The Monkey's Paw is an independent used-book store in Toronto, Ontario, Canada known for its eclectic, arcane, and absurd books, and for the Biblio-Mat, a random book vending machine.[1]
Owner Stephen Fowler founded The Monkey's Paw in 2006, four years after he moved to Toronto from San Francisco, where he worked in numerous bookstores.[2] Fowler opened The Monkey's Paw in order to support his family with another income source.[2] The inspiration and book selection methods of the store is based on his work in a previous San Francisco bookstore that placed books that were too unique, specific, or unusual for a single-subject category under a miscellaneous section "Floop".[2] Many, including the owner, consider the store itself a showcase and homage to the printed book, which they believe to be dying medium.[3][4] Due to the notoriety and uniqueness of the bookstore, Fowler was invited to join the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers.[3]
The New York Times Style Magazine quoted the owner, "It's the store where you'll find the book you didn't know you were looking for."[5]
External links
References
- Bloor West’s Monkey’s Paw bookshop specializes in bizarre subjects The Toronto Star, 2022-03-06, retrieved 2022-04-05^
- Iain Marlow. A treasure trove of weirdness Toronto Star, February 24, 2009^
- Kyo Maclear. The Future of the Book:The Beautiful Afterlife of Dead Books