One of my plans for my recent trip to Yerushalaim was to tour and write about the used bookstores there and the Seforim they sell. Man plans and God laughs. With the help of Pesach Sommer I had a list of stores and I carefully planned out which days I would visits which stores and entered it all into my phone calendar. As things turned out, I had some time on the second day I was there. On that day I also caught a stomach virus which laid me low for the better part of six days. As such, my reviews are briefer than I planned and only a few stores. I have to go back and visit again.
The Book Gallery
I have walked past this store numerous times on my trips to Yerushalaim, it is less than a block from where I usually stay. I never stepped inside because it looked so tiny. However, as I had committed myself to checking out the stores, I stopped in. Boy was I ever wrong. Yes, the storefront is tiny, but behind is a whole labyrinth of rooms and levels in which you discover more books at every turn. Check out their website as well!
The countless books cover every possible topic under the sun and come in a variety of languages. My main interest is in Sifrei Kodesh of which there was a small selection. I picked up a copy of קיצור כוונות לרמח"ל which I have wanted for a while. I paid 45 shekel ($12) which wasn't bad. I also picked up a paperback copy of one of the classics which has been printed in 1967 for $0.97. I paid 15 shekel. That's a bit of inflation.
Pomeranz Bookseller
Pomeranz, which is back to back with the Book Gallery is a dangerous store to enter and I had told myself that I could not afford walking in there again. You see besides the upstairs used book section there is a huge (and recently renovated) ground floor area in which you can find an amazing selection of Seforim written by members of the Dati Leumi community. Sadly, most of these Seforim are unavailable, possibly unknown, here in the US. I usually spend too much money there, but I had to enter to look at the used section. Not my fault!
I picked up a copy of a brand new Sefer אהבת ש""י, published recently a few days before the passing of its author HoRav Sh'aar Yoshuv Cohen. I also bought עין איה from Rav Kook on Meseches Berachos. Heading upstairs, the selection was much smaller than that of the Book Gallery, although also broad-based, but the quality of the Seforim was very high. So, too, are the prices. I had my eyes on two books, The Conciliator, by Rav Menasseh ben Israel, as well as You Are What You Hate by Sara Yehudit Schneider which has been out of print. He wanted $90 for the Conciliator, so I reluctantly passed on it, fascinating as it appeared. I bought the used copy of You Are What You Hate for the cover price. It is in good condition.
The Book Gallery
I have walked past this store numerous times on my trips to Yerushalaim, it is less than a block from where I usually stay. I never stepped inside because it looked so tiny. However, as I had committed myself to checking out the stores, I stopped in. Boy was I ever wrong. Yes, the storefront is tiny, but behind is a whole labyrinth of rooms and levels in which you discover more books at every turn. Check out their website as well!
The countless books cover every possible topic under the sun and come in a variety of languages. My main interest is in Sifrei Kodesh of which there was a small selection. I picked up a copy of קיצור כוונות לרמח"ל which I have wanted for a while. I paid 45 shekel ($12) which wasn't bad. I also picked up a paperback copy of one of the classics which has been printed in 1967 for $0.97. I paid 15 shekel. That's a bit of inflation.
Pomeranz Bookseller
Pomeranz, which is back to back with the Book Gallery is a dangerous store to enter and I had told myself that I could not afford walking in there again. You see besides the upstairs used book section there is a huge (and recently renovated) ground floor area in which you can find an amazing selection of Seforim written by members of the Dati Leumi community. Sadly, most of these Seforim are unavailable, possibly unknown, here in the US. I usually spend too much money there, but I had to enter to look at the used section. Not my fault!
I picked up a copy of a brand new Sefer אהבת ש""י, published recently a few days before the passing of its author HoRav Sh'aar Yoshuv Cohen. I also bought עין איה from Rav Kook on Meseches Berachos. Heading upstairs, the selection was much smaller than that of the Book Gallery, although also broad-based, but the quality of the Seforim was very high. So, too, are the prices. I had my eyes on two books, The Conciliator, by Rav Menasseh ben Israel, as well as You Are What You Hate by Sara Yehudit Schneider which has been out of print. He wanted $90 for the Conciliator, so I reluctantly passed on it, fascinating as it appeared. I bought the used copy of You Are What You Hate for the cover price. It is in good condition.
1 comment:
I've spent hours in the basement of the Book Gallery. I actually tell people I work there, but not for the store. Sometimes they under-price books, and those are the ones I want.
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