Columbus Books

For whatever reason, we had wandered into North Beach.

There were, of course, the scantily clad vixens inviting us into strip clubs and the sounds of bar bands floating down Washington Square.  There was the nearby thrash of twentysomethings swaying to a mindless thump at the Palladium and the renowned City Lights offering us collections of poetry.

But nothing, not even the Carl's Jr. across the streets, could save my friends and I from the distinct yet predictable nature of the Columbus and Broadway tousle as we idly walked around one Saturday evening a couple of years ago.

Nothing, that is, except a bookstore by the name of Columbus Books.

For cheap bastards like me who refuse to slap down seven bucks for a skimpy Bantam paperback, for those unwilling or unable to sally forth to Berkeley, Columbus Books (while not McDonald's) ain't bad for a used bookstore.

The prices of used paperbacks are economical, ranging from the $2-3 range (lower, if you find an older book that's been sitting on the shelves for several years) and you can easily build up your library for dirt cheap. Don't worry about Columbus being hep to the recent capitalistic turn that San Francisco used bookstores have taken.  You won't find a $2,000 Complete Works of O. Henry torturing you behind a glass window and padlock here.

Upon entering, you wouldn't think there was more to Columbus Books than the main area.  But surprisingly the place has a second floor.  There's a stairwell hidden in the back, deliberately lingering behind a collection of bookshelves for the intrepid book-lover to discover.  Climbing up the steps, you'll find yourself in an abandoned room filled with a decent selection of books written in foreign languages, as well as sociology, self-help and politics sections.  There you'll find tons of $2 copies of such wunderbooks as Dianetics, The Feminine Mystique and Future Shock.  A trip to Columbus is a remarkable way of obtaining the handbooks for some of the silly new age and apocalyptic movements of the '60's and '70's at a thrifty price.

They also offer you a nifty yellow card that gives you about seven bucks or so of credit after you buy $50 of books.  With prices already reasonable, this comes off as a noble gratuity and gives Columbus Books extra brownie points for bulk consumers. The staff is friendly, if not lounging about somewhere in the back.  But it's just as it should be.  The last thing you need when looking for the sixteen books that you'll only buy at a used bookstore is some peppy undergraduate overloaded with the complimentary cappuccinos she gets from the in-store café.  No, sir, you want a staff that doesn't give a damn about the job but that loves odd conversation and books.

After all, a journey to North Beach can only be so invigorating.  But, as with any area in the city, at Columbus Books, you'll find a musty pleasant nook hidden beneath the gloss.

Edward Champion

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