City Books

Lovely book store. Very welcoming and it was fun to just look around. They have some blind date books and all of the descriptions were really intriguing. Had to get one of those!

My friend and I just stopped in to browse while we were waiting for a hair appointment next door. I'm so glad we did! City Books has such a unique selection that is clearly curated in a thoughtful way. The person behind the counter was extremely helpful and kind. We had a great time and will definitely be back.

Small interesting selection. However, the owner charged full new retail for two of the three used books I bought. When I asked her to check again, she looked at all three and corrected to the marked price for one of them. Later I saw that she still overcharged for another one; my fault for trusting. Caveat emptor at City Books.

Arlan is one of my favorite people in Pittsburgh. The work she's done to make City Books a world-class bookstore, community literary space, and inclusive environment is outstanding. The selection is carefully curated yet remarkably broad for a smaller space—there are plenty of both contemporary and classic hidden gems across genres and cultures—and she is always eager to chat books, recommend books, and receive recommendations in return. I've walked out of there with books I'd never heard of and books I'd been dying to read for years. Excellent local selection, too. Every thoughtful reader who's curious about the people and the world around them can find themselves in the titles on these shelves. We've been going in or buying online for years and hope to keep going for many more.

The shop is warm, cozy, and thoughtfully curated, making it the kind of place where you want to linger, browse, and leave with more books than you planned. We received some great reading recommendations!