The Village Booksmith

Located about 1/2 hour north of Saratoga and Schuylerville is another great used and rare bookstore, The Village Booksmith. Located in two adjoining houses with tons of books in all subject areas, the shop is owned by Cliff Bruce, a funny and outgoing colleague. When I last came to call, Cliff was unpacking a box of thumb tips (looked like hot dogs), crocheted balls and rainbow scarves for his magic supplies business, The Prop Box Magic Shop, which is also on the premises. Cliff is a longtime magician and his shop has an extensive selection of books about magic and conjuring, some of which are quite rare and interesting.

The Village Booksmith is located on U.S. Route 4 (223 Main Street) in the center of Hudson Falls, NY. Cliff has been in business at this location since 1976 and has over 70,000 titles spread among two floors of the adjoining former residences. Be sure to prowl around the large psychology and Books on Books sections, and of course, take a gander at the unusual magic books section.




In October 2007, a young local filmmaker, Colin Bannon, took over the bookstore for a day to shoot a scene for his upcoming film "Love Conquers Paul". The scene involved numerous actors and film technicians for a few minutes of footage involving the purchase a copy of Hemingway's "To Have and to Have Not". Cliff was supportive, if
hilariously nonplussed about the event, being quoted in the local newspaper as saying "We're not jumping up and down or anything, but it's certainly nice they liked the store."

Well, I think you'll like the store too. You can visit year round, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. You can reach the shop at (518) 747-3261 or via email at: thebooksmith[at]earthlink[dot]net.