Daedalus Bookshop

Charming, cram-​packed with every type of book imaginable. A great place to visit. Owner is genuinely helpful and escorted us through the store to help find what we were looking for. A joy to browse, behold and buy. Excellent in every respect.

Daedalus is amazing! A three story meander of quality used and antiquarian books, artwork and memorabilia. Just a few steps from the mall!

If you are in this area, I highly recommend stopping here. Every wall that can be covered with books, is covered with books from floor to ceiling. It’s wonderful. There are books upstairs and downstairs, as well. The books are reasonably priced and the guy working at the time (owner possibly?) was very helpful. The only thing I wish for was more time to browse. Would stop here again.

Outstanding — the epitome of what a serious scholarly bookstore should be like! Wish I lived here to frequent it more regularly.

You’ll never experience a more interesting bookstore. If you want to grab and go (‘though I wouldn’t recommend it), ask Sandy, the owner, where your book is located. He’ll know and gladly tell you, and probably engage you in a discussion about or add a critique of the book. For a fuller experience, set aside some extended time and just wander through the maze. You’ll find things that you never knew existed and that you never knew you absolutely had to have! You will quickly become a «friend of Sandy» and will be remembered and greeted upon your next arrival. This shop has earned a place on the «things to do in Charlottesville» list.

Unbelievable bookstore. Sure I maybe thought once or twice I’d fall down the stairs or something but this place has character, much like books that line the walls. There are so many nooks and crannies that you really could stay here for hours just browsing.
Sandy knew the location of every book that I inquired about. Even one that was like downstairs, make a right, bottom shelf from the left — how specific is that?
The kicker was that he gave my friend a vintage dictionary, and I got a travel novel. Wish I could come back here!

I have been going to bookstores across the world for as long as I can remember and I invariably find myself comparing them back to Daedalus. It’s a chaotic, haphazardly stacked, and shockingly well organized bookshop that leads every customer on something of a journey each time you go in. The owner Sandy is a wonderful guy and will always make you feel welcome, whether it’s your first time or you’re a regular. I make it a point to come here when I come to Charlottesville, and you should too.

Daedalus is one of those places where diligence and a healthy dose of curiosity often uncover a treasure. Digging through the shelves is rewarded — I found a rare edition of a companion to an exhibit on art of the plague that I had only ever found in academic libraries, and I think I paid $ 15 for it. You have to hunt. Be prepared for the must of old books, winding staircases, nooks and crannies filled with books, and the definite feeling of a labyrinth. Bring an inhaler and handkerchief if dust triggers your allergies or asthma. Don’t be afraid of the basement or the attic. The random Civil War treasures up there can often surprise. You’re not likely to find glossy new imprints of anything. Academic books are hit and miss — and when you hit, you really hit. But half the joy is in the search here, and that’s what makes Daedalus a unique place. It strikes me as quintessentially Charlottesville, and it’s a thing you have to see if you’re a bibliophile and you’re in town.

While visiting, I had a brief conversation with the owner, Sandy, about a book he’d read that related to one I was buying. They didn’t have a copy in stock, which was fine, and that was that. A few weeks later, I unexpectedly received the book in the mail, free of charge.
A touching experience and a wonderful store.

Just perplexed at these positive reviews for this mess of a bookshop. Sure, there are lots of books, but most are shoddy and all are marked up way above any reasonable value. The place is filthy. And the quality of service? Wow. Disturbing, for example, to hear vulgar banter between the presiding clerk and a visiting «friend,» but the clerk wasn’t troubled at all, having decided that the customers (and several young children) were invisible. Shocking conduct inside a business. Wouldn’t go into this dump again if it were the last bookstore in Virginia.

This is the kind of bookstore you go to because you want a little bit of adventure, the chance to find some great deals or a great old copy of your favorite book. Definitely my favorite place, and it is at least a must see for the ambience and the sheer volume of books that can be safely packed into one place.

I don’t understand the point of having a shop in this condition. I couldn’t buy anything from a shop that is this filthy. I would be too worried about silver fish, mange, and black mold.

I was afraid to pull out any book for fear of toppling over the entire building! If bookstores are measured by the sheer density of books per square foot, and by the precariousness of the pathways through them, then store is by far the best one that I’ve ever visited. Some of the hallways require turning sideways, or bending yourself like a pretzel. A very nice man was there to help me with anything I needed.
So much to look at, I was in a room for a good 15 minutes before realizing it was ‘employees only’.
Watch your step down those stairs!

My absolute favorite bookshop. My daughter and I are fairly new customers but we definitely have the same impression of the owner (and the store) as many other reviewers on here. It really is an adventure. I’m proud to say my daughter has a few books with Sandy’s autograph:).

The absolute best bookstore on the face of the Earth. Sandy is indeed ‘the man,’ a very sweet man who will be happy to dole out wisdom, book recommendations, and general adventure. I always go in here looking for one thing and come out with seven more things. I have spent hours in here at a time. If I could put a bed in the basement and move in tomorrow, I would.

What everyone else said. It’s a great place if you like books or being mildly scared in basements.

I love just sitting in a musty corner and soaking up all the incredible energy produced by books that have been loved and set free again. Don’t miss the pulp science fiction books right inside the door, and try to get yourself as lost as possible in the basement. I think I always bug people by hanging out too long checking out the titles in the stairwell. No matter what, I always leave feeling like I’ve had an adventure.

This is truly a memorable bookstore, both for its voluminous holdings and also because of the owner, the talkative, clever Sandy MacAdams. Sandy’s a bit of a storyteller, and he has a narrative gift of his own, so it’s a shame he never had the notion to set pen to paper as a writer. Now sixty-​ish, he has led an interesting life and has met many fascinating people, so, although not in the best health, he soldiers ahead and makes new friends who chance upon his shop and entertains old friends who drop by to visit.
The store itself is a wonder: it’s my favorite small to mid-​sized bookstore in the U.S., next to the now defunct Wahrenbrock’s Book House in San Diego, California. That store was really a marvel, but it expired after suffering badly from many of the same market forces that are attacking scores of small booksellers. However, thankfully, Daedalus is still going strong. Many different sorts of publications enter Daedalus, and they are priced very fairly and put out on the shelves. As I know the owner and have been coming for years, I often get a first look at the incoming books and have found some very interesting items over time. The «catacombs» in the basement are both gloriously creepy but also a real atmospheric treasure hunt for those who love fiction, classics and the paranormal (all of which are down there). I carried off several Arthur Machen (celebrated early 20^th century Welsh horror writer) books, first or 2^nd printings, from there one gloomy day, which was both quite a find and also very fitting. But, lest you think it’s all gothic, dark material in the shop, that’s hardly the case but just how my tastes run on occasion. There’s plenty of, well, everything: science fiction, history, law, westerns, mysteries (an entire room in the attic), Civil War books, social sciences, etc.
So, really, why are you sitting here reading this, when you could be there?

Musty Books? Check
Basement where the undead live? Check
Unkept Store Keeper? Check
Shelves of First Editions and Old Books to Puruse? Check Check.
Finding a new-​old read for a few bucks? Well, thats the point isn’t it?

Among the best used bookstores I’ve encountered as a lover and purchaser of books.
However, for selling and trading used books, it’s among the worst. On numerous occasions I’ve been offered cents, i.e., less than $ 1.00, for a new release hard cover that I’ve subsequently sold for dollars at other used bookstores in Cville.