parking
- Narrow aisles with hardwood flooring and some rug sections
Moe’s Books in Berkeley
Moe’s Books is the largest new and used bookstore we’ve been in. They boast 4 floors of books so there are lots! There is also a rare book room on the fourth floor (probably don’t bring dog into this room). Of all the used book selections that I’ve perused, Moe’s definitely has the best selection. I was able to find so many used copies of books that were recently released and their fiction stock seems to cycle very quickly as well. Most of their used selections were in great condition and many honestly looked new to me. If I could buy a copy of everything I’m interested in and make a home library, Moe’s would be the place to do it.
We did try to sell read books here too but they seem to lean more towards trade credit than cash. Not a problem, of course. Just depends on what you’re looking for. It’s a bit further out of the way for us and parking can be a bit iffy, but we could spend hours here just browsing their shelves. They also have the biggest collection of non-fiction used books I’ve seen as well- Zach has been able to find a number of cookbooks of interest here. Honestly if Moe’s were closer and the parking situation was better, I might be here everyday.
- Website | 2476 Telegraph Ave, Berkeley, CA 94704
- Limited metered street parking; free residential parking a few blocks away
- Multiple floors with stair step access
Dark Carnival in Berkeley
As lovers of all things sci-fi and fantasy, Milo, Zach, and I could not pass up any opportunity to visit a bookstore dedicated to these genres. Dark Carnival also has a mystery section. This is a bookstore in that it is a literal store of books. Everywhere. Do not come to Dark Carnival expecting white-glove service. There is one individual who regularly oversees the store posted at the front and can help with general directions and recommendations. Otherwise, DC is a book introvert’s dream. They have 5 general sections: new/recommended, sci-fi and fantasy by author, mystery by author, children’s, and some reference (it’s in a corner that I don’t believe gets a lot of traffic). It’s 2 floors and extremely cramped. But seriously, it’s all I ask for in a bookstore. They have the latest books and some copies that are decades old from the looks of it. We found a couple of rare gems about too! It’s a sister store to the comic book store a couple of doors down so no purchases are actually done within the store. I was kind of impressed at how much they trusted people to take books out of the store and actually go pay at the comic book store.
Our first visit we spent 3 hours browsing the store from A through Z. I was able to snag some hardcover versions that were out of print because their stock is so diverse. It’s also like a scavenger hunt for your next read. Tight quarters but very cozy. They had an ottoman and a blanket out in a corner last time we were there with Milo and I seriously considered just getting comfortable and staying there til I got kicked out. This is absolutely our favorite bookstore in the area. I mean, there’s also an inflatable dragon right outside.
- Website | 3086 Claremont Ave, Berkeley, CA 94705
- Free street parking all along the block
- Very tight quarters; carpeted; books and little knick-knacks all over the place
…and there’s more!
As I’m sure you can tell, we frequent a lot of small bookstores. I wish more bookstores could thrive, but I know that’s just not a reality with competition from certain online retailers. I think we’re quite lucky to live in an area where there are still many small stores despite this. As much as we can, Zach and I will try to buy from local bookstores. Here are a few more places Milo has also helped us peruse the shelves.
- Mrs. Dalloway’s in Berkeley, CA – has a big gardening and gifts section! I buy more journals than I can ever use and they certainly help me pad that count.
- Word Horde Emporium in Petaluma, CA – wonderfully eccentric curated selection and has small-publisher books. They had a few UK-import items too! Bonus for Milo is the other half of their space is a pet store. (And yes, I know this is not in the East Bay but I couldn’t not mention it.)
- Books Inc – there are a few locations around the bay and they’re all great. Generous rewards system and lots of author signing events! I love me a signed book and have gotten a few from the location not far from home.
- Pegasus Books in Berkeley and Oakland – has a varied selection of contemporary books; more than I’ve seen in other stores. Also a great selection of used books! I’m mostly here as they have a location next to our climbing gym.
