Final chapter for Upper West Side's beloved Westsider Rare and Used Books
UPPER WEST SIDE, Manhattan (WABC) -- After 35 years on Manhattan's Upper West Side, the neighborhood's beloved Westsider Rare & Used Books store has entered its final chapter.
The store will close at the end of February and the news is breaking the hearts of the neighborhood's avid readers who love the store's wide selection and welcoming atmosphere.
"We have lived in the neighborhood for 14 years, maybe more than that," UWS resident Jessica Winchell said Tuesday. "We visit the bookstore twice a week. My son is 9 and goes to PS 87. My husband and my son visit there all the time."
Declining sales led to the store's demise. Dorian Thornley has owned the business for the last 17 years, but the store first landed on Broadway and 80th Street in 1984.
"The neighborhood is gonna miss walking past us, popping their heads in or buying a book. It's just another little quirky store gone," Thornley said.
Thornley expressed his thanks to the legions of book-lovers who faithfully supported his independent business.
In a final goodbye gesture, he has slashed prices by 30 percent in an effort to move more inventory before the store closes for good.
"I'm very sad," resident Joseph Jesselli said. "It's one of the few rare book stores left in Manhattan. There's just not many of them left."
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