Montclair Book Center

I stopped in here with my husband the other day on one of our weekly foot-cruises around Montclair and couldn't believe the size of this place once we passed through its tiny storefront.

Literally, books as far as the eye could see. Upstairs, downstairs, through doors, down hallways - this place is a labyrinth of books, records, and other random odds and ends.

Given its size, you can only imagine the selection available here. But, in the rare case that you can't find the book you want - don't worry - the super friendly staff is ready and willing to help. They're even helpful if you don't know exactly what it is you're looking for! My husband and I were looking for a book of spiritual quote (from the Buddha and the like). The shop employee said he didn't know of a book like that, but they had an encyclopedia of quotes in the dictionary section. I'm sure if we knew the name of a book like the one we were looking for he would have ordered it in for us.

The books are all kept in pretty good shape, well sorted and the like, and the sections are organized in a common-sense manner. Their prices are pretty decent, too. Definitely worth shelling out an extra buck or two to support a local business instead of getting it cheaper on Amazon (boooo!).

Also, if you love the look of old bound books, they have a pretty hefty selection near the back of the second floor.

The whole place just gives you that wonderful "Belle in the Library" kind of feeling (ladies, you know what I'm talking about).

Beautiful nostalgic store with an extensive collection of books and records. Really extensive. I've been lost in the stacks for weeks. I've been surviving by eating pictures of food torn from cookbooks. Sometimes staff ask if they can help me, but I tell them no. I live here now.

Try the staff picks!

Maybe being outdated is part of the charm. But they rarely have in stock what I'm exactly looking for. It's more of a on a whim shopping option.

With that said, they'll buy a bunch of books from you and offer measly store credit at a fraction of what they're worth. Eh. If anything I say check out the vinyls downstairs.

My favorite book and record place! Literally aisles and aisles of records and books. As well as old tapes and cds. I haven't been to a cooler record store

Love classic book stores and vinyl. Staff was real cool. If you enjoy reading the classics, this is a good place to get your fix.

Cute book and record shop in Montclair. Great place to spend a couple of hours, just browsing the copious amounts of records and books. It gives the perfect independent bookstore vibe - wooden shelves lined with thousands of books ranging across every topic imaginable. The staff were also friendly and helpful. I wish some of the records were organized a bit better, though. And I do agree with other reviewers that the store feels outdated, but I don't think that's always a bad thing. It's the kind of store where you browse comfortably for a little while, not find exactly something you're looking for.

I have known about this bookstore for years. Wonderful place to spend hours looking through the stacks of books. They have new and used books. Very good prices on both. They even give good discounts on brand new books. The store seems endless as you walk from the front all the way to the back. You have to go up some stairs and then you get to even a larger section of books

In the last five years or so they've also gotten a section for Records upstairs. The prices vary. Some of them are good and some of them seem a little overpriced. But if you go down to the basement. That's another huge section. They have country/folk/classical/Jazz/comedy/soundtracks. Plus DVDs and CDs

If you keep walking all the way to the back of the basement. There's a section for Records for $2.99

I found a John Hiatt album that I've never seen before. Plus a bunch of other good records

Found Abbott and Costello five comedy routines for eight dollars. Old time radio's greatest shows 60 cassettes for only $2.99. An excellent bargain

I brought them up when I saw the cashier. "The gray-haired man" this is the individual that some other reviewer's have said was very rude to them. I put up the records and he started running them through the price scanner. I decided to try to be friendly to see how he would react. I said "so many wonderful books here and Records also you could spend hours" he smiled and continued his work. Instead of sliding my card into the card reader he said your card might be able to be just held above the scanner. So I didn't do that. He was nice and gave me a, a reusable bag that everything fit into. He thanked me and smiled. But he seemed a little uptight anyway. Kind of like he was forcing himself to be friendly.

Maybe he was just a little tired as it was early in the morning when I went there just after noon and they open at 11 AM. He probably had a lot of other work to do.

Definitely recommend coming here. You'll just go home with a lot of books and some records

This is a beautiful old bookstore. It's very nostalgic. I could have spent hours just looking around.

The Montclair Book Center is what all local book shops should strive to be. They have a massive book selection and even better, they have the largest collection of records/vinyl to sort through as well. I love how nostalgic and lovely this store is, you could easily spend your whole afternoon/evening here and just browse.

Was waiting for my food order so decided to stop on this bookstore. It made my heart sigh. This store reminds me of the ones I used to go to back "in the day". Warm, worn wooden shelves, and staff that are ready to help but won't interrupt, especially if you have fallen into a book that has reached out and grabbed you. The top shelves are filled with hardcovers (ask for assistance please) and the lower ones are filled with paperbacks. I picked up a couple of books that caught me and plan on reading them this weekend as we are expecting some winter weather. I have been raving about this place to my friends and they will now be taking a trip to a store that lets you get lost in a good book. Let the road take you-who knows what you will fine among the stacks?

MBC is the stuff dreams are made of for a good book lover. It's one huge library expanding across the whole store and up and down flight of stairs, into mini mystery nooks. It's really a gem.

Parking can be difficult, it's right off the main road so I usually park a few blocks away and walk. Plus no meter fees.

I've never had a bad experience with the workers here, I've also never tried to sell any books and I feel like that's where some of their negative reviews come in. I'm always greeted with a smile and they're super attentive and helpful if you need help finding something.

It's pretty easy to navigate the store, you just have to follow the signs and pay attention to their awesome hand made clues. You can tell they've put their heart and soul into making this book store what it is.

Now I understand that some people say the prices and a little high. They're definitely still cheaper than if you went to Barnes and Noble, play the books are in excellent shape. I know there's cheaper websites online but there's those days where you just feel like walking aimlessly through MBC and finding a good book. Even if that means paying a few extra dollars, it's also helping out their business which I hope stays here forever.