Sunday, June 28, 2009

Sunday Salon


I don't have any big plans for today- it's been a hectic week, and it's nice to just take some time to relax. Which means reading! I have a short stack of paperbacks next to my reading chair- a book club pick, a personal summer-reading challenge book and another just for fun. I'll be armchair-traveling to suburban New York via Binnie Kirshenbaum, to the deserts of Iraq with Millard Kaufman and to the waters of the Atlantic with Patrick O'Brian.

Yesterday my husband and I visited a new used bookstore specializing in science fiction, fantasy and horror- the very nice Seek Books, in West Roxbury, Mass. It's only been open since April; I got an email from the owner last week and decided to go check it out. It's great!

My husband, the resident science fiction buff, tells me the selection is great. The store policy is to have only one copy of every title on the shelf at a time- the better to highlight the diversity of what's available. For example, there are around 250 unique titles in the vampire section alone. The shop also stocks and sells complete series and a whole bookcase of young adult titles. The store's definition of science fiction is broad enough for Margaret Atwood and obscure enough for Cats Have No Lord, a pulp masterpiece I picked up for the title alone. Jeff got some Doctor Who Target novels and a rare Dungeons & Dragons book he didn't know existed.

The store itself is tidy and attractively laid out, with color-coded smiley face stickers denoting price. There are even some nice comfy chairs for browsing. The owner, Brad, is friendly and helpful and offers discounts to veterans. Even non-scifi-buffs like myself would find the shop welcoming and pleasant.

If you're in the Boston area and you like science fiction, fantasy, horror or alternative religion, you have to go to Seek Books. I really hope this store does well and plan on visiting again soon.

You can read more Sunday Salon posts here.

7 comments:

Irish said...

sounds like a fun store. I'll have to check it out at some point. Thanks for sharing!

gautami tripathy said...

Alas! I am not likely to be in that area ever!

:D

TSS: A World I never Made

JoAnn said...

I don't read much science fiction, but that sounds like a great store. Enjoy your day!

Literary Feline said...

I plan to spend part of the day reading too. :-) Hubby was up until 5:30 this morning and so I'll have plenty of quiet time to myself. :-)

Seek Books sounds like a wonderful store. I wish we had one dedicated to fantasy and science fiction nearby. I sometimes shop at a little used bookstore in town that tends to carry mostly romance, which I don't really read. However, they have a nice crime fiction section and so I sometimes am able to find something I'd like while there. I love the staff there. They have a parrot there and for awhile there, the owner was bringing in her new puppy. It was worth going to the store just to play with the puppy!

I hope you have a great week, Marie! Enjoy your quiet day.

The Bookworm said...

it sounds like a cool bookstore!

http://thebookworm07.blogspot.com/

Zibilee said...

My husband would love this store! Too bad we live in Florida. Here's hoping we get to head out that way sometime.

Dawn @ sheIsTooFondOfBooks said...

What an interesting store - the way they're set up, displaying only one copy of a title sure makes for diversity (and detailed browsing!)

Fun that your husband found a treasure!