Barbara's Bookstore is a nice alternative to the huge chains like B&N or Border's. Barbara's started out in Oak Park many years ago, and they are still going strong. They always have a lot of titles in stock, and tend to carry a few more "unknown" authors than you would find at the large chain stores. In addition, they always have some kind of sale going on, so you can find discount books all the time. It's a nice place to go and browse for books.
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