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last pics of "World's Biggest Bookstore"

I'll miss this place, the last of the large old school bookstores in Toronto. The place has been light on foot traffic in the last few years - rise of the internet, and e-readers perhaps?

In the Yonge and Eglinton Indigo last night at 9pm there was exactly ONE cashier on duty.

Does anyone remember the short-lived 'Cary Grants' bookstore [quite a large place] on the east side of Church below Front back in the 80s?

New York City has their Strand bookstore. A giant place of several floors. Worth a visit.

I wonder why Toronto can't make the WBB a going concern.
 
Mustapha said:
I'll miss this place, the last of the large old school bookstores in Toronto. The place has been light on foot traffic in the last few years - rise of the internet, and e-readers perhaps?

I wonder why Toronto can't make the WBB a going concern.
Click to expand...

Perhaps the value of the land is higher than any income from book sales.
 
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I was a meter reader from '70's thru to late 90's. The meter reader who had The World's Largest Bookstore on his route, sometime in the late 80's had filed a Health and Safety report about a black oily seepage on the floor in the meter room at the Worlds Biggest Bookstore, near the boiler room. He didn't know what the substance was or even how deep it was, so under the H/S Act he refused to read the meter. This initiated an investigation by the supervisory staff of the meter reading department. Two supervisors were very suspicious that the reader was just "pulling a fast one", as one of them had put it (there was an undertone of antagonism between management and employees at the time and H/S was a new concept that did not get easily accepted by the supervisors). The two...we'll call them Heckle and Jeckle went down in Heckle's car to investigate. Jeckle went in, got the manager of the Words Largest Bookstore and they went to the source of the seepage in the basement. It was later to be confirmed it was oil from a tank under the floor. But Jeckle, thinking he'd test the "waters", so to speak, decided to step down into the substance. Not smart. He sunk to his waste in oil. The manager pulled the supervisor out. His suit was covered in stinky black oil. Heckle didn't want Jeckle back into his car, as his lower body was covered in oil. They eventually got some garbage bags to cover the seats. They went back to the office and filed a report. Although it could have been a dangerous situation it wasn't. The oil did get cleaned up and the H/S Committee members (some management included) laughed about it later.

True story.
 
It will always remind me of being in University and coming downtown to buy books and just browse. I still the remember the smell! The books, the magazines... The magazine section was awesome (back when I still read magazines) with all the UK imports. It was a treat going there. I will miss it. The restaurant thing looks nice, but if I don't like any of the food, I won't have reason to walk down there.
 
Kram and Everyone: Good pictures of the World's Largest Bookstore here...

I noticed that 50% off sale and wonder if there may be further discounts before it closes permanently...

I would be looking for books about Toronto and Canada that I can not get down this way if I were there...

I would also be looking for interesting maps and atlases also...

Hopefully some fellow UT members get some good finds there...and post about them if they are significant...

LI MIKE
 
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