I found a blackface/minstrel vinyl in a pile of used vinyls they were selling and brought it to the front to let them know what the vinyl was. They looked at me like I was so strange for highlighting this and brought it back on the floor citing 'historical significance'. I felt very uncomfortable. read more

I love Pegasus Book Store!!! Offering smart, engaging cutting-edge contemporary best sellers to vast select of classic xines. Love, love their selection of second hand books. Clever gift selections and a visit with the ancient store kitty round out this experience Beautifully. read more

Stopped in here while waiting for a table at La Note. Literally (see what I did there?) no better place to spend 20 minutes. They sell used books as well! Wendell Berry book count: 5 (Three of which I did not have!! But now I do, clearly.) read more

Love this spot, love these people. Always so patient and friendly. I have disabilities and sometimes take a moment to ask the right questions or understand new information clearly and after three visits with three different workers, everyone was sweet and patient without me having to bring any attention to my far from obvious challenges. I try to always stop in here first when I'm on a bookstore spree downtown. read more

I could spend hours in this place. They have an excellent selection of books of all different genres, including some rare finds! They even have adorable, one of a kind gifts. It's perfect for holiday gift shopping. Definitely recommend stopping in! read more

Its selection and nice staff make it a 5 star book shop at any time. Also, it's filling orders while we shelter in place! You can order online, but I did via email/phone. I asked if they could ship my book to someone as a gift within a few days, and a staff member replied in under 2 hours. Luckily they had the book I wanted and even luckier, he was going to my area anyway and was nice enough to wrap the book. So I ended up having my gift hand-delivered the same day I emailed Pegasus. What a great local shop and today, service. read more

Let's all be honest, Beans the cat is the only reason why I would travel 45 minutes to Berkeley for all my bookstore needs. Pegasus has such chill vibes and meets all my crazy cat lady needs. The layout is clean and inviting. This is just a place you know has good people inside and that you want to buy from. read more

Pegasus Books Downtown - BEANS THE CAT - Bookstores Near Me - Berkeley, California

This Pegasus remains standing after defeating the Death Star (Barnes and Noble) across the street. Although my home Pegasus store is on Solano, I do manage to occasionally wander over to the south end of Downtown Berkeley (and usually avoiding Half Price Books entirely). This Pegasus seems a little smaller and less crowded than the Solano store, but has the same eclectic Berkeley feel, and features a nice selection of books, magazines, calendars (of course), quirky gift items, and pithy staff suggestions for this and that. You're also welcome to sit down, stay awhile, and pet the cat. read more

Really nice place to hang out. The used books are in good condition, the place does not smell like some used books location and the staff are friendly. A lot of entertaining things to look and tons of calendars and unusual items. read more

Who has time to read books? Why can't you just see the movie, or something, jeesh. If a guy is in the bookstore, I bet he is short. Shorties never date or go out, they read a lot. Also people who hate trees read books. No wonder we don't celebrate arbor day anymore. Why can't they just get a kindle? It has a built in light and saves the environment, some people... Pssshhh... 1983 called and asked for its books back. Also while we're answering calls, 1975 wants its old spice aftershave back and that awful smell of books with it. God. The only people who read are those that do laundry on a Saturday night and spend rainy days at a bar window drinking wine or whiskey with their stupid book. They might as well be an invisiblé. Most of the books those idiots read are fiction anyways. Why don't they read something educational that can help them with life? Dummies. But I guess if "books" are your thing, Pegasus is alright. I mean they have books. Might even have a signed copy of some fanciful book in black velvet called Night Circus. Or that horrible novel about Noah n Allie that takes place in North Carolina or somewhere that doesn't matter. I bet Noah wasn't a shortie. He got the girl in the end. *sigh The Notebook... Psshhhh I could watch the movie in a fraction of the time. read more

Pegasus Books Downtown - I think I like Noah better than Allie. Noah is a team changer. *book is a first edition first printing. - Bookstores Near Me - Berkeley, California

Super neat place.. and since i am getting away from the TV more and more, I am benefiting and revisiting my love for books and magazines. Pegasus and Pendragon works well in filling that niche. Very sweet cat inside. read more

Pegasus Books Downtown - Bookstores Near Me - Berkeley, California

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They have books with marked down prices as well as newer novels. I like the postcard selection as well, it was very diverse. Their cognitive science section was also plentiful. Besides books they had small gift items you never thought you had to buy, like coin pouches that say "raking it in" and "beer money". They're playlist was spot on, literally one of the only times I've heard space oddity in a bookstore. +Theres a house cat!! read more

Pegasus Books Downtown - Bookstores Near Me - Berkeley, California

Surprise: Pendragon is one of the best places in the Bay for comix snobs to find handmade 'zines and cheap, used, good graphic novels. Their selection isn't enormous, and this isn't the place to go to find something specific. But if you like independent/alternative comix, you'll probably find a good read here at a really good price. The staff is really friendly, but not overly solicitous. NB: They don't carry superhero crap. Bonus points. read more

Pegasus Books Downtown - Oprah loves Suicide Girls. - Bookstores Near Me - Berkeley, California

Their annual calendar sale ($3.99 each or 3 for $10) is enough to merit five stars! Other neat notes: -Features interesting book recommendations -Sells independent magazines -Sells Moleskine -Kudos for indie bookstores! read more

REVIEW #600! I confess - I'm torn - do I like this Pegasus & Pendragon better than the others? I adore the funky layout, the ecletic selection of books - the staff are friendly and there's so much to enjoy about browsing through here. I don't feel like I would spend an entire afternoon here like I would at the Solano location, making this a great spot to pop in after a meal and before heading to movies nearby. I know, I know - you'll say "Gosh, Jenn - you always say that about all bookstores!" It's true - I did enjoy bookstores like Borders but how awful is that B&N in Emeryville? I have problems staying in there more than 4 minutes. Resolve for 2012 to give more love and book buying dollars to your local independent bookstores - not to online retailers! read more

I went 4 weeks ago. 1) Employees are nice 2) They still selling Vintage records (interesting) 3) They have very nice cards (special one) 4) They carry special "magazines", you won't see in regular Walgreen or CVS stores. 5) Kids book selections are very good. Highly recommended. read more

Really cool book shop right next to the brunch spot I visited. They had a deal of 20 percent off so I grabbed a book I've meaning to read. I really loved all the options they had here. The kids book section was awesome! Prices were really fair here and worth it to keep a local business going strong! read more

Awesome book store. Buy and sell your books here! Be humbled with all the books you have yet to read. For some reason, the books on a table at Pegasus are so much more enticing then the tables you find at Barnes and Noble. Great place to browse while you are waiting for a table at La Note. read more

I dropped at one of the last few independent and local used bookstores around Berkeley. I liked the vibe in here, and they have a lot of great variety of topics and subjects of books they offer. I glanced the place around to see what and where the books are. It is still awesome to find some banned books which is hard to find nowadays. It opens and interests me in some way. Then found a huge collection of local cookbooks and other unusual books here too. This is an awesome bookstore to spend some time reading, taking look at other books. Staff were very informative and knowledgeable too. read more

Love this bookstore. I can spend hours here. Great variety of books and topics for everyone. It's such a treat to touch books and not just have to guess and buy them online. And this place has cats you can pet. They Are totally tame! read more

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It's nice to see that in times where digital dominates, places like this still exist to provide material to those that will never fully integrate into a technological world, but instead will choose to stay acquainted with a hardback first edition and a familiar scent of freshly bound pulp. If you dedicate the time, you can find some hidden gems here, they carry many hard to find items like signed editions and first prints, but also stock many items that are currently trending like recent releases and current events. Their prices fluctuate tremendously here, some books are priced for dirt cheap while others tend to be somewhat more expensive than discount shops like Half Price Books or online retailers like Amazon. read more

Pegasus Books Downtown - Used New Arrivals - Bookstores Near Me - Berkeley, California

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I like going to bookstores because not only is it de-stressing, but it gives me time to read all of the books I want. Pegasus books have a variety of different genres as well as music records. While it isn't two stories, it does have a split level with a few stairs to get to the next tier of books. It's also very bright and you can see the rest of the street. The only con is that this place has seldom any parking, but there is a lot of street parking. read more

I'm a firm believer and patron of stores that employ cats. Pegasus has a cat , therefore I buy books there. :) Also an added bonus: It seems books here are cheaper than Half Price Books. read more

Pegasus Books Downtown - Bookstore Cat watches over his domain. - Bookstores Near Me - Berkeley, California

Great selection, "interesting"ly laid out store with oh-my-god-they-have-a-cat-roaming-around. Pegasus Books has been around mostly forever, and the store reflects that. It's not quite run down, but it's not quite corporate-clean either. That being said, it's got an impressive selection of boks and and gimmicky, somehow book related gifts, like dog stickers, magnets, and action figures. Interesting. Its hard to qualify book stores (mostly because so few people buy books these days), but their staff is friendly, and they have this super chill cat roaming the store. It's adorable and will let you pet it, which is awesome. Worth a looksie; it's a Berkeley staple. read more

Charming bookstore. Good size, had new and used books, all in good condition. Had records, cds, gifts, and zines in addition to regular books. They had a lot of popular books that one might look for. And a few obscure ones that I was pleasantly surprised that they carried. Came in just because I was waiting for my car to be serviced across the street but came out with two books I had been meaning to read for some time. Good trip. read more

i didnt get to see their cats! :( so sad but they had a really classy atmosphere like youd see in the movies! love the cozy bookstore feel they have. they have cool posters all over their walls, and music playing in the background. they have a cute children's section with a few toys kids can play with! didnt look too clean but at least they have something for your kids to play with while you look around :) read more

This bookstore is a gem. The employees are nice and helpful. The events they hold here are inspiring and interesting. The books here are of good quality and vary in genre. Their discount books are great, the selection they have for their prices is outstanding. I highly recommend this bookstore for young adults, families with children, and everyone else. read more

Workers were very nice and helped me find the specific book I was looking for. Excellent prices and surprisingly good prices. They also offer a student and teacher discount. read more

Please note that "Tim" did not dispute a single fact in my long review, including that he screamed at me "We stole your books!!! Sue us!!!" and that a Berkeley police department officer said that he would include Tim's statements in his official report Which fact did I misstate Tim? You said that my books had been "processed and put on shelves" when another employee told me she put my box of books outside. Your statement is an absolute lie. He is a legend in his own mind, but in reality he works in a bookstore in Berkeley. His comment about my other Yelp reviews is ridiculous. Almost half of my reviews are 5 stars. Attack the messenger instead of the message, Tim? read more

The book sellers have been really great about finding the books I need used. The same day local delivery or pickup is a big plus.

My favorite bookstore around! Staff are super friendly and helpful and this is the perfect store to spend hours browsing in. During shelter in place, I've bought several orders from their website and they have arrived quickly. SO grateful to have this amazing store in Berkeley! I also have sold books to them which has always been a positive experience. Can't wait to clean out my bookshelves again when this is all over! read more

Staff is arrogant & they have cats wandering around the store. I don't like cats, or arrogant employees. Half price books has more selection, better deals, friendly staff & no cats. read more

I spend less time at this Pegasus than the one on Solano, but when I'm in the neighborhood anyway I almost always stop in. We learned a few years ago that this location is less insanely crowded during the the January calendar sale, even on the first day. Today after lunch at Angeline's we stopped in to see if they had Panorama, Dave Eggers' newspaper. It seemed like a great Christmas gift for our friend Larry. We'd bought ones for us and for Tam at the Solano store the day after it came out, but yesterday they were out when Alan tried to show it to the friend w/ whom he had had lunch. The fellow at Pegasus on Shattuck told us they were sold out, then w/o our even asking, offered to call one of their other stores. We gratefully accepted his offer and told him Solano had been out yesterday around lunchtime. He said they'd dropped a couple of boxes off about that time. He called and they still had some. We thanked him and headed over to the Solano store, where we bought one. It was friendly, helpful service at the Shattuck Pegasus. read more

PROS: - Located in downtown Berkeley - Near public transportation - Variety of books, CDs/records, cards - Customer service is great - Open early & close late - New and gently used books - Used books are in good condition - Prices for all items are fair - Everything is organized well & easy to find what you are looking for CONS: - The store has cats around and if you allergic, you won't enjoy being here - Because it is downtown it is tricky to find parking but not impossible - Can get rather busy on the weekend read more

Perhaps not so varied and unique as its sister on the other side. Places heavier emphasis on calendars, stationary, and leisure books than other genres. What is interesting about this place is that it carries independent, artsy magazines that you wouldn't be able to find at larger bookstores. Add a friendly cat and a couch to insta-free your afternoon. read more

I recently learned how to read and I have to say, wow, is this what I've been missing?! Okay, all kidding aside, I've always loved applying pen to paper or finger to keypad, but I wasn't always the biggest reader, until the past few years. Now that the bug has bit, however, my bookshelves need to be reinforced at my house and when I encounter a bookshop like this, I feel I have to share. Because sharing is apparently caring. Pegasus is an outstanding resource for a colorful array of topics, titles, books, mags and even a few weird items that you need to own. They play cool, quirky music while you sit and flip pages to find the gem you'll want to take home with you and will let you sit for a long time without hassling you. As for what came home with me to keep my brain warm at night, Food Writing 2009. A compilation of literary food nuggets that hit the scene last year. So far, so awesome! So if you are in Berkeley and have some time to kill, I highly recommend this place. Good stuff. read more

My take on a recent experience at Pegasus Bookstore in Berkeley, CA; I expected a lot from a highly recommended Berkeley bookstore, which was possibly my fatal flaw here. The atmosphere is a lot like a record store, cool, pleasing to the eyes and, easy to navigate, clean. Most books are the market price. There exists a varied selection of used books with interesting titles out front and a relatively large sci-fi section indoors. While there are no cozy seats to encourage a sit down read, there is an adorable elder cat named Parrot who's aged and arcane meow calls forth scritchins and affection from the weary book traveler. However, nobody likes a pretentious snooty bookseller, it is beyond stereotypical and just bad business. I already had five other market priced books in my hand when I asked the woman with the blond pixie cut if there was a small romance section anywhere, sheepishly, as I had already been snapped at by her earlier when I asked the name of the cat. She informs me imperiously that "They don't sell series books like that here." It was at this very moment that simple curiosity turned into feminist annoyance. Aside from that over her shoulder, I could see The Outlander series prominently placed in the fantasy section. I inform her in a measured voice, that the Outlander series is Historical-time travel-romance. She gets even more annoyed and informs me that she worked at an even bigger bookstore before and that it was labeled as Fantasy there as well. I double down and inform her that, that is possible but that Diana Gabaldon is kind of the Tolkien of romance. (I know we got off track here but her tone was so snide and haughty.) She doubled down and informed me that they "Don't carry series books here and they don't carry westerns either, they wouldn't sell" While I am reeling from that comparison she goes on to tell me that, "Maybe if you look in the literature section, I don't know, sometimes a romance sneaks in there like by Nicholas sparks or James Patterson" It was at this very the moment that I died in a hipster bookstore. My poor little heart simply stopped beating . . . On my epitaph it read: HOW DARE YOU *Side note*I feel like if she had said some variation of, "I'm sorry we, unfortunately, don't carry romance here" I would have let it go but, she seemed to have some personal issue with romance that made me hate her instantly. If weren't for the other more polite lady at the counter, this one with a brown pixie cut, I would have dropped my purchases and left. *Back to being dead forever* read more

I had been in here a few times before to buy and sell books and had always enjoyed the selection, staff, and overall experience. I used to manage a independent bookstore and always make an effort to support independent bookstores over corporate chains whenever possible. As such, I recently came in here to sell a stack of books. I always make an effort to keep my books in great shape and several were in near new condition. When I met with the buyer about the books he began quizzing me on what I thought of the various books and where I had gotten them. At that point I didn't think anything of the questions and simply answered him honestly. Shortly, he curtly informed that they would be unable to buy ANY books from me because, and this was delivered with in intentionally insulting tone, "someone" had been stealing "some" of the books I was trying to sell to them. At first I was confused as to why they wouldn't be able to buy the books due to the fact that someone else was stealing them until I realized that he was insinuating that I was stealing books from them and trying to sell them back to the store. Pretty much one of the most insulting experiences I have ever had shopping. I definitely never give this store my business again. From now on I will walk the extra couple of blocks down the street to Half Price books. They may not give you quite as much money for your trade ins but their selection is way better and they actually understand the meaning of customer service. read more

I don't know about you, but I am sick and tired of having to manage hipster bookstore clerks who can't seem to summon the energy to assist - let alone simply and succinctly communicate with me - when I am in need of assistance. I realized yesterday, after a couple of years of regular service, that I am sick and tired of feeling like I'm bothering the people who work here by asking them - as politely as I can, which I think is pretty polite - to do their jobs. For the record, I stopped at both the Albany and Berkeley Pegasus stores on Monday, December 9th, in search of one specific title. After looking for the book myself, I went ahead and decided to risk asking someone behind the counter. I approached said counters and asked if they carried the specific title - I gave them the title and the author - to which I was responded with a grunt and a few mumbles and an overwhelming sense that a) whatever it is that I was looking for they knew all about already and why the hell would I want to read that, and b) I was really putting them out by asking. Again: I realized yesterday that I don't really have to put up with this. As much as I'd like to support "local" business, I think I'll just cut to the chase and start going to 1/2 Price Books, where at least they're nice. Oh, and can - as I tell my two year old on a daily basis - "use their words." Thumbs down, Pegasus. I'm out. P.S. I'm copy/ pasting this verbatim for the Albany store. read more

If you're waiting to be seated at either La Note or Venus, please don't go killing time at Barnes & Noble. Well, you can go to B&N and riffle through their magazines but please come to Pegasus and Pendragon to spend your money. There are always tables of reduced price books and their employee recommendations are cool to check out. Right now they are having an offer on 2007 calendars. $3.99 each or 3 for $10. Being a sucker for deals, I opted for the 3-for-special. Unfortunately having 3 calendars won't help me remember birthdays nor special occasions but at least I'll have something cool to stare at on my cubicle walls when Yelp is down for maintenance. read more