For the last few years, I’ve been out in the Northwest at least once a year. And while my fondness for Portland’s Powell’s is something of a given, I’m equally fond of Seattle’s Elliott Bay Book Company, a store I first visited while on a trip to Seattle in mid-2004. Beyond simply falling for the space itself, it’s always struck me as the ideal of a well-curated bookstore, with smart recommendations and an oddly rewarding browsing experience. And given that one of their staff recommendations turned me on to the work of Charles D’Ambrosio, I have no complaints.
I’d followed the news of their issues with their current space and possible move with interest, and I’m glad to hear that a new space has been found. This piece in The Stranger gives a history of both the store as a while and the process by which they found the space which — if all goes according to plan — I’ll be trekking to when making my annual trip out west next April.