For bookworms, Carrboro has tasty apples
By Allison Parker
Staff writer
Commons Photo by Allison Parker
U.S. History, Women’s studies, Wicca, Paganism. Only in a bookstore can you find this much diversity in one place. From Nice Price Books to the PTA Thrift Shop, Carrboro satisfies even the most eccentric reading desires.
PTA Thrift Shop
Walking through PTA Thrift Shop in Carrboro, I come across a man in a corner, meticulously comparing Russian book titles on paper with their English counterparts on the shelf.
“I like to read but this is my profession,” said George Rubinstein, resident of Chapel Hill. “I buy English books and compare Russian and English languages.”
He said the differences in the ways people communicate fascinate him. “I like to see how ideas are rendered in other languages.”
Rubinstein, originally from Ukraine, moved to Monterey, Calif., where he taught Russian at the Advanced Language Institute. “It’s the largest language school in the world,” he said.
Although Rubinstein said he loved the cool ocean weather in California, he moved to Chapel Hill in 1999. “My son is a professor at UNC-Chapel Hill, so he wanted me to move here so I could be closer to him,” he said.
Rubinstein pursued his love of language at the University. “When I came here, I got in touch with the UNC Department of Slavic Languages,” he said. “I’m working in Cognitive Lingustics, which is the way we shape our thoughts through language.”
Kevin Smith, resident of Mebane, is a frequent book shopper at PTA Thrift Shop. “I come here for the variety and low cost,” he said. “I never feel guilty about paying 25 cents for a book.”
While classics and spiritual books interest him, Smith said he has also purchased textbooks for school at the store. “I’ve saved about $120 buying textbooks from here.”
The PTA Thrift Shop has a half-price book sale on Mondays during the month of April. Hardbacks are two dollars, trade paperbacks are $1.50 and pocket paperbacks are 50 cents.
Regardless of your interests and budget, Carrboro has plenty for every book lover to choose from.
Nice Price Books
It is 9:45 in the morning, and Crayton Wanders waits patiently outside of Nice Price Books in Carrboro.
“We open at ten,” he said. “If you stick around, you can talk to someone who works here in about ten minutes.”
Wanders has been a faithful employee at Nice Price Books in Carrboro for nine years. “I’m an errand boy and do maintenance stuff for the store,” he said.
Wanders said he loves to read and listen to music. “I mainly stick with Robert Frost, Dylan Thomas and W.B. Yeats,” he said.
The friendly people at Nice Price Books keep Wanders around. “I work here because it’s such a friendly atmosphere,” he said.
The Book Market
Located in a cozy corner of Carr Mill Mall in Carrboro, The Book Market is an independently-owned bookstore that has been around for 20 years.
From general fiction to classics, romances to cookbooks, the store has something to satisfy all reading tastes. Although The Book Market is a used bookstore, they also sell new books by local authors. The store is unique in that it supports these local authors and sells artwork by local artists.
