Cheap Books in Burbank
I’m going to miss the L.A. Times Festival of Books. I’ll be off in Indio trying to get up close for St. Vincent and Portishead. But that’s okay, because yesterday I discovered the Dollar Bookstore in Burbank. I happened on that particular block of San Fernando near Burbank’s town center because I’d just had a job interview at Technicolor, which is in the neighborhood. Being jobless, I had the rest of the day to kill, so I wandered in.
The place is a marvelous, low-frills joint, about the size of a Waldenbooks, but without all the attendant marketing gloss, and it’s simply packed with hard-to-find books of different sizes and thicknesses.
Don’t get the wrong idea, though. This ain’t a rare bookstore. I mean “hard to find” in a “there are categories, but no discernible acknowledgment of the alphabet” sort of way. So yeah, expect to do that bookstore tilted-head shuffle for a while. But hey, at a dollar a book, the money you save can go straight to your chiropractor.
The store is at 301 N San Fernando on the nether side of the 5 (map). It’s no Dutton’s, but then Dutton’s won’t be Dutton’s after next week. Go now, while it’s still reasonably cool and pick up a handful of books. I picked up three. They had pretty covers. Someday, I hope to read them.
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The place is a marvelous, low-frills joint, about the size of a Waldenbooks
Funny you should say that, because it actually used to be a Waldenbooks (or perhaps a B. Dalton). It’s been a remenants/ el cheapo place for maybe 7 years now.
Hah. Interesting. I really like that part of town. I’d never made it over that far.
Samba, I was just about to point that out! Heehee. I remember when it used to be one of the discount book stores. I’m pretty sure it was a Waldenbooks. But when it was, it hardly got any traffic.
Actually, it was, and apparently still is, a Crown Books. Many owners and bankruptcies over the last decade have left Crown in it’s current state as an overstock bookseller. Found it here: http://www.crown-books.com/locations.html
That’s interesting. So Crown just liquidates through these outlets without any kind of corporate identity?
So Crown just liquidates through these outlets without any kind of corporate identity?
Essentially, yes.
"Riven Rock" is a terrific novel, Will.
Whatever the reason, I really like the place. Have been able to replace a couple of books that I’ve been putting off paying full price for. A dollar vs. 15? No contest.