Phinney Books

Phinney Books is a great little independent bookstore located in the Phinney Ridge neighborhood. The presentation of the books is concise, clear and clean. The selection is impressive and the staff are helpful and kind. They do special orders which is awesome too!

This is the cutest neighborhood bookstore in North Seattle!
The employees have excellent customer service and are happy to order books that they don’t have in stock. Really sweet spot for gifts… for yourself and others ;)

Shopping local? Adore independent bookstores? Yes and Yes! So glad to have found this small gem of a bookstore while visiting friends who live in the Phinney Ridge area. This is the kind of bookstore where you will stop in, and spend lovely minutes browsing the shelves, admiring the selection of interesting books on subjects you might not even have realized you were interested in. And of course, you WILL buy something before you leave. A crazy card? A paperback? A must-​have forever hardback? Yes, because you want to support independent bookstores, of which this is one! Enjoy.

Bookstore pleasures largely come from a well-​curated, decently priced selection of used books. Phinney Books merely has a small selection of new volumes. It may be local and strive to have its own personality, but it only offers the same books you could find at a large Barnes and Noble for the same prices.

Phinney Books has become my favorite bookstore in all of Seattle. It manages to turn what, to another bookstore, would be a big problem into a big plus. This is what I mean: it is a small bookstore. I could fit this bookstore inside the coffee shop of a Barnes and Noble.
But that limit in space lets you see how amazingly curated their limited selection is. When I browse a shelf in a section, invariably I find an author or a title that suits me. Another shelf, another title or maybe 3. There is a density of quality titles that I’ve never seen in another bookshop.
If you know what book you want, this store might not be the best place for that shopping trip. Certainly they have the big releases when they come out as all bookstores do. But if you are open to the experience of browsing, this is a superb place to discover gems that you wouldn’t find elsewhere.
The place has a nice charm and the staff are very friendly. And the area has charming shops and restaurants to visit after you’re done with your book purchase. I can’t recommend this bookstore highly enough!

I was out for a stroll when I nearly missed this wonderful store. I had the headphones blasting some Tom Waits and I was in the zone…
When I walked in I noticed a small section with stationary and thank you cards, a must for any bookstore in my opinion. Whoever does the buying there does an excellent job from the inventory on display; well done.
As for books, the sections are packed with plenty to read, and you will be surprised how much they do have on hand in such a tiny shop. The layout is inviting and warm. I grabbed a couple children’s books and then saw a copy of a new cookbook from one of my most favorite places to eat in the world, PRUNE! It was on display and highly recommended by the Staff Pick card located in plain view. I had to have it, this book contains a recipe I have wanted for years and it’s now mine!!!
Really the place had a Meg Ryan-​Shop Around the Corner vibe to it and having seen «You’ve Got Mail» a large number of times, well that is a big compliment.
Wonderful store, I will be back.

I contacted Phinney Books about getting an author signed copy of a rare book. They did not have the book in stock, but were willing to try and obtain a copy. In practically no time they contacted me that they had the book, the author would sign it, and it would be mailed to me. I have the ‘With Her Body’ by Nicola Griffith and am very impressed with the service I received that made this possible.

Phinney Books has been open since June 2014. Hurray for another independent neighborhood bookstore!
Drives me nuts that there is not one independent bookstore in Shoreline. One has to drive to Seattle, Edmonds or Lake Forest Park instead!
It’s pathetic (mea culpa) that I’m always driving to/​from the Greenwood and Phinney Ridge neighborhoods, and for the first time stopped in!
Despite the pouring rain, I managed to have parking karma a block away. The really nice bookseller behind the counter, presumably the local owner, kindly helped me out.
Normally I’d be lolly gagging staring at book titles, but on a tight schedule I was in strategic shopper mode. Lucked out that the particular book set intended for a holiday gift was in stock and was in/​out in under five minutes. That’s the ultimate in customer service — knowing your book title inventory!
Excellent find! This bibliophile will have to make sure to slow down, pull over, and stay awhile!

Love Phinney Books! Not only do they have a wide selection of different genres and authors, but also a great children’s area. Couple that with the nifty gifts, cards, and other fun goodies (Glittersweet bags!) and this is a win for the neighborhood. Of course, its close proximity is dangerous for a bibliophile like myself, but such is life for my sagging bookshelves.