Wythe Guide: Reading in Brooklyn
Williamsburg and Greenpoint’s independent bookshop scene is rich in abundance. Walk the streets of either neighborhood and endless literary gems are to be found. Sink in amongst the locals with a day spent poring over the pages of newfound (or old-found) books; look no further than to the neighborhood coffee shops, gardens, and parks to stop in and settle in. Compiled here is a list of where to buy your books, and where to go to read them.
High Valley Books
882 Lorimer St, Brooklyn, NY 11222
High Valley Books sits quietly in a light blue row house on the northern border of McCarren Park. The shop’s owner, Bill Hall, is serious, sincere, charming, and a wonderful storyteller. He’s been in the neighborhood, first in South Williamsburg and now in Greenpoint, for nearly 30 years. An incredibly approachable by-appointment only shopkeeper has many tales about the neighborhood, the origins of his affinity toward reading and books, and how his shop is a conduit for connection.
Having studied English literature with a background in fine art, High Valley reflects Bill's propensities through his immense collection dedicated to architecture, art, interior design, and fashion. He also carries vintage cookbooks, 18th century literature, rare periodicals, and photography and travel books.
Bill is a connector and High Valley Books is something of a meeting ground. It draws professors, students, typographers, designers, and photographers looking for inspiration that on the shelves of High Valley’s breezy first floor or Bill’s magazine-lined basement.
"If you don’t have books around, you’re probably not going to read very much. When you’re at someone’s house and you see books everywhere, you think, “Oh! These are interesting people,” and then you go to another person’s house and they have no books at all, and they don’t even read, but they’re still perfectly nice people and interesting in their own right. However, I would rather hang out with the people that read because we might have something to talk about."
- Bill Hall, High Valley Books Proprietor
Black Spring Books (672 Driggs Ave)
Black Spring Books is a bookshop and literary social club located next door to Henry Miller’s childhood home on a historic street in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. They buy & sell mostly used books, with an affinity for modern first editions and rare/vintage printings, but strive for an eclectic selection featuring some new books as well.
High Valley Books
By-appointment only, High Valley’s proprietor, Bill Hall, runs this shop out of his home. Rare periodicals, design, and fashion books are what primarily sit on Hall’s shelves, but cookbooks, photography, travel, and gardening books make appearances as well.
McNally Jackson (76 N 4th St)
The second branch of the independent SoHo bookstore, stocking McNally Editions, singular works published by McNally, and a large selection of children’s books, with weekly story times for kids every Thursday at 11:30am. Staff recommendations sit proudly on their shelves with handwritten rationale for each endorsement.
Quimby's (536 Metropolitan Ave)
A curated selection of small-press books and zines stock the shelves of Quimby. Visitors will also find locally crafted greeting cards, vinyl albums, gifts, art magazines, fiction, and non-fiction literature.
Spoonbill & Sugartown (218 Bedford Ave)
A bookshop located in the Mini Mall on Bedford Avenue selling new, used, and rare books in a variety of genres with emphasis on art, design, and architecture, as well as notebooks, publications, journals, and greeting cards.
WORD (126 Franklin St)
An independent bookstore selling fiction and non-fiction literature with frequent events, and book club meetings. Minutes away from The East River, find something to read, and sit by the water.
Well before Betty Smith’s celebrated novel drew attentions to Williamsburg, there was plenty of literary bustle in the area. The original Greenpoint Library opened in 1906 as one of the first Carnegie libraries, and prominent writers have lived and worked in the neighborhood for decades—Walt Whitman, Henry Miller, and Esmerelda Santiago, to name a few.
Join the historical likes, take your recent purchase, and find a place to sit, whether surrounded by trees, looking up at the Manhattan cityscape, immersed in the Williamsburg community, or cozied up in your room.
Oslo Coffee Roasters (133 Roebling St)
Opened over 20 years ago, Oslo’s coffee is roasted in their trusty small-batch Probat roaster, yielding coffee that Wythe is proud to offer. Their storefronts are lovely places to read, sit or take in your surroundings.
McGolrick Park (Russell Street & Nassau Ave)
Providing ample shade since 1891, McGolrick Park is known for its large older trees, historic monuments, and its Sunday farmer’s market, making it an ideal place to sit for a few hours.