Boston’s Brattle Book Store Lot – Photo: Brian Kachejian ©2017
If your tired of digital downloads and streaming video, there is a place in Boston that has been around since the 1940’s selling reading material the traditional way. Boston’s Brattle Book Store is the most wonderful book store in Boston. For people who love books, it’s a paradise of treasures. For those who have grown up with ipads, kindles and cell phones, it’s an eye opening experience to what you have missed.
Boston’s Brattle Book Store is located in the Downtown Crossing section of Boston. It is about a minute walk from the Downtown Crossing subway station known to Bostonians as the T. The store is located on West Street. The small narrow street is a side street that connects the main drag of Washington Street to the grand Boston Commons Park. It’s a fabulous section of the city of Boston. We accidently discovered the Brattle Book Store as we were walking down West Street heading to Boston Commons. It was not the storefront that first caught our eyes, but the side of the building and its amazing book mural that looks so much more impressive in person than a picture can define. The empty lot on the side of the book store is actually used by Brattle Books to display thousands of books that people can browse outside. Most of the books that are brought outside are sold at lower prices. Many of them are sold for only one dollar each. There is that flea market vibe in the lot that is wonderful for people looking to buy cheap books or find that great deal. Inside the Brattle Book store, it’s a completely different story.
So what exactly will one find when they step into the wonderful Brattle Book Store? Well, the answer is pretty much every type of book that has ever been published. The store promotes the concept of “specializing in not specializing.” The inside of the Brattle Book store is separated by three floors. The first and second floors sell an incredible wide variety of general used books. The third floor is where historians and book collectors will find the treasures of antiquarian and rare books.
The Brattle Book Store has been in the hands of the current owners’ family since the 1940’s. The Gloss family had to deal with a fire in the 1980s that had burned down their old five story book store. They reopened in the current location and have become one of the most loved book stores in the country .
If you get the chance to visit the Brattle Book Store, you should try to make it a point to say hello to the owner Ken Gloss. When we spoke to him, it was immediately obvious how much the man loves buying and selling books. He was extremely friendly and engaging as so was his staff. It’s’ rare in these modern times to find a store that employs people who are completely in love with what they do. Try finding that at a Target or a Best Buy.
The Brattle Book Store is open Monday through Saturday from 9 to 5 pm. Old school hours from an old school book store. However, the Brattle Book Store has not completely ignored the modern world. The Brattle Book Store also maintains a website that can help people search for books.
If your a Bostonian and you have never been to the Brattle Book Store, your missing out on one of your city’s finest gems. If your a traveler, don’t neglect to take some times to visit this wonderful place. Its located in our favorite section of Boston close to the Paramount Theater, the Opera houses, Chinatown and a great restaurant called Legal Crossing.
Boston’s Brattle Book Store Lot – Photo: Brian Kachejian ©2017
