Inside the largest used bookstore in Washington state the earthy smell of paper wafts through the tall bookshelves crammed with about half a million titles. For nearly 40 years the Tacoma Book Center has stood in the Dome District, quietly open seven days a week.
The book market has thinned over the decades, but co-owner James David Killian (known by many as “Dave”) said it’s hard to keep some classic literature, science fiction and mysteries on the shelves.
As the used-book store celebrates 40 years open next year, Killian spoke with The News Tribune about reading physical books in the era of AI and showed us some of the rarest books in stock, kept behind a glass case at the register.
Killian bought the building at 324 E. 26th St. in the late 1980s. Built in 1912, it was once the site of a grocery and dry goods store, then a creamery. The Tacoma Book Center operated out of another location on 9th and Pacific Avenue for about six years prior to moving to 26th, Killian said. A building across the street stores even more books…