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Walking Manhattan

My sixth visit to New York was different from all the previous. I was free from work and decided to walk and walk and walk. And I walked for seven days and learned how to find old books.

A hot summer week in 2009. We stayed in an apartment at Upper East, just a few blocks from Central Park. Soon I realised that my 20-year-old son knew more about the town than I.

He told me that Lower East around Chinatown is the cool area. That’s where the artists and musicians hang around. 

I also learned that he has much more energy for nightlife. So, I went to bed when he got out, and got up when he came home. And I walked.

It rained that day I looked around for famous bookshops and antiquaries and learned another thing: Most of them don’t exist anymore. 

I found one in Upper East, on the third floor. The door was locked but the owner showed up, just when I was about to leave. 

He, a big, middle age smart dressed New Yorker asked where I came from and what I was doing in town. I told him I was there with my 20-year-old son. 

“You must be a good man”, he said. “I wouldn’t go anywhere with my son.”

“Why?”

“He smokes pot all nights and sleeps all days. He’s in the lost generation! I can’t stand him.”

I told him that I was looking for an early print of Kurt Vonnegut’s novel Slaughterhouse-Five.

“What? Are you insane? Still in the medieval time? You don’t walk around to find old books nowadays!”

He thought a while and said: “I will help you. Come on in.”

He locked up the door and invited me into the office. There were a lot of computers inside and two people working in front of computer screens. A huge amount of old maps were hanging on the wall that were dark.

The man presented me loudly:

“This good man comes from Sweden to look for books here. He is in deep shit since he’s traveling with his 20-year-old son. Give him all help he needs!”

His employees, a young man and woman, started to search for the book. They scanned the whole world and printed out a list of all available early prints of Slaughterhouse-Five.

“This is the way to do it”, the man said. “The International League of Antiquarian Booksellers – ILAB is the place. Absolutely reliable, best prices and accurate quality information on each copy – and usually quick deliveries! Stop do this walking!”  

He turned to the woman. “Help this good man out so he can take care of his son.”   

Finally an analog bookstore.

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