The pLAces you’ll go: Book Soup

There are more than 500 square miles of city surrounding UCLA’s campus, which takes up a minuscule fraction of that mileage. For such a big place, Los Angeles at times seems impossible to navigate. But don’t let size steer you away from your sense of adventure and curiosity. Each week this quarter, follow columnist Maryrose Kulick as she takes you to a new and affordable L.A. destination, to help you explore the city you call home.

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The stack of books on your desk right now inevitably looks pretty daunting, doesn’t it? Nearly a mile thick and smothered with the reminder of how big the hole in your pocket is, those books loom over your head like really heavy rectangular demons.

So here it is – the start of a new school year. You may be thinking, “Well, shoot. I’m never leaving my room again.” But don’t let the thought of school trap you to the confines of your tiny dorm room or even the larger confines of campus and Westwood. Here in Los Angeles, the second-largest city in the United States, there is nearly an infinite number of places available for exploration, adventure and refuge. This week, I bring you to one of my favorite ways to escape the stack of books on my desk: even more books.

I walked into Book Soup on Sunset Boulevard for the first time with a couple friends last year and was immediately met by ceiling-high bookshelves and a conglomeration of colorful book covers. Moving through this quaint little store is like swimming through a soup of nearly every genre of literature, from science fiction novels to fashion and cooking. You’re bound to find something you’ll enjoy, and for the most part, everything in the store will cost less than a small house.

Browsing through eclectic book displays is one of my favorite pastimes, and this store has some pretty eye-catching selections. The other day, I found myself looking through “The Book of Eggs: A Life-Size Guide to the Eggs of Six Hundred of the World’s Bird Species.” Why? Because, eggs. And then later I was flipping through a book featuring enlarged photos of really tiny kittens. Why? Because, kittens.

Probably the best part about this store is that it’s perfectly fine to come in without a specific book in mind. The staff seems to be extremely well read, given the yellow and pink cards scattered throughout the shelves that promote staff recommendations. Each card provides a staff member’s name, which book he or she recommends and a brief description of why the book you are looking at is 100 percent awesome.

There’s really something interesting to find around every bookend, and if you go with a few friends, you’ll find yourselves revisiting old favorites and finding new ones. Perhaps a discussion will ensue on the differences between the “Game of Thrones” television series and the book series – because you’re all bookworms like me, and you’ve pushed your way through all five 1,000-page books, right?

 

If you’re looking to make an evening out of your bookstore excursion, Book Soup also holds events and book signings practically every week, featuring authors such as Billy Idol or William Mann. The store also features books written by local authors.

All in all, grabbing a book from this shop and taking it to the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf across the street may be the perfect distraction from a long day of studying. Often I miss the idea of reading for fun. With the fresh smell of a new book in my hand, an adventure unfolds along the small black print on the pages. Book Soup is one of those places with the potential to satisfy your hunger for adventure, just a few easy miles from campus.