Contact & FAQs

Yes. Harold ships books. He packages them himself, in the back, with brown paper and tape and what he describes as "appropriate care." Shipping takes three to five business days. Harold does not expedite. He has been asked.

Harold buys books on Tuesdays. You bring them in. He looks at them. He tells you what he will pay. The amount is fair. His reasoning is not always shared but is, upon reflection, usually correct.

He does not buy books that are water damaged, heavily annotated in ballpoint, or books that "belonged to my father" as a preemptive explanation of their condition. He will, however, listen to the story.

Yes. Harold maintains a request list. He sources the book. He calls you when it arrives. He does not email. He calls. He has been asked why he still calls and his answer is that you called the store looking for a book, which suggests you have a phone.

The front entrance has one step. There is a ramp to the left of the entrance that Harold installed in 2014 after a conversation he describes only as "instructive." The interior is narrow in places due to the books. Harold considers this a feature of a bookstore, not a flaw.

Yes. See the News & Events page. Harold hosts readings, talks, and occasional workshops. He does not host birthday parties, unless the birthday person is genuinely interested in architecture, in which case he has been known to make an exception and does not consider it a party so much as a gathering with a specific occasion.

Books may be returned within fourteen days if unread and in original condition. Harold can tell if a book has been read. He has not explained how. Customers who attempt to return read books and claim otherwise have described the experience as "specific."

This question has been asked of Harold directly on several occasions. His answer is that the question is less interesting than the books, and that he would be happy to recommend one.

Harold removed the phone number from the website in 2019 following a period he refers to as "the autumn of questions that did not require calling a bookstore." The number exists. It rings in the store. Harold answers it when he is not with a customer, not reading, and not in the process of having a thought he would like to finish.

He suggests email.

Books about buildings that were designed but not built, started but not finished, finished but subsequently demolished, or finished and currently in a condition that Harold considers more architectural than structural. The section was Harold's idea. It is, by visitor count, the most-visited section in the store. Harold is not sure what to make of this. He suspects he knows.

Yes. Harold likes dogs. He is less certain about their relationship to books but considers it an open question. Dogs must remain on leash near the periodicals, which Harold describes as a personal preference rather than a policy. No dog has ever damaged a periodical. Harold acknowledges this. He maintains the preference.