All bookstores are cool, but some bookstores are cooler than others. The stunning El Ateneo in Buenos Aires was once a theater. The theater boxes have been turned into reading spaces.
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Rizzoli Bookstore (New York) —
Much-loved retailer Rizzoli Bookstore shut down in April 2014, but thankfully has just opened grand new premises on Broadway.
Courtesy of Rizzoli Bookstore
Shakespeare and Company (Paris) —
Paris Left Bank fixture Shakespeare and Company hosts writers-in-residence and awards its own literary prize to an aspiring writer every few years.
courtesy Tobias StÄbler
The Last Bookstore (Los Angeles) —
The stylish Last Bookstore in Los Angeles has served as the backdrop for a fashion shoot in "Esquire."
courtesy martinez james
Livraria Lello (Porto, Portugal) —
Built in 1906 and originally designed as a bookstore, the Livraria Lello in Porto, Portugal, features neo-Gothic architectural flair. It's become so popular with tourists, in July 2015 the store started charging entrance fees.
courtesy Livraria Lello
Assouline Venezia (Venice, Italy) —
Luxury publisher Assouline's newest opening is in an 18th-century palazzo in Venice.
courtesy Assouline
Boekhandel Dominicanen (Netherlands) —
This 800-year-old former Dominican church in Maastricht, Netherlands, was converted into a bookstore in 2006. Boekhandel Dominicanen hosts 140 literary events a year.
courtesy Boekhandel Dominicanen
Librairie Avant-Garde (Nanjing, China) —
China's most beautiful bookstore, Librairie Avant-Garde in Nanjing, is housed in an underground parking lot that once served as a bomb shelter.
courtesy Librairie Avant-Garde
John K. King Used & Rare Books (Detroit) —
Housed in a former glove factory in Detroit, John K. King Used & Rare Books has more than a million books organized into 900 categories.
courtesy Tristen Gild
Books for Cooks (Melbourne, Australia) —
Located in a 150-year-old former speakeasy, Books for Cooks in Melbourne, Australia, has 30,000 cookbooks in stock.
courtesy books for cooks
Powell's City of Books (Portland, Oregon) —
The world's largest used and new bookstore Powell's City of Books takes up a full city block in Portland, Oregon.
courtesy Cacophony
Parnassus Books (Nashville, Tennessee) —
Thanks to her Parnassus Books in Nashville, Tennessee, "Bel Canto" author Ann Patchett has become the inadvertent spokesperson for independent bookstores.
courtesy parnassus books
Cafebreria El Pendulo (Mexico City) —
Breakfast on the weekend at bookstore and cafe Cafebreria El Pendulo is accompanied by live classical music.
courtesy Cafebrería El Péndulo
Stanfords Bookstore (London) —
Stanfords Bookstore in the heart of Covent Garden in London is one of the world's finest travel book shops. No matter how unknown the Unknown is, Stanfords probably has not only a guidebook, but a fold-out street map detailing where to find the Unknown's best cocktails.
Courtesy Standfords
1200 Bookshop (Guangzhou, China) —
One of China's newest bookstores, 1200 Bookshop in Guangzhou is open 24 hours and offers a free stay to backpackers who apply by email in advance.
courtesy 1200 bookshop
Foyles flagship (London) —
The century-old London bookseller Foyles' new flagship store is the largest bookshop to open in the UK this century and is housed in the former Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design. The stage where the Sex Pistols played their first gig in 1975 now houses the Foyles' children's department.
David Butler
Strand (New York) —
Strand on Broadway is the only survivor of Manhattan's old Book Row -- a now-extinct district of bookstores.
courtesy the strand
Eslite Dunnan Store (Taipei, Taiwan) —
Taipei's massive Eslite Dunnan Store has been open 24 hours a day, seven days a week since 1999.
