Book Gem in Grand Rapids (MI) for the Traveling Bibliophile

I’ve decided to use my travels to explore as many indy and used bookstores as I can. Two weeks ago, my husband and I took a long weekend vacation over to Grand Rapids, MI to explore the local breweries. Of course, I squeezed in a bookstore visit. This time around, I chose Argo Books for my exploration.

Yes, it was snowing in April.

This is one of several bookstores in Grand Rapids, but the only one open while my husband was OK with me striking out alone. It’s situated a bit off Wealthy Street west of the city in a very cool ‘hipster’ area. Needless to say, there are a few breweries within walking distance (one with excellent Vegan pizza, I can report).

Walking in, the store had a limited general fiction and a large assortment of comic books. Many of them were collectors pieces stored in plastic bags. I’ve never seen such a large collection in a large bookstore, it’s something I’m more used to when I go to comic book stores or hobby shops with my husband.

There was a second room separate from the fiction/comic room that held primarily sci-fi books but other odds and ends. I looked through biographies (separated by general, political, sports, and pop culture) and a small foreign language section (mostly French and German, unfortunately for me). Another section that I was really surprised about was a large collection of LIFE magazines dating back to the 50s. My quick inspection left me impressed. It looked like they had most issues sequentially. It was a fun place to look through. There were a few other people in the shop, two looking at fashion books for a friend and another couple looking for vampire literature.

I went back to the front before I left and overheard the employees talking about a kazoo symphony while I looked through children’s and YA. I did find one book I wanted to purchase, The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing by Marilyn Durham. Durham is the only listed ‘novelist’ on my university’s notable alumni page. I hope to be the second. I felt I should read her book and see what company I might be among.

I’m likely heading about a few times this summer. I’ll be sure to report back with some great bookstore findings!

Until next time, write on.

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