…I know! I still can’t decide if this is the best or the dumbest thing I ever did, so let’s go with “both” and move on to where I tell you all about it. It’s called Exhibit B., and you can find it at exhibitbbooks.com (and @exhibitbbooks on Twitter and Insta). Exhibit B. is a used bookstore specializing in true crime, mostly books but some ephemera (vintage magazines, posters, DVDs).
How this came to pass is kind of a long story on the bricks-and-mortar side, but a former barbershop down the street from me went up for rent — after, rumor has it, the previous tenant was taken out of the joint in cuffs for possession with intent; wherever he is and whyever THAT is, I wish him well — and the landlord was very agreeable to terms. And even though it was seven shitty bucks an hour, no commission, and I had to quit as a matter of feminist principle because the owner told me to my face that the new guy was getting paid more because he was a guy? My job as a book-search coordinator with a tiny little desk in a crowded little shop in the Chelsea Market was the best. The best! Yeah, a lot has changed since I was using Microsoft Access to input results from the ABA search “wire” (oh, mid-’90s). Yeah, owning a shop isn’t in the same time zone as working in one. Yeah, the economy is in the garbage, my storefront’s on a side street, shipping times are theoretical constructs, and it won’t freakin’ stop snowing.
But I love thinking about true crime and I love thinking about old books, and eventually you gotta decide that “one day” has arrived. And here it is: Exhibit B.
This used to be a barber’s “station.” Now it’s a display shelf. What a time to be alive.
If you’d like, stop on over and browse around. New inventory goes in every day, so bookmark it or get on the mailing list (don’t worry, I’m not going to Old Navy you with a dozen emails a day). Or just ask me for search help: exhibitbbooks at gmail dot com for rare-book hunts, questions, requests, or ideas for “installations.” Yep, I’m going to have guests “curate” the other kind of exhibit, and I’ll have author events and book clubs as well.
Eventually! Right now, I have to go hook up this thermal label frambus, so while I’m doing that, reminisce about your favorite bookstore experiences from The Before Time so I can learn something. And if you find something you like at the shop, cut yourself a Best Evidence coupon with discount code BestEv22. It’s good for a week, if you want to sit on it until more inventory goes in.
And at herd immunity o’clock this summer, I can’t wait to see some of you guys in person. R train to 77th. I’ll leave the lights on for you. — SDB
Definitely a destination as soon as it's safe to travel again. I mope around thinking about my longing for NYC all the time anyhow. I will have to check my very long book wish-list to see if there's anything I haven't been able to find.
I love this and hope I can visit some day. Little niche bookshops are my favorite discoveries in big cities. I wish you all the best and will peruse the online shop in the meantime!
I am so happy for you! There’s a very cool used-bookstore here in Harrisburg that was name-dropped on Last Podcast on the Left as a source of obscure vintage JFK assassination books called the Midtown Scholar (https://www.midtownscholar.com/). You may want to reach out to them as they have over a decade of experience in the used book trade in an urban area that let’s just say is not known for its educational rigor. Best of luck to you!
Wow, wow, wow! This is awesome and I am so impressed with your resourcefulness and ability to see that "one day" had arrived and jump on it! I look forward to visiting in person. In the before times, I had an annual tradition of taking the train up from DC and spending a couple of days by myself doing a tour of all my favorite NYC places and things. This will for sure be a destination "must" to add! I can't wait to check out the online shop immediately. Congratulations!!
Congratulations Sarah! I worked in both a bookstore (also in the nineties and yes, we also entered info from that ABA entry into Access!) and a research library where my job was to pull books from the stacks all day and they really were the best jobs I ever had. I can't wait to visit the store the next time I'm in NYC and wish you all the best with this great new shop.
Definitely a destination as soon as it's safe to travel again. I mope around thinking about my longing for NYC all the time anyhow. I will have to check my very long book wish-list to see if there's anything I haven't been able to find.
Congratulations! Pretty cool to have a place to hunt for these books other than the A-word.
I love this and hope I can visit some day. Little niche bookshops are my favorite discoveries in big cities. I wish you all the best and will peruse the online shop in the meantime!
I am so happy for you! There’s a very cool used-bookstore here in Harrisburg that was name-dropped on Last Podcast on the Left as a source of obscure vintage JFK assassination books called the Midtown Scholar (https://www.midtownscholar.com/). You may want to reach out to them as they have over a decade of experience in the used book trade in an urban area that let’s just say is not known for its educational rigor. Best of luck to you!
Wow, wow, wow! This is awesome and I am so impressed with your resourcefulness and ability to see that "one day" had arrived and jump on it! I look forward to visiting in person. In the before times, I had an annual tradition of taking the train up from DC and spending a couple of days by myself doing a tour of all my favorite NYC places and things. This will for sure be a destination "must" to add! I can't wait to check out the online shop immediately. Congratulations!!
Congratulations Sarah! I worked in both a bookstore (also in the nineties and yes, we also entered info from that ABA entry into Access!) and a research library where my job was to pull books from the stacks all day and they really were the best jobs I ever had. I can't wait to visit the store the next time I'm in NYC and wish you all the best with this great new shop.
Congratulations!!!
Very excited for the bookstore/crime writing world. Congratulations! And will he visiting as soon as is practical.
Yay :) Stopping by when I move back to Jersey.