Argosy Book Store

My super peaceful place!
It can be a bit disorganized and messy, but if you take the time to really dig through, you can make some great finds!
Used and rare books. Multiple floors. They also have prints, maps and autographs.
Friendly staff.

Always passed by Argosy only to step in a few days ago. The selection of old autographs, maps, lithographs, and books is huge. The bookstore has lots of gems. The only downside is that the shop closes at 6pm, which is when most people get off work. It is open on Saturdays, though. We spoke with Sally who was very friendly and allowed us to peruse the categorized sections on the second floor. Can’t wait to explore the other floors.

Smells like heaven.

This is a fantastic used bookstore. It does not look like much from the outside but it actually has several floors. It is one of those stores where, when you go to the history section, the books are piled high up to the ceiling. They actually do a pretty good job of putting them in some semblance of order but be prepared to get dusty.
Also, if you like rare books, they have an excellent selection — or can find what you need.
The customer service can be spotty. But they will let you browse as long as you want.

This place is magical. Entering the store I get a sense of calm that is in complete contrast to the crazy streets outside, where people walk so close to you that if you were to stop, people literally crash into you. If this is a New York thing, then this place is an oasis from New York. I love the smell and feel of old books; it makes me dreamy and fall in love.
The people working there weren’t especially warm, though I wasn’t too surprised since I am in New York, but the fellow upstairs on the print floor was super sweet and as helpful as he could be. I was able to find two fantastic photographs of Miles Davis that I will treasure for the rest of my life. I can easily spend days there just roaming through their collection, which is obviously curated with good taste.

Have dealt with them in the past and my family has bought many books from them. I called to get a second opinion on a first edition book we had an offer from Baumann Rare Books on, when I mentioned that to the older woman buyer she said that «We wouldn’t be interested then» This is the second time I have spoken with her over the phone, she is very rude and condescending. I will never deal with them again!

The god-​awful customer service I had here today pissed me off enough to write a review.
Passing by just before closing, I saw they had some cheap books outside. I grabbed a few and went to check out. Unfortunately I didn’t have cash on me, but I noticed the «We accept AmEx» sign on the door so I figured I was good. Before I was even greeted, a snooty women quickly spurted out the price to me. I said OK, I don’t have cash but I can pay with my American Express. The woman behind the desk practically scolded me, saying that would be silly since they would be losing money on a small transaction. I offered to quickly run to the ATM next door and grab some cash — two minutes, tops. The woman snapped at me saying, NO we’re CLOSED. I put my books down and left.
I would think a small business would value their customers more than how I was treated today. Regardless if the company loses a dollar on my transaction, the goal should be to give the customer a positive experience, which would keep me coming back and spending money. But after this experience, I can say I’ll never want to spend a dime at this shop.

I was shocked to find an excellent used book store in midtown. The Strand is good but crowded. Argosy has a huge selection of history books and biographies — the 5^th Floor is a treasure — in excellent condition and fair prices. I stumbled across it while going to a meeting and will be coming back.

Amazing old books, maps and engravings

This was a memorably enjoyable experience, visiting Argosy Book Store as part of my friend’s old New York book store tour (Alabaster Books, his favorite now-​defunct Little West 12^th St Books, and others, even Housing Works included… any place with a «bookstore cat»… notice the absence of Idlewild, Spoonbill and Sugartown, East Village Bookstore, etc.) With old rare books outside my price range and huffy and reluctantly helpful middle aged female staff, Argosy boasts the rude personnel, narrowish shelves, old New Yorkers browsing, and stuffy book smell of a true New York bookstore.

Wandered in here on a book store quest. They have a very nice selection of books with a slant towards the art side. I would definitely use these guys as a resource if I was more of the artistic sort.

I will always be a book nerd at heart. Some say diamonds are a girl’s best friend, but for this gal, books are my best friend.
Books fill you with excitement, wonder and knowledge. You can also escape into a book. I love touching a book, feeling the pages on my finger tips and smelling the book. And nothing is better than the smell of an old book.
They specialize in old and rare books, including maps and prints. I wandered in here one afternoon while looking at all the sale books on the outside. Oh my, religion and philosophy and tons of psychology and the occult and very hard to find old soft covers.
I was in Heaven and I probably milled around here for about an hour. Downstairs, they also have an amazing selection of fiction, science, cooking, etc. And all the books are deeply discounted.
I walked out with 2 fabulous books for only $ 2! Barnes and Noble would be very jealous at the attention I am giving Argosy! I love you Argosy!

A wonderful, old fashioned, bookstore, filled with everything from $ 1 books to rare/​antique finds. They also have a huge print collection (mostly from old books) so it’s a great place to go if you are looking to decorate your walls.
The basement holds a huge selection of used books. It’s a little dangerous since I want to buy all of them.
The staff seemed pretty courteous, if not exactly friendly, and accomodating. Really a wonderful place to spend a few hours on a lazy, rainy afternoon.

Wonderful staff, amazing selection and genuine enthusiasm to help.
First off, let me say this review is a long time coming. And I am writing it because of the impending Father’s day. Last year nearing the same holiday I went into Argosy looking for books that my dad might like. His literature tends toward the unique, and as such it is tough to find a parallel to some of his favorite authors.
After genuinely being a pain-​in-​the-​ass customer for twenty minutes I spoke with someone on the second floor about his interests and authors he likes. Her eyes lit up and she led me to a book with a print by one of his favorite woodblock artists. The fact that this staff put up with my hemming and hawing so graciously speaks volumes.
The book was a hit. As a completionist, my dad was humbly surprised that there was something out there that he didn’t know about. He has already scheduled Argosy into his future visit to the city.
A fantastic experience.

I went into Argosy today for some holiday shopping. Everything in that store is a literary or historical gem. I kept getting distracted by incredibly old and beautiful books they have on display and their piles of prints and sheet music from at least a century ago. Not only is their collection massive, but the staff is so well-​informed. I went to the 5^th floor to the history section (worth it just for the old fashion elevator ride) and the man at the desk knew so much about each book I asked about (there must be thousands of books on that floor). I also asked some questions to a couple of staff members on the first floor, and they were so friendly and helpful.
I gave it four starts instead of five, because lot of their stuff is very pricey. It’s understandable with their collection, but it would be nice to be able to afford some more things in the store.
All in all, I highly recommend a trip to Argosy for a leisurely afternoon of book browsing.

Argosy feels like a real bookstore, it’s unlike any other bookstore I’ve been to in NYC. It smells of old books and it looks like it’s been around for some time (apparently for 86 years!). They have a selection of books and magazines for cheap outside– i bought 2 past museums exhibition catalogues from the 60’s for 2 bucks. Great condition so it’s quite a steal! I saw some old National Geographic and Christie’s catalogues, there’s also music scores, physics texts and law review texts but all from at least 20−30+ years ago.
The second floor hosts their maps and posters collection, pricey but worth the visit if you’re looking for a gift or if you’re a collector or if you just like to browse around!

This store reminds me of a bygone NYC; it’s a real throwback to the pre-​chain stores. It looks tiny from the outside, but they actually have a lot of books and several floors. It’s true that the staff is rather perfunctory, but I almost prefer it at such stores because I like to browse «in peace». I confess that the only time I ever bought anything was one book from the (outdoor) bargain bin; a wonderful illustrated book in French. Whenever I’m in this neighborhood and have some extra time, I make a point of stopping by Argosy (note that they’re closed on Saturdays during summertime).

My favorite section of Argosy is where they have full page illustrations from what must be unbound books; racks of drawings from books between 10 and 100 years old. For just a couple bucks you can leave with something unique and provocative enough to belong in a frame on a wall — my collage-​making friend had a field day here.
I once found a drawing of three people sitting at a table. The caption read, «At that word Abigail let drop the bacon she was conveying to her mouth.» I hung it in my bathroom and it wasn’t until over a year later that I nearly fell off my subway seat finding that exact sentence well at home on page 500-​and-​something of Henry Fielding’s Tom Jones.
If there’s anything off-​putting about Argosy it might be the indifference of the people working there, but that’s part of the experience. You don’t go to a place like this for customer service, you come here to dream, gamble, and lose yourself. What treasures you find depend on the amount of digging you’re willing to do.

Mi amore.
You drew me in with your deals out front and you had my heart with your shelves of treasures.

First… this is what a New York Bookstore should look like.
It should NOT look like a Borders or Barnes and Noble. It should smell like old books when you walk through the door. The shelves should run floor to ceiling with books on wooden bookshelves. They should have a basement full of books with books crammed in every conceivable cranny.
They should have a secret floor (5^th floor) of all first edition and rare antiquarian books. You could spend hours perusing all the books that you will not find elsewhere.
Now the con… okay the first floor has a collection of 15−17^th century leather books that are not stored properly. I pulled one of the books down and found insects crawling up my arm. NOT GOOD. Secondly they should be stored in a cooler, less dusty environment to protect them from deterioration.
The 5^th floor for their rare First Editions collection is not air conditioned and the only air was an open window. The temperature and humidity were quite high for books that run from a few hundred dollars to several thousand dollars each. This is not ideal conditions to be storing valuable first edition collections.
By the way, you have to ask to get to the 5^th floor and you will have an escort. Overall a wonderful store that has an obvious passion for books.