#38: Codex

Cracked spines, don’t mind

The Shop: Codex

East Village, Manhattan: 1 Bleecker Street

Tucked behind the Think Coffee shop on Bleecker & Bowery, Codex is a used bookstore that exudes cool. On the outside: punky, wheatpasted collage art and beckoning discount racks. On the inside: floor to ceiling shelves of fiction, philosophy, graphic novels, zines, and international imports. If we’re talking books per square foot, Codex is one of the densest stores in town. This literary density can be overwhelming at first, but patient browsers who don’t mind a little pre-loved wear and tear are sure to come out with all kinds of treasure.

What I got:

Rhinoceros & Other Plays

I spent this Fall working on an adaptation of Ionesco’s Victims of Duty, a show in which my character tripped acid, confronted his dead father, stripped down to his waist, and ate a chocolate cake off the floor. That’s just Ionesco, baby! This collection by the archbishop of absurdism isn’t for me, it’s a present for my CO\LAB Theater Group co-teacher and all star artist Maddie Calandrillo!

Spaniel Rage

This diary style graphic novel felt like the perfect present for my good friend Ethan Beach, a dog lover, film buff, and fellow enthusiast of the off-beat. Thanks Ethan for joining me on some of my early bookstore quest journeys!

Paper Girls Vol 1

If you missed my previous Paper Girls rant, I’ll summarize here: Brian K. Vaughn + time travel = spectacular. This one’s another gift (‘tis the season), for the Stranger Things obsessed 6th grader I tutor after school… if it passes a thorough review for kid-friendliness!