Used Bookstores: Pacific Avenue, Santa Cruz

On an avenue lined with bakeries, antique shops, street singers, and delicious coffee stand three little-known gems of the literary world. Today we're on Pacific Avenue, Santa Cruz. 

First stop: Bookshop Santa Cruz. 

This one's a mix of new and used books, but the store prides itself on its independence and emphasis on local authors. With a clean, bright interior and an impressive selection, it's also one of only twelve bookstores nationwide to have an Espresso Book Machine. Okay. This is the coolest thing ever. It's a machine that prints books on demand, on the spot. You can select from over 8 million titles and have your own copy printed, bound, and trimmed in front of your eyes, or even self-publish your own book. (The link above includes a video of the machine printing.) 

 Next up: The Literary Guillotine.

Cool sign, right? Considering that Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities is one of my favorite books, I definitely stood there and snickered at it for a moment. 

The Literary Guillotine isn't located right on Pacific Avenue--it's just off to the side, at 204 Locust Street (wonder if there's any symbolism in that). There's a cute little red wagon containing sale books just outside the door. Unfortunately, I thought the outside was a little cooler than the inside. Maybe I'd think differently if I were still in college--their selection is heavily academic, catering especially to UCSC students. Maybe my brain is getting soft, having been out of school for almost 2 years. 

Last, but not least: Logos Books and Records.

Fun factoid: logos (λογοσ) means word or Word, one of my favorite words in Greek (see my blog subtitle). I'm not much of a music person, but Logos Books and Records definitely has a selection--along with a huge variety of paperbacks, hardbacks, bestsellers, and antiquarian books, which hold much more draw for me. Over 40 years old, Logos claims to be the largest independent used books and music store on the central coast of California. On a previous occasion, I found a book on bookbinding here; this time, I bought a copy of Dorothy Wordsworth's journals, cross-referenced with a selection of her brother William's poems. After learning about Dorothy while visiting the Wordsworth's home in England, I was thrilled to find some of her writings. Such "finds" are one of my favorite things about the used bookstore experience--I came out with something I wasn't looking for, but that adds a welcome "friend" to my collection. Old, obscure, and only $5? Yes please. 

At a price like that, I can get coffee too...and enjoy both at San Lorenzo Park across the river.

Have you been to any of the bookstores on Pacific Avenue? Have any reviews, trip stories, or extra information to share? I'd love to hear your comments! 

Why Used Bookstores?

Though I've been a book addict since before I could read and much of my childhood was spent haunting Barnes and Nobles or public libraries, it wasn't until college that I discovered used bookstores.

Wouldn't you rather buy new books? you ask. What's the draw of a used bookstore?

Here are my top 3 reasons to choose a used bookstore:

1. Cheaper books

As any economist can tell you, when the price of a commodity falls, demand for it rises, because people can afford to buy more of it. Cheaper books=more books on my shelf. Where's the problem?

2. Charm

Far from the mass-produced commerciality of chain bookstores, with their hygienic, matching stacks of flash-in-the-pan bestsellers, used bookstores have the allure of individuality and eccentricity. Don't get me wrong--I love a good multi-story Barnes and Noble with a digitized inventory system (I spent two college summers working in one), or in Britain, a big, clean Blackwell's or Waterstones. But from the sign over the door to the entrance display of books to the cat in the window, no two used bookstores are exactly alike.

3. Adventure

Chain bookstores have the feel of business parks; used bookstores are more like house parties with literary friends. You step in and run into someone you know ("Mr. Wordsworth! It's been too long!"), make some small talk, and pretty soon they're introducing you to their friends and their friends' friends (Eco, Joyce, Zusak, I take down on my To-Read list). Next thing you know, you're exchanging business cards and promising to keep in touch and walking out with a dreamy smile and a stack of "finds" you didn't know existed an hour ago. (This is why I often leave my credit card in the car when I enter a bookstore.) It reminds me of the movie Midnight in Paris, where if you step into the magic car at midnight, you might be whisked off to sit in Gertrude Stein's living room and watch Hemingway argue with Fitzgerald. Sometimes I'm so overwhelmed by the collective wisdom and camaraderie that I get teary in front of the fiction section.

Image courtesy of stock.xchng and kaeska

So, to shed some light on these little-known gems (and to give myself an excuse to visit more of them), I'm starting a blog series profiling various independent bookstores, especially those that include used books. Some will be local to my area, some farther afield. While there won't be a new one every week (I wish), this series will be recurrent as I discover more bookstores. If you read about one you've visited, feel free to post your experience with it in the comments section. If there's one that strikes your fancy, go visit (and let me know how it goes)! Or, best of all, if you have recommendations for bookstores I should cover, I'd be only too happy to hear about them :)

Next week: a trio of bookstores on Pacific Avenue in Santa Cruz...

Heroines of Inner Beauty

As kind of a follow-up to last week's post, I've compiled a Top 5 list of books that focus on inner beauty. They're all fiction, because I believe stories are one of the most powerful teaching tools in existence. Some of the heroines of these books have been my best friends and role models since childhood. If you've already met some of them yourself, you know what I'm talking about.

So without further ado: a reading list for your daughters, nieces, sisters, or anyone else you might want to inspire to grow in inner beauty.

1. Anne Shirley, from Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

If I were a literary character, I'd want to be Anne. The smart, spunky, redheaded heroine often gets herself into "scrapes" because of her quick temper, but her imagination and indomitable spirit usually dig her back out again. 

2. Polly Milton, from An Old-Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott

While the author's tone can verge on moralistic at times, the childlike Polly is impossible not to like. She grows from a little girl who enjoys being one to a responsible, kind young woman who sets the example for others.

3. Sara Crewe, from A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett

A classic riches-to-rags-to-riches story, A Little Princess follows Sara from a position of great wealth to one of destitution. While she starts out as a kind, imaginative girl, poverty puts her to the test--and reveals that being a princess is something that comes from the inside.

4. Stargirl, from Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

This whimsical modern classic follows Leo Borlock's discovery of and fascination with Stargirl, a formerly homeschooled high schooler who simply doesn't conform to the crowd. Whether she's carrying her pet rat around in a sunflower bag or cheerleading for the opposite team, Stargirl is always true to herself, never bending to others' expectations.

5. Anne Elliot, from Persuasion by Jane Austen

Jane Austen's last work (and one I just read last year), Persuasion isn't your typical love story. Anne Elliot has lost love and never expects to find it again, filling her life instead with cheerful, humble service to friends and family. When love does reappear for her, it is sweeter than she could have imagined.

Have you read any of these books? Are there any that you'd add to this list? 

Tiaras

I am writing this post while wearing a tiara. (It's quite fun; you should try it sometime. I think maybe it helps me to write better.)

It came from a women's retreat, where I was privileged to address a group of lovely women last Saturday. We gathered to discover what "Once Upon A Time" (one of my favorite phrases in the world) means for women trying to live as Christians in an often confusing world. 

I don't love large crowds of strangers, and assumed I would feel awkward at this retreat. Although these glittery tiaras were temptingly arrayed on the tables when we walked in, I self-consciously left them there until I saw the other women putting them on with gusto. Green, blue, pink, purple crowns sparkled in gray hair, red hair, black hair, sparse hair. Women who had fussed with their straightening irons or their ponytail holders before coming, now laughed and let the plastic combs do their worst. It was time for me to learn to go with it. I was glad I did. Because for a few hours, we all got to be little girls playing princess.

Playing princess: something I have practice at

Some of the things said at the retreat were quite serious. We talked about destructive messages about outward beauty and the constant temptation to be self-centered. The longing to be beautiful consumes many women, who turn to eating disorders, plastic surgery, or a constant negative self-image as a result.  Some women appear very beautiful outwardly, even while they climb over others to put themselves first. It broke my heart to see the nodding and tears in the audience as we discussed these personal and painful issues.

Image courtesy of stock.xchng and zielnet

Beauty is often portrayed as something to be bought; a hopeless ideal that no woman without an airbrush can ever really achieve. The recent Dove beauty commercial takes strides toward achieving a more realistic standard, but its focus is still on the outside. Real beauty, that doesn't depend on age, ethnicity, acne, freckles, height, weight, or whatever, comes from the inside. It's the beauty of quiet strength, of a servant heart. It's the difference between cheap, glitzy rhinestones and hard-as-nails diamonds.

Image courtesy of stock.xchng and jc_2086

But at this retreat, we did not neglect to be silly as well. With games like purse scavenger hunts (even I was surprised at what came out of my purse) and toilet-paper dressmaking, this group of strangers was soon laughing like a gathering of sisters. One of the sweetest sights I've ever seen was a woman in her seventies, dolled up in tissue paper and masking tape. Instead of turning up her nose at the situation or soldiering through it disapprovingly, she pulled out a pair of sunglasses and slipped them on with sass to complete the look. Because winning a dress-up contest is a serious achievement, to be embraced with glamor and pizzazz.

I guess last Saturday was one of those events where I went expecting to give, but unexpectedly received. I learned from the teaching and the singing. But more significantly, I was dazzled by the beauty of the women God has made. As they carried crock-pots and stacked chairs, cracked jokes and sang snatches of Disney songs, sorted the junk that came out of each other's purses and twirled girlishly around in plastic tiaras, their spirit--their faith--our new-forged friendship--took my breath away.

What have you learned about beauty lately? About friendship?