Friend of IT Hunter Braithwaite braves the winter doldrums to find the best bookstores in Berlin.
The Pro QM bookstore in Berlin
A few months after the publishing world gathered in Frankfurt for the annual book fair, I went to Berlin to catch up on my reading. Northeastern Germany in January seems closer to martyrdom than a vacation, but if authentic travel has taught us anything, it is that you have to take the bad with the good. Food, accommodations, even the weather are best experienced as locals do. And in the winter, Berliners stay inside and read. The resulting tide of bookshops keeps one busy for weeks. Guessing that this blog is read mainly by Anglophones, I'll only list those with English titles. After that, a brief mention of the one sport that you can do in Berlin this winter (with the obvious exception of competitive döner-eating).
Start in hip Prenzlauer Berg at Saint Georges Bookshop (Wörtherstrasse 77, off the M2 Marienburgerstrasse). The shop carries standard literary fare and boasts an impressive used books collection. When I went they had taken in a local street cat that was trying with all its might to escape whenever someone walked in through the front door. In the back room you can sink into a chesterfield sofa and read a used copy of Döblin's Berlin Alexanderplatz or a collection of Philip K. Dick's stories. They also do a movie night on Tuesdays. The 2-euro admission comes with a glass of wine or a beer. Saint Georges is open 11-8 p.m. during the week, 11-7 p.m. on Saturday, and is closed on Sunday.
While not technically an English Bookstore, Pro QM (+49 (0) 30 247 285 20) shouldn't be missed. Located at Almstadtstrasse 48-50 (U8, Weinmeisterstrasse), the shop manages to stay hidden in the heart of popular shopping district Mitte. One way to classify bookstores is by how they apply order to chaos. Though the Pro QM stocks thousands of books that range from urban planning to philosophy to typography to environmental politics, the shop itself is spacious, beautiful, and organized with a ruthless German efficiency. Most of the titles are in English, and while some can be a bit expensive, just browsing makes you smarter. Pro QM is open Monday through Saturday, 11-8.
The Pro QM bookstore in BerlinA few months after the publishing world gathered in Frankfurt for the annual book fair, I went to Berlin to catch up on my reading. Northeastern Germany in January seems closer to martyrdom than a vacation, but if authentic travel has taught us anything, it is that you have to take the bad with the good. Food, accommodations, even the weather are best experienced as locals do. And in the winter, Berliners stay inside and read. The resulting tide of bookshops keeps one busy for weeks. Guessing that this blog is read mainly by Anglophones, I'll only list those with English titles. After that, a brief mention of the one sport that you can do in Berlin this winter (with the obvious exception of competitive döner-eating).
Start in hip Prenzlauer Berg at Saint Georges Bookshop (Wörtherstrasse 77, off the M2 Marienburgerstrasse). The shop carries standard literary fare and boasts an impressive used books collection. When I went they had taken in a local street cat that was trying with all its might to escape whenever someone walked in through the front door. In the back room you can sink into a chesterfield sofa and read a used copy of Döblin's Berlin Alexanderplatz or a collection of Philip K. Dick's stories. They also do a movie night on Tuesdays. The 2-euro admission comes with a glass of wine or a beer. Saint Georges is open 11-8 p.m. during the week, 11-7 p.m. on Saturday, and is closed on Sunday.
While not technically an English Bookstore, Pro QM (+49 (0) 30 247 285 20) shouldn't be missed. Located at Almstadtstrasse 48-50 (U8, Weinmeisterstrasse), the shop manages to stay hidden in the heart of popular shopping district Mitte. One way to classify bookstores is by how they apply order to chaos. Though the Pro QM stocks thousands of books that range from urban planning to philosophy to typography to environmental politics, the shop itself is spacious, beautiful, and organized with a ruthless German efficiency. Most of the titles are in English, and while some can be a bit expensive, just browsing makes you smarter. Pro QM is open Monday through Saturday, 11-8.
Around the corner is the hip Do You Read Me ?!
(Auguststrasse 28), which sells only magazines. Lots of magazines.
Magazines you've never heard of. It's an impressive store. Gone is the
clutter of the local newsstand. Each magazine is displayed on a
separate pedestal like the latest Air Jordans. They specialize in art,
design, and cultural journals, most of which are rare and have the
price tags to prove it. The store is open from 10 a.m.-7 p.m., and closed Sunday;
+49 0 30 695 496 95.
Another peculiar shop lies south, in the heart of Kreuzberg. Take the U7 to Gneisenstrasse to find the Another Country used-book store (Reimanstrasse 7; + 49 0 30 694 011 60). To be fair, it is basically a library. Return any purchase for a full refund minus 1.50 euro. A noted change from stateside libraries: next to the couches is a fridge full of beer for sale. Brit ex-pat Alan Raphaeline lords over the literary flotsam. If, for some reason, you're trying to find a specific title in this mess, you'd best get Alan's help.
After a day of buying books, you could go read them in a quiet café. Or, if you're like me and don't actually read the books you purchase, just go drink and play ping-pong. I recommend Balkan Tripps on Glogauerstrasse (U1, Görlitzer Bahnhof). Gripping their free paddles, hipsters circle around the lone ping-pong table in the center of the room, and take turns volleying the ball back and forth. If you mess up, you're out of the round. The circle moves faster and faster as people drop out. Finally, it's two drunk Germans slapping the ball between each other. It's probably the only exercise they've had all winter.
For more travel tips on Berlin, check Traveler's Places of a Lifetime: Berlin, with walking tours, festivals, shopping, nightlife, photo galleries, quizzes and more.
Photo: Hunter Braithwaite
Another peculiar shop lies south, in the heart of Kreuzberg. Take the U7 to Gneisenstrasse to find the Another Country used-book store (Reimanstrasse 7; + 49 0 30 694 011 60). To be fair, it is basically a library. Return any purchase for a full refund minus 1.50 euro. A noted change from stateside libraries: next to the couches is a fridge full of beer for sale. Brit ex-pat Alan Raphaeline lords over the literary flotsam. If, for some reason, you're trying to find a specific title in this mess, you'd best get Alan's help.
After a day of buying books, you could go read them in a quiet café. Or, if you're like me and don't actually read the books you purchase, just go drink and play ping-pong. I recommend Balkan Tripps on Glogauerstrasse (U1, Görlitzer Bahnhof). Gripping their free paddles, hipsters circle around the lone ping-pong table in the center of the room, and take turns volleying the ball back and forth. If you mess up, you're out of the round. The circle moves faster and faster as people drop out. Finally, it's two drunk Germans slapping the ball between each other. It's probably the only exercise they've had all winter.
For more travel tips on Berlin, check Traveler's Places of a Lifetime: Berlin, with walking tours, festivals, shopping, nightlife, photo galleries, quizzes and more.
Photo: Hunter Braithwaite
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