Bookish Finds | I soon discovered New York to be a city were I just ‘stumbled upon’ literary sights walking around the streets to get to the ‘bigger’ tourist spots. My finds included the Charles Scribner Building along 5th Avenue (you have to crane your neck to see the sign!), an exhibition on children’s books at the New York Public Library (see more about it in my Blogger’s Bookshelf post!); the SoHo Scholastic Building and store (which had a cool statuette of Harry Potter from the US editions of the book in foyer!); and for all you comic book nerds, Midtown Comics just by Times Square. Then there was, of course, Strand Bookstore with ‘over 18 miles of books’, stacked in shelves that reached the ceiling and lined entire walls across three whole floors.
Brooklyn’s Here | My cousin was also lovely enough to let me stay with her in Brooklyn and I found myself wandering round Williamsburg on a sunny morning taking in the area. I eventually found a park and indulged in a little writing, plus some proper American mac and cheese at Brooklyn Mac (yes, there is an entire diner dedicated to mac and cheese). Brooklyn, and more specifically the Bed-Stuy area, is another area I really want to explore more. It’s full of boutique shops and local cafés, plus the bar scene – which I only got to experience very briefly wandering round with another cousin – is much less crowded than the central Manhattan area!
‘Stumble Upon’ in IRL | Other casual finds during the trip were Rivington Street (formerly home to a young Lady Gaga); incredible street of the famous ‘kissing sailor and nurse’ whilst walking along the High Line; and a little kiosk branch of Strand Books right by Central Park.
So those are my little finds from exploring New York, there’s obviously plenty more where that came from so keep an eye out for more in this series!