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    Powell’s Books at PDX

    4.0 (1 review)
    Closed 6:00 am - 7:00 pm

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    10 months ago

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    Powell's City of Books

    Powell's City of Books

    4.8
    (5k reviews)
    6.2 mi
    $$

    Hard to say anything that hasn't been said. This place is way bigger than most libraries and the…read morelargest independent bookstore in US. Maps are key to finding anything, sadly no used board games. The kids section is great for how to draw books, love used books stocked next to new. The catalogue computers (just like a library) were helpful - told you both what section, shelf to find your both, and number of both new and used copies available which is fantastic (just make sure to write down more then section number if that exists, it still took a while to find a specific book - a obtuse and somewhat arbitrary categorization (ie a book we wanted was under mental games) Their summer reading program was amazing for $5 coupon to be used on purchase of anything.

    Powell's City of Books is HUGE. I knew it was supposed to be one of the biggest independent…read morebookstores in the world, but I don't think I really understood what that meant until I walked inside. The Burnside location takes up an entire city block and has SO many different sections. There are new and used books, gifts, and basically every genre and random little category you can think of. The different rooms even have their own names, and the whole place feels like a giant book maze. You could easily spend hours just wandering around. I loved browsing through everything. Even when I wasn't looking for anything specific, I kept finding things that caught my attention. The color-coded sections and maps definitely helped because otherwise I probably would have just gotten lost somewhere in the shelves and never been seen again. Definitely one of those Portland places I'd recommend even if you're not a huge book person. It's just really fun to walk around and explore, and I can totally see why Powell's is such an iconic part of Portland.

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    Rare Books
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    Rare book room

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    Rare book room
    Arcade Book Exchange

    Arcade Book Exchange

    4.6
    (9 reviews)
    10.5 mi
    $

    What a delight visiting Jan's Books. As a newbie, I only know it from their new location in Raleigh…read moreHills. What's strange, is that most of the space used to house my favorite thrift store, run by The Cat Adoption Team...but I digress. I had the incredible opportunity to talk with the shop's owner, Lori. She is a major book lover, is extremely knowledgeable and has the best organization system for her inventory. As a member of the LGBTQ+ community, she has areas within the store for us. I love knowing where I can find an array of queer books by genre, including a small selection of new books. Vast majority of the inventory is used and the prices are extremely reasonable. I can see why customers are loyal to this store. I was so impressed, I bought a few books and also signed onto be a monthly member. This helps ensure that we keep these unique small businesses in business. I'm putting my money where my mouth is and supporting them. It's a trek for me but it's my new book home and I highly recommend them. Friendly staff, easy parking and very reasonable prices! If you love books, you will love this place!

    This place is so fun and not that far from the main street at all. They have a really wide…read moreselection from history to YA fantasy to cookbooks and lots of romance. Note though that a lot of sections are labeled romance but aren't actually romance books. Definitely a hidden gem for all book lovers!

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    Inside the store.
    Inside the store.
    This is their LGBTQ+ Romance Section. They also have a queer book group!

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    This is their LGBTQ+ Romance Section. They also have a queer book group!

    Powell’s Books at PDX - media - Updated August 2026

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