Awesome Books

Three stars: Hooray for local business! Hooray for books! Hooray for great artwork & atmosphere!
I will say that the [I’m sure he’s nice, but must’ve been REALLY tired] clerk was less impressive than the atmosphere, and ignored myself and my guest until we opened the door to leave; then asked if we were looking for anything in particular. Nice effort, but a little late. No offense taken — it was just strange.
I also appreciate that the pricing you get on Amazon isn’t going to be the same in a local bookshop. I expect that. I don’t expect to pay near-​market value for used books though; often the case as I noticed at AB.
So many great independent bookshops in the area, but I was hoping this would give me a fix during the work day. We’ll see — I’ll try anything thrice!

This place rocks, and it’s fully of amazing finds — but I have to be careful about how long I spend in there due to the cats. This would absolutely be a five-​star place for me if not for my cat allergy, which always forces me to browse for less time than I’d like. Still, I rarely go home empty-​handed when I visit.

Always an interesting selection of fiction. Not an overly large selection, but it seems to rotate with regularity, and you won’t have trouble finding some interesting titles and authors.
Cool setup, kind of has a retro vibe thing going on. And there are cats walking all over the place.
There is a mix of new and used on the shelves. The used prices are a little steeper than some of the other used book stores in Pittsburgh.

Nice little book store. Felt good supporting local business, especially books. Noticed the «woodsy» book smell while browsing, or was that incense. I picked Sherlock Holmes and Girl W/​Played w/​Fire.

The first thing I noticed walking up to Awesome Books was the unique artwork outside in the small lot next to the building. I stood out there for a second or two while two other people took some pictures. Then when you enter the store, you walk into a warm atmosphere full of thousands and thousands of books.
They do a good job of getting a large amount of material in a small space without having it feel overcrowded at all. The most unique part of the store is the three cats lazily walking around, stretching out in the sun that shines through the front windows, or slyly rubbing up against your leg as you peruse through books. They seem to be very used to people and just do their own thing as people come and go.
The book I bought was on the hunting adventures of Teddy Roosevelt, written by him, and I don’t think I’d find that too many other places. There were many other books I would read in a heartbeat, but limited myself to just one. It will definitely become a go-​to place as I plan to frequent it more often from now on.

If you had a friend with a carefully curated library of books, their selection might look a lot like the shelves of Awesome Books. Instead of being the «everything under one roof» kind of bookstore, it’s the very best books of a very specific kind — thoughtful, literary, cultured (high and low), with a sense of humor and a cup of tea if you want. There’s Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters next to Alice Walker — my kind of place exactly. The prices are higher than at other used bookstores, but when you find unexpectedly great books one after another, paying for quality seems worth it.

Wow, did Awesome Books get the name right! I walked in tonight with some friends – on the coldest day of winter yet – and the clerk immediately asked if we’d like some hot tea, free of charge. Obviously, we said yes, and were given about 10 options of tea. It was a fantastic bit of customer service you just don’t get very often anymore.
The books vary from recent paperback editions to antiques. I found copies of two of my favorite novels from 1930’s printings, in near perfect condition with gorgeous illustrations… For only $ 10 a pop!
The largest section is obviously fiction, but it ranged from the complete stories of Peter Taylor to recent Jody Picoult to vintage copies of Eudora Welty. There was also a sizable poetry section, and sections for astronomy, philosophy, nature, memoir, etc. to cover the nonfiction bases. You can also get new issue of «Creative Nonfiction» and other small press finds.
We wandered around the store for nearly an hour and were just amazed with all of the great books packed into one tiny store! I’m very excited to visit the just opened Downtown branch on Liberty Avenue now.
Oh! And I almost forgot, we also all received bookmarks that we can bring into Oh Yeah! in Shadyside for a free coffee, which is just a cherry on top of a great experience.
NOTE: If you have cat allergies, you might want to take your Benadryl before entering because there are three feline companions to the store, who all adore attention. Also, the only available restroom is a Pittsburgh toilet in the basement, FYI.

Every time I am looking for a book to read Awesome Books is my first stop. This small used bookstore has a great selection and there are always a couple cats lounging around to pet while browsing. The owner is very friendly and can usually be found on the worn, comfy-​looking love seat reading or working on an art project. BONUS: With every purchase you receive a coupon for a free coffee at Oh Yeah! that also serves as a bookmark.
Awesome Books is definitely worth checking out before you order that book on amazon!