I walked down the hill from Queen Anne and across the Fremont Avenue bridge to get here; it’s a nice, if convoluted, walk. Much of the time it feels like walking down someone’s long driveway.

Ophelia’s Books isn’t as big as Twice Sold Tales, but what they have are interesting, and they are also right next to a decent record store.

Like Twice Sold Tales, they have cats. Possibly a requirement of Seattle bookstores, possibly a requirement of bookstores in general.

I only picked up two books when I was here, but one of them has been on my list for years, and one I never even knew existed. Still Life^• is the second in A. S. Byatt’s Frederica series; so far I have only read the third, Babel Tower^•. But what I have read of Byatt made me pick it up immediately from their discount rack.

Still Life^• is practically a primer on writing.

Sign of the Labrys^• is a strange book from AD&D’s infamous Appendix N. It is definitely a relic of the sixties, where it’s a great thing that most people are dead because it stopped overpopulation, war, and capitalism. Fortunately, the capitalists created a huge surplus of food, shelter, and supplies, so that there’s enough for everyone for a long time. A hard book to find, but well worth reading if you’re a D&D fan. Its combination of fading technology and magic looks a lot like old-school D&D.

If you’re doing a bookstore tour of Seattle, Ophelia’s needs to be on your route.