Barrington Books

This morning a friend in I stopped in for a quick purchase. While my friend looked for a book, I stood in line with a question. There was one woman waiting in line in front of me. There were 6 employees behind the counter, only one of which was actively acknowledging customers in line. After about 5 minutes it was my turn, my friend had since found her item and had joined me in line. We were short on time so I let the friendly cashier know that she could just ring up my friend. I mentioned that it was odd to wait over 5 minutes without being acknowledged since there were 6 employees behind the counter doing various things. The woman next to her had been chatting with a friend the entire time. After saying her goodbyes she says to me that this was a community store and that if I couldn’t wait 2 seconds then I should just go to Walmart and then walked off. She returned and I stated to her that I wasn’t trying to be rude, but it was disappointing. She came around to the front of the counter and went off, raising her voice and berating me. She told me that she had worked hard on this store and that it was a community store and people «like me» should shop elsewhere. I was taken aback and asked if she was the owner. She replied «yes I am, and there’s the door» Totally shocked, I looked around; the looks on the faces of the employees and other customers told me that I was not imagining how insane this was. To say the least, this is no longer my family’s go to place for books and gifts.

My friend and I visited the Barrington location. My friend stood there waiting to ask a question, for about 5 minutes with 6 employees behind the counter. When my friend expressed her disappointment with the situation, the OWNER was so rude. When my friend said she was not trying to be rude, just expressing her disappointment, the OWNER told her she could just shop at WalMart (maybe a way to call my friend trash??). I was mortified and horrified that the owner would speak to any customer that way.

I have visited this location in years past and most recently the newly opened Barrington Books in Garden City. I’ll compare both locations as Unilocal offers no option yet to review the newer location. While I like both stores but I enjoy the original better. The Barrington location has well defined departments with a large book area with a side wall of magazines, a children’s section containing books and games and finally a smaller room containing the nicely appointed gift items. In summary the Barrington location comes across to me as a book store which happens to sell gifts on the side.
The garden City store is much glitzier but seems to lack the neighborhood vibe or history of the Barrington store though with time that may changed. Ironically maybe because the gifts items were so beautifully arranged throughout the newer store I feel I was in in gift shop which which main focus is on gifts items with books as a side item (Like the Paper Store). I thought the store possibly offered less books than the Barrington Store but another reviewer thought there were more choices here at Garden City.
In closing, to me both locations were nice but offer something different. Hopefully the staff will continue to be the same (attentive and polite) at each location. Glad to see a local business do well.

I just visited the new location in Garden City and was not disappointed. The selection of books was enormous and the staff is fantastic. In addition to the books I was also impressed with their selection magazines and gifts, plus in the back there is a huge section of books for children. I will definitely make Barrington Books a regular stop for my literary purchases.

I live in NJ and consistently buy «An Octopus Named Mom» for baby shower gifts, signed by the author, from Barrington Books. They are ALWAYS nice, efficient AND offer FREE gift wrap! Talk about GREAT customer service!

I love this bookstore. It has a rich variety of books and provides an environment where I want to sit, stay and explore. They also have a unique selection of greeting cards I love, a children’s section with books and games and a young adult section. The bookstore is also connected to a pricey gifts tore that is fun to browse through

What a great bookstore! We are new to the neighborhood and we were surprised and delighted to quickly discover Barrington Books. I didn’t even have time to miss my our old local bookstore, the Booksmith in Brookline, MA. Like snowflakes, no two indie bookstores are alike so I will not bother to compare.
Barrington Books has a well-​curated selection of books and gifts for all ages. I haven’t spent much time in the adult sections, but we have tremendously enjoyed the awesome children’s selection, which has a nice variety for all ages and is thoughtfully laid out. Although my daughter is only 2, the 4– to 6-​year old bookshelf is quickly becoming our first stop in the store. That and the hand puppet stand.
For books and unique gifts, we will be back again and again!

I am a fan of this store. This is a great little book store. It’s in a nice plaza. It has all the latest books and the staff is very helpful, they knew the exact book I was looking for and help me out picking the best read. There is a gift store connected that has unique gifts but a little pricey. They carry the scout bags which is s summer favorite of mine. There is s huge kids section so they can stay busy while you shop around. Toys book, etc.
The parking is great. Easy to get to. The staff will order what ever your looking for if they don’t have it. There’s a nearby Starbucks you can hang out and read. If your in the area stop in and check it out, I think you’ll be happy with your findings.:)

I love this bookstore. It’s one of the very few in the area and have an amazing selection for the size of the store. Over time, Barringtom Books has added great gift and card departments. I will always recommend Barrington Books.

Barrington Books is a great little shop to have in town. Yes, it’s a book store and they do have a good selection of books including some great specialty cook books and other best sellers but I mostly come here for the gift options.
Brands they carry include:
Alex & Ani Jewelry
Rifle Paper Co.
Snow & Graham
Kate Spade
Jonathan Adler
Barr-​Co. Apothecary
Sloane Ranger
Simon Pearce
and more!
Their hours are convenient and the selection is pretty great. Customer service is good but they do seem to play favorites to regular customers. (aka the local squad of Barrington Rich B**ches)
Definitely worth checking out if you’re in need a gift for someone or you just want to treat yourself with a little something.

I have been shopping at Barrington Books for a long time, ever since it changed from Little Professor. They have a very good selection of books for quite a variety of readers. They have excellent coverage of books on the New York Times bestseller list (usually with a discount). They have an excellent selection of children and young adult books. Most other categories are well represented: travel, mystery, biography, general fiction, graphic novels. They have a smattering of poetry books and a serviceable selection of cookbooks. As pointed out elsewhere, they have added a section with toys and gifts for children. They also have one of the best selections of cards: birthday cards, sympathy cards, etc. But also blank cards and stationery. Barrington Books took over an adjacent shop, which is now a small gift shop.
Barrington Books regularly sponsors book signings in the store. They have some well-​known authors, as well as some local authors. At certain times, they will feature live music in the store (usually just one person on an electric keyboard). They offer free gift wrapping, using nice paper and ribbon.
My favorite aspect of Barrington Books, though, is the people who work there. They offer extremely good advice. I regularly rely on them for suggestions for books for my nieces and nephews. They know of the books from reading reviews and blurbs, but they also know the books from actually reading the books. It’s great! I can ask them if the book is particularly dark or scary, who the main characters are, what other books it might be like.

In this day and age of brick and mortar bookstores closing their doors, it’s nice to have a place like Barrington books. They have a thoughtful selection with friendly staff.
They have a large area for children’s books as well as toys. They also have a good magazine and greeting card selection.
In an attached room is «The Studio» where they sell thoughtfully selected gift items as well as Stonewall Kitchen products. There was definitely a nautical theme among the gift items on the day I was there. Some of the items I saw were handbags, Simon Pierce crystal, wine accessories, candles, dish towels, soaps and lotions. The prices are a bit on the higher side, but it is worth the stroll through after perusing the book selection.

I miss it being a real book store, now it’s more of a children’s store. I understand they have to change to keep up with the times and that e-​readers are taking over, but their card selection is even bad now. I still go in to check on the latest and greatest book and buy too.

I went to this bookstore out of convenience during the holiday season.
First impressions… they had a live musician singing random non holiday songs (ok, not too bad) and they had other music in the background.
Double the music did not equal double the pleasure, in this case… it made me want to get out quicker!
My dissapointment mainly lies their low selection of cooking books. It seemed they had not stocked more or were just out of many.
Perhaps it was poor planning for Xmas times, stress, who knows, I will cut them a break and try the bookstore again at some point…

This quant book store in the center of Barrington has been there for over 30 yrs. They have a great kids section where my daughter can stay for hours. I love the perfect gifts throughout the store beside books.
The staff is very friendly and helpful.