It’s in the kids section but back in the corner of the building. There’s a big wall of them. You know how the back of the store has that tea place (with those whacked out little kiddie chairs)? It’s opposite of that (on the back wall).
I’m slowy turning into a fan of books, but I must say, they had a decent selection of books there (whatever that means coming from a guy with limited rage of book knowledge). I also sat there and read a book cover to cover (a smallish book). I can easily see myself stopping by to read a book once ever over week or more (I’m too cheap to buy new books, that’s what a library and big book stores are for).
Has anyone ever come across a Page One website? Both myself and my boyfriend have searched for one with no luck. Is it really possible that they don’t have a site?!
I’m pretty sure that figuring out the orginaztion of Page One requires a three week course in “Page One bookkeeping”. All of the classic fiction is well organized and easy to find, and that’s where it ends. The rest seems to be organized by whatever broad idea the owners of the store think the books should fit in without clearly labelling what that broad idea is, and then they’re subdivided perhaps by preference of the owners…I have no idea. But once I leave the “General Fiction”(could we be any more vague) section (where everything is, thankfully, organized alphabetically by the authors last name, but then mysteriously jumps over to Science Fiction, and then Romance novels), finding something is a guessing game.
Example: I tried to find Howard Zinn’s “A People’s History of The United States” (They did have his new “Voices of…” readily in view, so I figured they would have the old classic). So, I went over to the history section and had to search around for where the “American History” books were at…which wasn’t too hard, but it definately wasn’t labelled. Once in the apparent American History section, it seemed the books were essentially a free-for-all, whith books about Abe Lincoln next to books about Pirates in the carribean, which were next to books on the American Revolution which were next to books about Malcom X, which were next to Che Guevera’s “Guerilla Warfare” and so on. So after perusing the the 4 or 5 bookshelves dedicated to American History, I found they didn’t have what I was looking for.
Anyway, it’s definately a good store with an eclectic selection…but they need some better orginization.
What happened to page one? I went there the other day to grab a couple of books and was shocked and horrified… It’s less than half it’s previous size has pretty poor selection… and the fake temporary walls were outright depressing. Does anyone know what happened?
What Eslite, what MRT, what cost?[/quote]The Eslite right behind the Taipei City Hall MRT. Big, beautiful bookstore. Much as I enjoy the skywalk to 101, if I don’t have a free hour and a half, I won’t go all the way to Page One… not when I’d have to walk past Eslite, which is right there offering far better food (Yaki & Pho) in the basement.
I think Page One’s troubles are a part of the cost of buying into 101. Eslite, like Shinkong, put up its own less impressive building in the same neighbourhood, but closer to the MRT and the main drag. Better location, better terms, yet still able to milk the attention and traffic that 101 brings to the Xinyi district. Smart.
Yes, too bad. I loved Page One (T101) for its spaciousness. It was like walking through a grand library. And it was gracious to have a place like this in Taipei. Now it’s like any other bookshop, cramped. You see so many businesses shrink or disappear. But this… just sad.
[quote=“urodacus”]that’ll change again when the Xinyi MRT line opens (in about seventeen million years).[/quote]I wonder what kind of shape 101 will be in by the time that happens.
The one that runs alongside the 2nd floor of the ShinKong complex, Warner Village (or whatever it’s called now) to 101. Not a big deal, just nice to get above the traffic. Such are the small details that please me.
That is a good skywalk. But it doesn;t run from the MRT. Still, I always have enjoyed walking from the MRT to 101. It’s also good to check out the new shoes at Kenneth Cole before I head up to Page One.
Sorry if that last bit is a bit too metro for you.
