I had some time to kill today before brunch and went into The Dusty Bookshelf. What a great place!…read moreIt has a very solid selection and the staff was helpful. I love the table with the Grab Bags! I only ended up purchasing one book, but I would love to go back next time I'm in Lawrence.

I love this book store. I have gone here for years. Plenty of great books. The customer service is…read morenonexistent. Every time I go in, the staff ignores me. When I get to the register to BUY books, most of the staff are quite rude. Staff will talk to staff as opposed to engaging with customers. My last visit was one of the worst. I believe "it" didn't want me in the store at all. I was buying a lot of books. There are some staff that are human and are very pleasant.

Another can't miss spot in Lawrence. I love finding stores with unique finds and we are happy to…read moresupport them every chance we can.

I was not impressed when I checked out this store while on Mass Street. The storefront is the most…read moreunwelcoming one downtown and there was a lot of discriminatory signage that showed they only let certain kinds of people inside their store. I thought Lawrence was supposed to be a very welcoming, tolerant city but maybe I was mistaken.

Just wanted to update the community on the current state of The Book Barn…read more Yes, there are books in this store. Yes, you'll probably find what you're looking for. Yes, you'll be greeted by the sweetest lady with a ton of book knowledge. You will need to squeeze through books piled on the floor. You might see a broken shelf or two held up by books. The store is only open on Saturdays, I'm thinking from 11am-5pm or so.

I would love to open a bookstore like this one. Piles upon piles of books all over the place…read more Somewhat organized, but the real gem is in the people. The older lady will tell you everything and can find anything. I talked to her just about my history with the Book Barn. In 1998, Lansing Middle School had an accelerated reader program. You read books and take tests on the computer (big deal at the time) and you are awarded points. I earned enough points that I was awarded a gift card to The Book Barn. It was written on a card with the amount, and each time you spent some of it the cashier would write the new amount on it. I walked in and asked for any recommendations. The younger lady working there gave me Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged. She gave Atlas Shrugged to a 13 year old. I tackled that beast. It took me 9 months, but I plowed through it and can now proudly say that I have read Atlas Shrugged. Overall, great service, great place to get lost it for an afternoon. Support your local book store!

The store doesn't look like much but it feels like a classic Barbs and Noble on the inside. The…read moreselection is fine, not great but that's not the disappointing part. I got an email advertising a special giveaway only in stores. Once I got there not only did the staff have no idea what I was talking about but they had never even received the promotional items. The staff didn't really do anything to explain the mix up but this is disappointing because now I cannot trust the newsletters anymore. Maybe one day they will get with the program.

Friendly & knowledgeable staff. Shortly after entering the business I was asked what I was looking…read morefor. The staff member quickly brought me the book I was looking for and I was out the door. If you are buying many books over a period of time you should sign up for their rewards card.

This was my first time at Afterword (though I have been meaning to go for a while) and I am already…read moreplanning on coming back! I love the vibe of the space, which is lined with bookshelves and they even have a card catalog. The drinks are fun and with some Literary references for the names. I had the poppy war and really enjoyed it. We sat inside but they also have an outdoor patio. The bathroom was also extremely clean. Service was very quick with barely any wait before the drinks were ready. I would recommend anyone that loves a cocktail to stop in!

Cozy, book-filled, and perfect for unwinding with a drink. I tried the drink of the month the…read moreBoozycatipillar, a fun literary-themed cocktail supporting Read to Lead KC delicious! The only downside? Ordering at the bar makes it tricky to hold your seat as a solo guest. Drinks are a bit pricey, but the ambiance is worth it. Great spot for book lovers looking to relax with a cocktail!

Wow. I had not been to the KU Bookstore in ages. I had to go there to pick up a book for a student…read moreI am privately tutoring. They had the only copy of "The Great Gatsby" in town so I had no other option. I came into the store from the parking garage on the north side. You have an enclosed walkway, have to take an elevator.. you know the drill. I entered the building in what I assumed was the bookstore since the sign said "KU Bookstore". Boy, was I wrong! I entered in through the fancy-pants hoity toity section. There were all sorts of gifts I could purchase at exorbitant prices. You know for things common people use everyday like golf, wine parties, dinner parties and cocktails on the veranda. Funny thing is, I could not find any books. Made my way to the next section. Nope. Still no books. There were book bags, purses, cellphone bling, notebooks and sweatshirts, shorts, t-shirts and kids clothes. I saw a book bag that I liked until I saw the price tag was $89. OMG- I almost fainted. By this time I was on book safari.. searching for the ever elusive textbook that the store name advertised. I panicked because I had entered the third chamber of Tut's tomb and not a book in sight. I finally asked someone where to find the textbooks and he told me to exit the store and go to a very tiny window outside in the hall. You must be kidding, right?? Yep, I felt like I had reached the promised land when I got to the window but I still did not see any books. The nice person at the window asked me what book I needed and then told me the books were located in the basement and she would be right back. Huh?? You don't get to pick your own book? You don't get to see which ones have been highlighted or mangled? You are just at the whim of a student worker who picks a copy randomly off a shelf? The girl was very nice when she appeared with my two copies but one copy was very yellowed and old. I told her I needed a whiter copy and she had to make another trip to the basement. She managed to get a cleaner book on the second trip which I appreciated. The only form of payment I had was a debit card that expired the day before (long story) and a check. When she rang up my purchase she told me they did not accept checks. I visited the website ahead of my trip and there was no indication that checks were not accepted. There was no sign anywhere in the bookstore that said they did not take checks. Got kinda prickly at that point. I managed to scrap the bowels of my purse and find $26 so I did not have to make a return trip. Just a side note: the book was four dollars more expensive at the KU Bookstore than it was in Overland Park but I was in a bind. The textbook game is very competitive and this store falls short- way short- in almost every category. The only positive was the good customer service. The girl who waited on me was nice and several other people asked if I needed help while she vanished to the basement. They are too expensive and too user unfriendly (is that a real phrase? lol). Won't be back anytime soon.

It's not that i find myself here very often at all. I mean, its inside the Kansas Union and it's…read morelogo is the nerdy-hawk (ok--! i secretly love nerdy- hawk...) But nerdy-hawk has more to offer than your-baby's-KU-B-C's-type books or a fine view of the Spencer. By chance, or perhaps to kill time while on campus, I wandered in here one day. After discovering an urn of complimentary coffee, I scanned the titles of the foreign language children's books. My search yielded--- Eric Carle's The Very Busy Spider in Arabic. There were actually a few other Arabic options, as well as some in Spanish, French, etc. I was also impressed that they had a considerably good number of graphic novels available. Sure, realistically I'm not going to gird up my loins, enter the gates of campus, overcome the obstacle of countless legging-ed ugg-wearers who are busy slow-walking and cell-talking to get to this place... but if I were to find myself in the Union and felt the need for solace, I might choose this place.

The total are good Prices are high…read more But the political views of the owner or manager not appreciated. We weren't even talking politics but he went on a rant. We were taught not to talk politics or religion I'm public. Ruined our shopping experience. Nota good idea.

Every toy you could possibly imagine is here! You don't need to come in with a shopping list. Let…read morethe toy store tell you what you need.

Cute bookshop with a great selection Book club books are up…read morefront, along with banned books and classics. Used books are along the back wall with kids and young adult books in the middle, along with notecards, magnets, coffee cups and other gifts. Of note: they also have coffee and treats!

So far I've only been there once but I loved it! Wonderful variety very friendly people, I will be…read moregoing there often.

Rainy Day Books is kind of the best of both worlds - a book lover's paradise staffed by book…read moreworms. It's a cozy space, but it's jampacked with books from all subjects. If you can't find what you're looking for - which for some reason happens me a lot - the staff is happy to order a copy for you. They're book club friendly. They also host a ton of fun book-related and author events. If you're interested, please follow their social media accounts. They'll keep you up to date.

If you haven't been to Rainy Day Books, and you've passed by at any point, you're really missing…read moreout! Every time I go into the shop, even if I think I know exactly what I want, every staff member is so knowledgeable and helpful that I always leave with more ideas on my TBR! The little shop is located in the tiny shopping center off Brush Creek Parkway, which means it can be hard to find parking if the center is petty busy--but it's worth it! They have great sections for adult reads, but they also have great sections for kids and teens--you'll find what you're looking for even if you're not sure what that is. Over the holidays, I even asked for kids and teens recommendations from the staff which they were happy to give! As noted earlier, their shop isn't huge, but full of possibilities. And if at the end of your visit, you really still want that book they don't have in stock, they'll order it for you for pick up or shipping--it's a simple process and they're more than happy to help people find their perfect next read. They may not be a book superstore, but they create value in their suggestions, recommendations, and their tiny book reviews and recs on the shelves (even in the teens and kids sections, written by kids and teens!). So glad to have found this place early on in my time in KC, and so happy that they're still doing their thing in their amazing bookshop!