The Great Literary Trip: Day 5

I'm back! Welcome to the day 5 recap.

Day 5

CITIES

We started off our day in Philadelphia where we promptly left. We drove to West Chester which was the cutest small town. From there, we went to Princeton. Finally, we arrived in New York City tonight.

BOOKSTORES

Baldwin's Book Barn

We visited one bookstore today, and it was certainly my favorite so far: Baldwin's Book Barn. The store is a five-story barn built in 1822 that exudes bookish charm. Wood-burning fireplaces, stone walls, large wooden doors, and hundreds of shelves bursting with books, maps, and prints are what make the book barn so special.

William and Lila Baldwin established their book and collectible store in 1934 in Wilmington, Delaware. They moved to "the Barn" in 1946. The old milking house was converted into a permanent residence for the family while the barn was filled with books. Over 300,000 used and rare books reside in the barn today. The store has been featured on CSPAN (oh yeah!) and Good Morning America.

We were truly transported to another time. With low ceilings and neverending shelves, the place is a maze - but a great maze at that. I certainly expect this will remain one of my favorite stops of the entire trip. I hope to visit again someday.

Labyrinth Bookstore

We had the opportunity to revisit Labyrinth today. It is a great bookstore that certainly made me feel at home. Very charming.

LIBRARIES

We visited two libraries on Princeton's campus: the Firestone Library and the Mudd Library. While we were unable to go in, viewing the outside was still pretty special.

PUBLISHING HOUSES

We visited the Princeton University Press as well!

Check back in tomorrow!

Comments

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