With a catalog that boasts somewhere between 250,00 and 500,000 volumes, a trip to Renaissance's downtown location can be a bit intimidating at first. The pitched, scuffed hardwood floors have seen better days, and large chunks of chipped white paint are falling from the rusted tin ceiling of the old storefront. Both add to the bookstore's charming personality and your transcending shopping experience. While towering bookshelves engulf you overhead, you'll find the selection and organization quite impressive. Variety brings in a variety of people.
People walk in and are in awe.
We beat some libraries in terms of what we've got. A gander at the south wing of the second floor revealed the largest collection of used paperbacks I have ever seen together in one place at one time. Fiction, science fiction, westerns, true crime. You name it, chances are they've got it. A downtown staple since 1976, Renaissance Books still contains an element of mystery for some.