America's coolest used bookstore might be in Champaign, Illinois.

I went on a roadtrip with my friend Amber last week to check out a couple grad school programs for library science, and we spent last Friday afternoon in Champaign, where we discovered the Jane Addams Book Shop. Here are some of the pictures we took:

Shag carpeting . . .

. . . to go with the retro furniture.

Matching book-and-chair.

The Jane Addams Book Shop is three stories tall, and reminds me of Shakespeare and Company in Paris, France.

So, what do you think? Have you encountered a similar used bookstore? An even cooler one, perhaps?

Holy canasta! My book is e-mailing me.

As J-term winds down I've been buying textbooks for Spring semester--some online, some in the campus bookstore depending on where the prices are the most friendly. I recently purchased one from BetterWorldBooks.com. Not only do they donate to world literacy, but they also send entertaining e-mails to let you know when your book is shipped:

Hello Sarah,

(Your book(s) asked to write you a personal note - it seemed unusual, but who are we to say no?)

Holy canasta! It's me... it's me! I can't believe it is actually me! You could have picked any of over 2 million books but you picked me! I've got to get packed! How is the weather where you live? Will I need a dust jacket? I can't believe I'm leaving Mishawaka, Indiana already - the friendly people, the Hummer plant, the Linebacker Lounge - so many memories. I don't have much time to say goodbye to everyone, but it's time to see the world!

I can't wait to meet you! You sound like such a well read person. Although, I have to say, it sure has taken you a while! I don't mean to sound ungrateful, but how would you like to spend five months sandwiched between Jane Eyre (drama queen) and Fundamentals of Thermodynamics (pyromaniac)? At least Jane was an upgrade from that stupid book on brewing beer. How many times did the ol' brewmaster have one too many and topple off our shelf at 2am?

I know the trip to meet you will be long and fraught with peril, but after the close calls I've had, I'm ready for anything (besides, some of my best friends are suspense novels). Just five months ago, I thought I was a goner. My owner was moving and couldn't take me with her. I was sure I was landfill bait until I ended up in a Better World Books book drive bin. Thanks to your socially conscious book shopping, I've found a new home. Even better, your book buying dollars are helping kids read from Brazil to Botswana.

Eagerly awaiting our meeting,

Art in Renaissance Italy: 1350-1500 (Oxford History of Art)
________________________________________
Way too cute :)

(And that textbook? It's for a special topics history class called Beyond Wigs and Frescoes: The Visual World of Renaissance Europe. The last time I checked there were only three other students enrolled in the class. Oh, the thrills we will have. And I mean that as non-sarcastically as possible.)