The moment I walked into Ohio Book Store on Main Street, I knew I’d found something special.

My husband heard about the store from a friend, and when he relayed the information to me — five floors of used books in an old building — a visit was inevitable. Our 11-month-old son woke us up extra early yesterday, so we decided to head downtown and check it out.

It paid off to go in the morning because we practically had the place to ourselves. The owner of the bookstore greeted us when we walked in, and one gentleman was browsing on the first floor. So, we set off to explore!

The view from an aisle in the juvenile section.

The sheer amount of books was overwhelming at first. The shelves towered over me, crammed with jewels waiting to be discovered and toted home. Books spilled out over tables and stacks hunkered haphazardly on the floor or atop the shelves. Vintage crates and boxes held still more treasure, tucked away for who knows how long.

I stopped short in surprise at this sight — an entire aisle of my favorite magazine — National Geographic!

An entire aisle of National Geographic magazines.

The oldest copy I found was dated March of 1920.

I spent the most time perusing these magazines. I could have spent hours in this one section if we’d had more time to spare.

I love the repurposed scotch crates holding all those bright yellow spines.

Unfortunately we had to leave all too soon. We barely scratched the surface of exploring this incredible place. I already can’t wait to visit again and purchase a few of the titles I saw, if they’re still there!

Aside from having more than 300,000 books and magazines for sale, the bookstore also specializes in custom book binding and restoration. Click here for more information.

If you ever get a chance to check out the Ohio Book Store I highly recommend it. I think it would be the perfect place to find one-of-a-kind gifts for anyone, including yourself, of course!