Reading around the world
Beautiful and unique libraries and bookstores to add to your travel lists
Hello everyone!
This week I’ve been listening to a few of my favorite podcasts about books and new releases - I love to read if you have not already figured that out. Then a Brazilian creator who I follow on Instagram posted a photo from within the Royal Portuguese Cabinet of Reading in Rio de Janeiro and I remembered some libraries and bookstores I’d visited on trips. That led me to come up with the idea of this issue. This idea has been done before, Matador Network sent its own list to my inbox on the day that I started writing this, but each list is different and I included bookstores too.
Veranda Magazine put together a good list too. I like that they included old and contemporary architecture, like the Seattle and Stuttgart libraries. I know modern or contemporary isn’t everyone’s taste (I like it!) but I find it just as inspiring as the old, ornate marble and intricately carved wood spaces. You can visit these spaces as a tourist! Some of them might have ticketing or limited entry but they are open to the public and tourists.
I think a fun trip to do would be visiting a few libraries and bookstores as a in a few different but closer together cities. There is also an organization called Read and Run that does tours around cities based on books. I keep thinking one day I’ll email them and ask how to start a chapter where I live.
You could also get some book nerd friends together for a group trip somewhere that you can explore libraries and bookstores and venture out of the city a bit for a reading retreat. I love visiting bookstores when I travel and bought a couple of books when I was in Berlin. I also like seeing what the airport bookstores have in stock. Do you know about the Read and Return policy at some airport bookstores? I’ve taken advantage of it before.
Let’s get into the stacks for some travel and reading inspiration though…
The most beautiful bookstores in the world, a compilation from Architectural Digest. All of these are bookstores that you can visit and shop in.
This list includes El Ateneo Grand Splendid in Buenos Aires, pictured below, which I visited in 2018. It used to be a theater.
Book Riot has a list of the “coolest” bookstores in the world and there is some overlap with the other lists. I like that this one includes Semicolon in Chicago. I have bought several digital gift cards for friends at this store.
I also like the inclusion of this bookstore and the description:
Arc N Book is a fun bookstore to visit for many reasons, but what I love most about it is that it’s a bookstore that promotes more than reading. Arc N Book is about the reading lifestyle. This curated shop is separated into four different themes: Daily, Weekend, Style, and Inspiration. Visitors are invited to stay a while, get something to eat or drink at the cafe, and lounge in one of the store’s many comfy seating areas to get the full experience. You’re also going to want to take pictures of the gorgeous arch made of books
And this one!
Bart’s Books makes it on the list of the coolest bookstores in the world because it is the world’s largest outdoor bookstore. Open since 1964, Bart’s offers a wide range of second-hand books, plus a few select new titles. The Ojai, California, bookstore is such a fun, unique location that it has often been featured in TV, movies, and novels. For instance, Bart’s was featured in the 2010 film Easy A starring Emma Stone and Penn Badgley.
Which one of these tops your list? For library and bookstore?
Have you been to any of them?
See you next time!
-Sonya
Ohhh I love the idea of a library themed itinerary!
So dreamy 🥰 nothing I love more than a bookstore and\or library.