The Shop: Troubled Sleep
Park Slope, Brooklyn: 129 6th Ave
Sometimes you find a store so perfect for your tastes that you pause and question whether or not you’re living in a simulation. I had this experience at Troubled Sleep, Park Slope’s recently opened purveyor of used books. As a “seasoned” bookstore “expert,” I know the signs of a quality shop– the beckoning dollar racks on the sidewalk, the laid back tunes on the store’s speaker, the glassed off shelf of rarities that makes you clandestinely Google the value of a Kramers Ergot back issue. Another great tell– niche Atwoods. Sure, every bookstore in NYC has the Handmaid’s Tale, but only the real ones have The Robber Bride. This store checks all these boxes, as well as a great selection of records, zines, and a graphic novel shelf with more Paul Popes and Jules Feiffers than my wallet could handle. It’s no surprise this shop has great genes– it's part of a family of shops that includes Codex and Book Thug Nation. Don’t forget to bring some pre-loved reads to trade in for store credit!
What I got:
The Year of the Flood
Speaking of niche Atwoods, Oryx and Crake absolutely throttled me, surpassing the already high level of incisive commentary and gut wrenching prose of the handful of other Atwood books I’ve devoured. The OC ends on a pretty wild cliffhanger, so I’ve been keeping an eye out for the sequel The Year of the Flood at every shop I’ve visited since! After trading in a few old books for store credit, I was able to walk away with this bad boy for a mere $1.50– a real steal for a hardcover book in my opinion!
Sounds perfect! Can’t wait to go!