New York: An ode to the mighty Strand Bookstore

18 miles of books. That’s about 5 miles longer than the entire island of Manhattan. And it’s all contained in one old, dusty place just below Union Square. The mighty Strand Bookstore.

The Strand is one of New York’s most unique landmarks. From the outside, it’s just another bookstore – but the rows of one-dollar books on the sidewalk give you an idea of what’s to come. You’ll find everything here. New books, old books, rare books, books of every genre – even books by the foot. And from the second you walk inside you know that the 18 mile claim must be true.

The Strand Bookstore seems plucked from a story itself. Everywhere you look – books stacked upon books, stacked upon even more books. The staff is as eclectic as the books they sell – some are old, bearded and bespeckled while others are young, fresh-faced and tattooed.

The Strand is the Louvre of bookstores. Full of masterpieces, but so big that you can never hope to discover all of them.

But you can always try.

THE STRAND BOOKSTORE

828 BROADWAY (JUST SOUTH OF UNION SQUARE)