Bell's Books
Owners: The Bell Family
Founded: 1935
“Recent seismically proportioned shifts in the world of bookselling have raised questions about the relevance of brick and mortar bookstores in the environment of Silicon Valley, but, if you, like us, enjoy real books in the real world; holding volumes that feel good, smell good, and are a pleasure to the eye and the hand, then join us joyfully in the knowledge that at Bell’s you can be physically surrounded by the works of the best minds of all time.”
- Bell’s Books
THE STORY:
Before it was known as Bell’s Books, this book shop started as “The College Book Company.” A 24 year old named Herbert Bell moved from Los Angeles in 1935 to start Stanford’s first University bookshop with David Lawyer. Turned out, they could not make a profit off of students. Lawyer sold the shop to Bell, who later said “… so he sold it for a song, and I bought it for a song, and I went singing my way into poverty, and lived on hamburgers for some time.”
After several relocations, and hosting book drives for soldiers during W.W.II, the book shop finally found its permanent home on 536 Emerson Street in 1950. When threatened with legal action to move out of their Hamilton location by midnight, and with the help of a few strangers and employee Barbara Worl, who even suffered a back injury from the move, they were able to transfer carts of books from Hamilton St. to Emerson before midnight.
In 1953 the store acquired the name “Bell’s College Book Shop” and members of the Bell Family have been caring for the store ever since.
For more history of Bell’s Books, visit their website below.
Bell’s Books sits in the heart of Stanford’s College Town, Palo Alto. The neighborhood maintains an antique character and old charm despite its proximity to Sillicon Valley: and what better oasis from the digital world than a bookstore with soaring ceilings and plush leather reading chairs?
It was December 2017, my sophomore year of college. My brother played on USC’s football team, and they had made it to the Pac-12 Championship in Santa Clara against Stanford. Jake and his roommates decided to make a road trip out of it, where we would stay at Daniel’s Uncle’s House in Palo Alto. They picked me up in a red SUV outside my dorm building on McCarthy way at 6:00 AM and I had made the grave mistake of going out the night before. We were woken up on the grape vine by Daniel’s horrendous swerving, which did not help my uneasy stomach. Nevertheless, we made it to the Bay and our first pit stop was In N Out right right next to the Santa Clara Stadium. USC lost but it was an exciting game and Christian Mcaffrey carried most of Stanford’s yards. Afterwards, we ate too much spaghetti and meatballs at Bucca de Peppo, as one does. I was exhausted and it was too dark to capture the character of Palo Alto as we drove the winding streets to the house.
It was a whirlwind trip, we were heading back the next morning. I had my own private room on the top floor, a type of renovated attic space with a low, pointed ceiling and a very comfortable white bed. I woke up before all the boys and decided to walk into town for a coffee. The streets were orange and yellow with fallen leaves, the closest thing fall you get to see in California. The town itself was picturesque, beautiful homes and roads that felt exclusive from the city. I happened to stumble upon Bell’s Books just as they were opening. I must have been the day’s first visitor. I strolled around, admiring the heights at which the books lived and the ladders lining the tall shelves and white balcony. The shelves were decorated with tinsel and red, shiny ornaments for the Christmas season. I lost track of the time, but I was wandering for a while because when I got back the boys were packed and ready to take off without me. I was happy to have found my own little oasis- one, in my mind, that trumped any football game.
NOTABLE SECTIONS:
Signed first editions including works signed by Robert Frost, William Somerset Maugham, Eudora Welty, Presidents Carter and Nixon, Kurt Vonnegut, John Updike, Margaret Atwood, Ruth Rendell, John Cheever, T.C. Boyle, Raymond Carver.
And collection of horticultural books, one of the legacies of Barbara Worl, a rosarian and activist who involved Bell’s Books in multiple garden shows.
CAFE’S & RESTAURANTS NEAR BY:
Mademoiselle Collette: a quaint coffee shop with a simple design and delicious latte.
Used Books: ✓
Rare Books: ✓
Cafe: ✕
Wifi: ✕
Pets: ✓