Books Inc.

Books Inc. traces its roots to the California Gold Rush era, making it the oldest independent bookseller on the West Coast and one of the oldest in the nation. The Palo Alto location in the charming Town & Country Village shopping center captures the best of the chain's community-centered approach, with a knowledgeable staff that knows its regular customers by name and a selection tailored to the Stanford-adjacent community's wide-ranging interests. The children's department is a standout, with dedicated staff who match young readers with books that spark lifelong reading habits, and the weekly story times draw families from across the peninsula. The science and business sections reflect Palo Alto's unique position at the intersection of academia and industry. The open, well-lit layout makes browsing a pleasure, and the store's location in a walkable outdoor shopping center means that a visit to Books Inc. is often part of a longer afternoon of errands and leisure that defines the pleasant pace of peninsula life.