Looks like the Upper East Side got a bit more book smart this July.
Barnes & Noble announced last fall that, after an over-two-year absence from the Upper East Side, they would be returning the gift of the written word to the Upper East Side.  The new store is located at 1556 Third Ave., on the corner of East 87th Street — and the book giant recently announced that their doors have finally opened.

The 8,000-square-foot shop, a former Duane Reade, is a significant downsize from its previous, 55,000-square-foot, two-level store on East 86th Street, but the shop's bookish CEO is effusive that even a small store is great news for bibliophiles.

"It is very good news to bring our bookstore back to the Upper East Side," Barnes & Noble CEO James Daunt said in a statement in November. "It was very sad to close in the depths of the pandemic and especially pleasing now to reopen with one that is so dramatically more attractive."
For me, one of Barnes & Noble’s great features is the free author readings they offer.  As a former book reviewer for People Magazine, I have attended many live readings with some of the world’s most celebrated authors.  This is yet another great free program that makes living in New York so special. 

Written by Rob Taub