The paws behind the action: Four New York City cats who have found themselves some full-time work in the bookselling industry.
New York City is full to the brim with bookstores and book markets. Bookish people have no shortage of places that they can visit and rummage for their next five-star read. But there are a few bookstores in New York City that have something a little… extra.
These bookstores have a staff member unlike all the others: furry, four-legged, and a big fan of curling up in the sun. That’s right — these bookstores all have cats!
Quimby’s Bookstore NYC
Quimby Bookstore is a bookstore that focuses on alternative zines, magazines, and books. Buried in the heart of Brooklyn, the bookstore is a real maze of shelves and stacks, owned by a man called Steven Svymbesky.
Right at the back of Quimby’s bookstore, where you’d expect the stacks to finish, giving way to back rooms and staff rooms, Quimby’s has tarot. And, of course, it doesn’t stop there. As well as stocking a huge range of cards, prints, patches and buttons, Quimby has a kitty.
Quimby’s kitty is a tuxedo cat, with largely white on her front (including all four legs) and a greyish-black saddle mark over her head and torso. She loves to lounge about, and her name is Gracie.
Logos Bookstore NYC
Another NYC independent bookstore, Logos is on York Avenue in the Upper East Side. They advertise themselves as a Judeo-Christian specialty bookstore with a large selection of Bibles — the largest in Manhattan, apparently! It doesn’t stop there, though.
Logos also sells plenty of fiction, children’s books, and your classic best-sellers.
Logos Bookstore also features a load of art from local artists. They’ve got pieces from Sonia Grineva, a Russian artist who lives and paints in both Italy and NYC. She has hosted art shows at Logos. They’ve also worked with Peter G Pereira and Andre Kouznetsov.
But the important thing here is their fluffy friends. Logos has not one but two cats in store: Mr. Boo Boo and Chloe, two stunning tuxedo cats.
Pillow-Cat Books
Pillow-Cat Books, based in the East Village, really sets itself apart from all the other NYC bookstores, but not just because it has a cat. The bookstore itself is animal-themed! Pillow-Cat claims to be the first animal-themed bookstore in New York.
It’s a small, cute, green shop that is absolutely packed to the brim with vintage and antique books in a huge range of languages. They stock books about art, photography, language, fashion, design, comics, and literature, and even children’s books. Their only criteria is that an animal must be present in the book!
Any purchase from Pillow-Cat comes wrapped in special Pillow-Cat wrapping paper and features free complimentary stickers. They’re determined to make every shopping experience worthwhile and memorable!
The resident cat at Pillow-Cat is, of course, called Pillow-Cat. The bookstore took her in about three years ago and has watched her from a spindly little kitten into the fully-grown regal cat that she is today!
Westsider Rare & Used Books
Over on the other side of New York City is Westsider Rare and Used Books. Based in Broadway, the bookstore stocks vintage and used poetry, plays, fiction, literature, children’s books, young adult fiction, cooking, science, mystery novels, science fiction books, religious texts, and even LPs!
The bookstore has gained a sort of local and international acclaim in the years it has been open. The owner, Dorian Thornley, is well-beloved in the community. Although not, perhaps, as well-beloved as his furry assistant, a black cat called Pig.
Pig has lived at the store since about 2019. In the warm months, she basks out by the front desk and will even venture out to guard the $1 books out the front. She never strays far, though, and comes back when she’s ready. The staff of the store love Pig and even play fetch with her through the stacks — when she decides it’s time to play, of course.
In the winter, Pig hides in various little cubby holes that she has made and found throughout the store, including by the radiator on the first floor, which is apparently one of her absolute favorite spots.
According to her owner, if Pig were to be any fictional character from the books in the store, she’d be Baloo from The Jungle Book because he’s “big and warm.”
Other Famous New York City Cats
New York City is known as The Big Apple for a reason. Plenty of people head in search of city life in hopes it’ll help them make a name for themselves. Whether as a Broadway star or in business, New York is known for being a city of dreams. And it seems that applies to cats, too. The cats mentioned above are all big names in their local areas, but they’re not the only ones.
Cat lovers visiting New York should also keep their eyes peeled for all the other shop cats and famous NYC cats, many of whom can be found in the Shop Cats of New York book series and on their Instagram page.
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Millie Ramm
Millie has been writing since she was a child, and has spent more time with her nose in books than anywhere else. She has been ghostwriting novels and editing for the past few years, and when not working she is curled up with her cats, looking for her next read.
