A Visit to The Book Barn

As used bookstores go, Rodgers Book Barn might not have the instant name recognition of, say, The Strand, but what it lacks in branded tote bags it more than makes up for in charm. Located three hours north of Manhattan in Hillsdale, New York—a town that’s at least as bucolic as its name suggests—the Book Barn does not, it’s safe to say, rely on foot traffic to drive sales. Indeed, part of the fun of a visit is in finding the place at all; in this way, it’s a bit like those trendy restaurants and cocktail bars in new York that don’t list their phone numbers, though that’s surely where the similarities end. In order to get there, you have to pass through Hillsdale’s town center, turn left at a horse farm—blink and you’ll miss the unprepossessing sign that says “Book Barn-4 miles”—and continue down a winding, heavily-wooded road until you’re absolutely sure you’ve made a wrong turn. Then, suddenly, there it is: a ramshackle old building tucked into a leafy clearing.

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