Popular Los Angeles-area Bookstores

This article relates to I Will Be Complete

In Glen David Gold's memoir's second section, Gold recalls his experiences working at a branch of Hunter's Books in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles (near UCLA) during a gap year he took in college. Hunter's, as Gold notes, was "part of a local handful of stores that wouldn't survive the new realities of commerce." Indeed, according to a Los Angeles Times article from 1987, Hunter's Books closed three locations on Christmas Day that year - including the Westwood location where Gold had worked - and never recovered.

Hunter's never even saw the dawn of e-commerce, which certainly claimed the lives of many other Los Angeles–area bookstores. But other independent bookstores continue to thrive in Los Angeles even today:

Secret Headquarters sounds like a fun place to shop - and it is, with countless graphic novels and comic books.

Vroman's is the granddaddy of Southern California bookstores, founded over a century ago and still going strong in several locations, providing an independent alternative to larger chain bookstores.

Hennessey + Ingalls offers a clean, crisp, design, which is fitting since they also specialize in art and design publications, as well as children's books and books on the culinary arts.

Children's Book World is, as the name suggests, a terrific source for books for young readers, stocking 80,000 titles from picture books to novels, plus toys and games.

The Last Bookstore may have an ominous name, but it's far from an ominous place; this huge but whimsical store housed in a former bank hosts countless events and community gatherings and also sells vinyl records and coffee.

Secret Headquarters, courtesy of L.A. Weekly
Drag Queen Hour at Vroman's, courtesy of Carpe Diem, L.A.
Hennessey + Ingalls, courtesy of Shelf Awareness
Music at Children's Book World, courtesy of Lajaj Kids
The Last Bookstore

Filed under Music and the Arts

This "beyond the book article" relates to I Will Be Complete. It originally ran in August 2018 and has been updated for the June 2019 paperback edition. Go to magazine.

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