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Initially known as The College Book Company, Bell\u2019s Books is now in its 90th year and going strong. No longer geared exclusively toward college students, the shop at 536 Emerson St. is now filled with literary treasures for run-of-the-mill bookworms and hardcore collectors alike. These include first editions of \u201cThe Hobbit\u201d and other rare works from the J.R. Tolkien cannon; 30 signed first editions of John Steinbeck books signed by John Steinbeck; and a copy of Lewis Carrol\u2019s \u201cAlice\u2019s Adventures in Wonderland\u201d signed by Alice Liddell, a girl whom Carroll had befriended and who is seen by some as a model for the protagonist.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe just sold a book signed by Nikola Tesla,\u201d Faith Bell said in a recent interview.<\/p>\n
The shop has changed in many ways since the early days, when Herbert Bell peddled books to students cycling past the store\u2019s initial location near University Circle. It has moved four times, Bell said, and it has witnessed changes in consumer habits. When she arrived at the family store in the 1980s, people were browsing books on VW repairs and plumbing. As Silicon Valley developed into a tech Mecca, more customers began to seek out books relating to computers and programming.<\/p>\n
Some things, however, have remained the same. Grandmothers continue to stop by Bell\u2019s Books to buy books for their little ones, just as they had in the earlier days. And while the store has specialized in collectibles and antiquarian books for many years, its interest in these rare works has only gotten stronger over the years.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have some pretty astonishing collectives that have come in, and we have developed a really knowledgeable clientele in that realm,\u201d Bell said.<\/p>\n
On Saturday afternoon, Bell\u2019s Books will celebrate its 90 years in business with a special event featuring local authors; letterpresses where visitors will be able to print their own bookmarks; and a curated display featuring 90 of the store\u2019s finest books. The list includes the first edition of Tolkien\u2019s first book, a signed first edition of Steinbeck\u2019s \u201cThe Grapes of Wrath\u201d and a signed edition of \u201cThe Souls of Black Folks\u201d by W.E.B. du Bois.<\/p>\n
Contemporary authors with local connections will also be on hand to sign books. The list of authors includes C. Townsend Brady, author of\u00a0\u201cMastering Classic Cocktails,\u201d Alison Carpenter Davis,\u00a0author of \u201cLetters Home from Stanford,\u201d Miriam Kurtzig Freedman,\u00a0author of \u201cBoxes from the Attic: An Immigrant\u2019s Story,\u201d and Rajesh Oza, author of\u00a0\u201cDouble-Play on the Red Line.\u201d<\/p>\n
The event will be held from 2 to 6 p.m. on Oct. 18 at 536 Emerson St. The store will be open during these times, offering visitors a chance to peruse the roughly 350,000 books in its inventory.<\/p>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Bells-Books.jpg\")
Kristen Frazier and her sons Nathan, left, Alex, front center, and Tim, back center, look through books by Roald Dahl and other authors while shopping at Bell\u2019s Books in Palo Alto on November 25, 2014. Photo by Veronica Weber<\/p>\n