Literary Tourism: Left Bank Books in St. Louis, Missouri

While I was on my skate research road trip for Midwest Shreds I was worried I wouldn’t have time between doing interviews with skaters, visiting skateparks, and working on the book to actually visit bookstores. I’m happy to report that I was wrong!

While in St. Louis, I got a chance to go to Left Bank Books. It was totally worth braving the rain!

[image description: The hanging sign for Left Bank Books, which is all black and white and juts out off the building.]

I knew I was going to like it when I saw the door was painted my favorite color. Seemed like a good omen.

[image description: The doorway of Left Bank Books, which is painted my favorite shade of green and matte black.]

The inside is bright, airy, and cute. And I appreciate that they’re not mincing words on where they stand. Note the Black Lives Matter sign.

[image description: Inside Left Bank Books. A sliver of the Kids and Cooking sections are shown and there’s a Black Lives Matter sign on one of the bookshelves.]

Just look at that adorable kids section!

I like that there’s a specific section for middle grade graphic novels. I’ve been in bookstores that lump all the graphic novels together and I don’t think that’s nearly as helpful.

Plus, they had plenty of bookish gifts and accessories like totes, stationary, notebooks, magnets, pens, candles, and more.

I’m a big fan of the high ceilings and the lights that aim up at the ceiling rather than directly downward. It gives the bookstore a cozier vibe.

And can we just talk about the plants in the huge windows? Like, this could be my living room. I want to move in and make this my living room.

But wait, THERE’S MORE! There’s a whole downstairs area.

But on the way down I got distracted by the Staff Picks shelf, which is right at the top of the stairs. I love seeing what bookstore staff enjoyed and tend to trust their recommendations. (I think I’ve only got one bad staff pick recommendation in all the bookstores I’ve visited––and obviously that wasn’t here.) I found The Memory Eaters by Elizabeth Kadetsky, a memoir about Alzheimer’s disease, on the Staff Picks shelf and had to take it home.

I appreciate when indie bookstores include used books too! It’s mindful of the reading population that can’t always afford new books.

Aha! The environmental section was downstairs. I’d been looking for it. Lately I’ve been reading more earth/nature essays, which is one of the few genres my partner also likes to read. So I picked up a copy of The Solace of Open Spaces by Gretel Ehrlich for me and Mr. Off the Beaten Shelf.

The used section is pretty big! I didn’t spend a ton of time perusing because I’d already found new books I wanted, but I could tell from the little time I spent in the used shelves that the selection was good.

I’m so glad I braved the rain to visit Left Bank Books! Even with the clouds outside, it was cheerful and warm inside. The booksellers were sweet and they did a great job with curation, so I hope you’ll drop in next time you’re around St. Louis!