Good-looking NYC bookstore merch

I clicked through 100s of options so you don't have to.

I love a good bookstore tote bag. As I’ve said before, I don’t carry bags that don’t fit books and totes from bookstores are expressly designed to do that. It’s also a great way to rep the bookstores I frequent (I have four from McNally Jackson alone) and let the world know that I don’t shop for books on Am*zon. With that said, some bookstore merch is just not that great. But some of it is very good. Below, the good stuff, pulled from longstanding New York institutions and cool, niche bookshops both. I also included a list of cool bookstores I came across that don’t have merch available but still felt like a worthwhile visit. Onto the post!

A tote from MoMA PS1’s Artbook store I should’ve bought because now it’s on backorder with no restock date in sight.

Tote Bags

1. CFF the/For Tote, $18 • The Center for Fiction, 15 Lafayette Ave.

   If I saw someone carrying this I would immediately think they had good taste.

2. 192 Books Tote Bag, $15 • 192 Books, 192 10th Ave.

   This is my most recent tote bag acquisition, picked up on a book date with two very cool founders. I like that it’s simple, to the point, and comes in a very, very dark blue.

3. "Is this 53rd, hon?” Tote, $6 • Dashwood Books, 33 Bond St.

   Designed by Lucinda Rogers for photography bookstore, Dashwood Books, this very-cheap tote has a cool free-at-an-art-fair vibe.

4. New York’s Best Tote Bag, $20 • Sweet Pickle Books, 47 Orchard St.

   I don’t know that I’d call this New York’s Best Tote Bag, but it’s pretty good. The Lower East Side bookstore gives out pickles in exchange for book donations and has very nice-looking merch.

5. Books is Power, $40 • Printed Matter, 231 11th Ave. or 38 St. Marks Pl.

   Immediate add to cart.

6. Read Good Books Tote, $11 • P&T Knitwear, 180 Orchard St.

   Words to live by!

1. Argosy Tote Bag, $20 • Argosy Bookstore, 116 East 59th St.

   There’s something very fancy, schmancy about carrying around an Argosy tote—the bookstore mainly sells old and rare books.

2. Lofty Pigeon Coo Crew Tote Bag, $20 • Lofty Pigeon Books, 743 Church Ave.

   How freaking cute is the “coo crew”?

3. NYPL Winnie-the-Pooh Kids Mini Tote Bag, $18 • New York Public Library, Branch Finder

   A cool-looking kids tote from the best bookstore in the city—the New York Public Library.

4. Mast Books Tote Bag, $20 • Mast Books, 72 Avenue A.

   A very IYKYK-type tote.

5. Rizzoli Logo Tote Bag, $25 • Rizzoli Bookstore, 1133 Broadway.

   I worked in Flatiron for three years so I walked by Rizzoli all the time. It’s one of my favorite bookstores in the city and has an abundance of art books to sift through.

T-shirts

1. Books Are Magic Pumped Tee • Books Are Magic, 225 Smith St. or 122 Montague St.

   A play on the classic Gold’s Gym merch from the defacto cool neighborhood bookstore.

2. A Home For The People Shirt • 1804 Books, 20 W 37th Street.

   A commemorative t-shirt from a community, not-for-profit bookstore and independent press.

3. Vintage 8 Miles of Books Shirts • The Strand, 828 Broadway or 450 Columbus Ave.

   This looks like it could’ve been made in 1987 (complimentary).

4. PT Shirt Yellow Softcover • P&T Knitwear, 180 Orchard St.

   There’s a “hardcover” one too but it’s not as cute. There’s a hat version, too.

1. Yu & Me T-Shirt • Yu & Me, 44 Mulberry St.

   Elite bookish t-shirt!

2. Casa Magazines Tee • Casa Magazines, 22 8th Ave.

   Technically a magazine store but those can be considered literature too. I say it counts.

3. Better Read Than Dead T-Shirt • Better Read Than Dead, 90 Kosciuszko Street.

   Designed by artist and musician Sam Ryser for a used bookstore in Bed Stuy. And there’s a tote bag version too.

4. Word Up Bookcart T-Shirt • Word Up Books, 2113 Amsterdam Avenue.

   I’m a fan of the stacked books look and like that it comes in three different colors. Black, pictured, is my favorite.

5. Archestratus x Daniel Zender T-Shirt • Archestratus, 164 Huron St.

   Not pictured, but cool nonetheless. This tee, from Greenpoint food and bookstore, Archestratus, has a cool Hellenic vibe. There’s also a tote version I like a lot.

Stickers! Caps! Etc.!

1.Topos Hat, $28 • Topos Bookstore, 788 Woodward Ave. / 2. Karma Books Baseball Cap, $35 • Karma Bookstore, 136 E. 3rd St. / 3. The Ripped Bodice Toile Stickers, from $3.50 • Ripped Bodice, 218 5th Ave. / 4. Lofty Pigeon Coo Crew Sticker, $3 / 5. NYPL Coffee Cup Sticker, $5 / 6. Rizzoli Magnet Serliana, $4.95.

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Other cool-ass bookshops without merch

Mil Mundo, 323 Linden St.

The Word Is Change, 368 Tompkins Ave.

The Mysterious Bookshop, 58 Warren St.

Molasses Books, 770 Hart St. (The merch is insanely cool but very sold out)

Taylor & Co. Books, 1021 Cortelyou Rd.

Kew & Willow Bookshop, 81-63 Lefferts Blvd.

Astoria Bookshop, 36-19 30th St.

That’s all from me! Until next time.