The end for beloved bookstore
Independent Upper West Side bookstore Westsider Rare & Used Books announced Monday that it will be closing its doors for good next month.
The announcement came in the form of a post on the shop’s Facebook page. The store’s owner, Dorian Thornley, confirmed the closure, stating that it would likely shut down at the end of February. All of the shop’s inventory will be 30% off until then.
Thornley cited declining sales as the reason for the shop’s demise.
The shop, which was originally named Gryphon Books, moved into its location on Broadway and 80th St. in 1984. Thornley became owner of the shop in 2002.
For 35 years, the shop (photo) has been a cornerstone of the Upper West Side’s literary scene, and was recently featured in the Melissa McCarthy film “Can You Ever Forgive Me?”
Thornley also owns Westsider Records, located eight blocks away from the bookstore. There are no plans to close that shop, he says.
The news of the store’s closure follows a trend of hardships for longtime independent bookstores across the city.
In 2016, Cobble Hill’s BookCourt closed its doors after 35 years in business. Last October, McNally Jackson announced that it would be moving out of its Nolita location after 14 years — although it later got a reprieve.
That same month, the 101year-old Drama Book Shop announced that it would be shuttering as well. It has since received a new breath of life from a group led by “Hamilton” creator Lin-Manuel Miranda.
Meanwhile, internet giant Amazon has opened two new bookstores in Manhattan over the past two years, as well as an “Amazon 4-star” shop in SoHo. “It’s sad, but we appreciate all of our loyal customers who have shopped with us for all these years,” Thornley said of his store’s demise.