Best Used Bookstore

These are, everyone knows, unstable times for the book biz. National chains have folded, and even the beloved Elliott Bay Book Co. uprooted itself. But you can still count on Magus Books, just off The Ave, which watches the years go by unchanged. (It's been the Magus since '78, operated under other names before that, and was born in the '30s as a post office.) Pascal, Kierkegaard, Foucault, and Isaiah Berlin in the window function as its mission statement, without a celebrity memoir in sight—though some can be found inside, as can practically everything else in the shop's eight crammed-to-capacity aisles: tons of boxed deluxe editions; the city's best selection of used music scores and sheet music; the correspondence of William James in 12 volumes ($400), among many other complete editions. A little musty, a little creaky, nowhere else offers such addictive browsing in such a concentrated space. GAVIN BORCHERT 1408 N.E. 42nd St., 633-1800, magusbooksseattle.com

Source: Seattle Weekly

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