Welcome to Bison Books!
Serendipity awaits you in our friendly shop, where we offer an eclectic, fresh collection of around 20,000 meticulously-curated antiquarian and good used books.
We have a long-established reputation of easygoing professionalism and maintain a refined selection of everything from first editions, fine bindings and antiquarian books, to Indigenous studies, literature, art, and classics, with new acquisitions daily.
We are located in the heart of downtown, in a bright space with lofty ceilings and towering windows which look out onto one of Winnipeg’s busiest pedestrian thoroughfares.
We are always purchasing good books. We seek out and pay a premium for, valuable books, including rare books, fine bindings, illustrated books, first editions, signed books, and more. We also offer book searches, acquisitions development consultations, appraisals, movie rentals, and mail orders.
Two more staggering days of the ILAB Congress!
Wednesday:
Canal tour
Scheepvaart Museum library and collection tour
ILAB Assembly/lunch/lecture
Museum Willet-Holthuysen (v quirky old house, stellar tour)
Short walk, short nap!
Dinner in the lovely Scheepvaart hall
Thursday
Stadsarchief (City Archives) tour
Vroom visit: private collection in a canal house
Allard Pierson Museum University Archives Collection: show-and-tell of some cool maps and amazing old books.
Dinner and dance* at West-Indisch Huis
*dance party dubbed “majestic” by @honeyandwaxbks
Day one of the 2024 ILAB congress started early, with a sunrise canal boat ride to the Rijksmuseum.
The museum hosted a coffee reception and some welcome speeches for us, before leading us past just a few of their most astonishing treasures, putting on a spectacular show-and-tell in their archives, and commissioning a bespoke concert on a 400 year-old harpsichord.
Follow that up with a stroll in the sunshine and four course dinner at a Michelin-starred restaurant, and you have one hell of a day.
Gorey trove! 😍
I love the days when someone pops in to the shop with a stack of utter delight.
These range from $5-200: something for everyone!
#edwardgorey #edwardgoreybooks #illustrators #classicbooks #vintagebooks
Our Books of the Centuries series brings us to the 19th century and this gorgeous first edition copy of Alexander Mackenzie’s ‘Voyages From Montreal, on the River St. Lawrence, Through the Continent of North America, to the Frozen and Pacific Oceans; in the Years 1789 and 1789; with a Preliminary Account of the Rise, Progress, and Present State of the Fur Trade of that Country’ 😮💨
A big name for a big book!
Published in 1801 by T. Cadell, Jun. & W. Davies, this historical document features sizeable fold-out maps and vocabularies of the Knisteneaux, Algonquin, Chepewyan, Nagailer, and Atnah Indian languages (Peel 55).
Sabin 43414 calls this the “first and finest edition” of this important tract.
While this copy was rebound (exceptionally well) in the 20th century, the contents are original—and in very good condition.👌
The text’s historical significance and many examples of the old English “f-like s” (read “pain, or fuffering” 😆) make it worthy of this week’s show and tell!
#canadiana #antiquebooks #beautifulbooks #canadianhistory #historicalbooks
This just in: cigarette card albums!
These quirky little illustrated informational cards are promotional ephemera published by tobacco companies in thematic series, which cover subjects as diverse as bicycles, first aid, railway cars, cricket stars, and garden flowers.
We have just acquired several sets of these, complete, and in their original staple-bound albums.
They are charming - and very reasonably priced!
#cigarettecards #oldbooks #antiquarianbooks #ephemera #cycling
#oldbooks
Book sale haul! 📚 Here are some of the exciting things we found at the @chfmanitoba book market last week!
Stay tuned for some story stacks and DM us if you see anything you like 😊
P.S. we have SO MANY great cookbooks from this haul and more—perfect for cold weather cooking 👩🍳
#bookstagram #bookhaul #secondhandfirst #usedbooks #beautifulbooks
To observe our National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, the shop will be closed today.
Today, we take time to reflect and learn about the profound and enduring impacts of Canada‘s residential school system, and wear orange in solidarity with survivors, their families, and communities.
Holding books like men hold fish 🎣😂
Jumping on this trend to show you some of our latest catches 📚👌
Credit is due to the lovely people at @wantedwildco and @riley.grae for the inspo! We had fun
#books #secondhandbooks #bookstore #holdingfish #catchoftheday #secondhandfirst
With the @torontoantiquarianbookfair fast approaching, we wanted to share another fun preview!
These are original Saville Theatre Programmes from 1967. The most notable being the "Jimi Hendrix Experience," with a leaflet still stapled to the inside cover, a notice of the launch of the record "At the Third Stroke" by the Picadilly Line. This famous concert was attended by Lennon and McCartney, who were blown away by Hendrix`s opening cover of "Sgt Pepper`s Lonely Heart Club Band." Also featured is a programme signed by Chuck Berry!
While these items are sold individually, together they represent a legendary year of music.
September 20-22, 2024
Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre
6 Sakura Way
Toronto, ON
Ticket giveaway! 🎉
Two lucky winners will receive a free ticket to next week’s @torontoantiquarianbookfair! The ticket covers weekend-long admission to the book fair (Sept 20-22), and, if you attend on Friday, a glass of sparkling wine! 🥂
To enter: like this post, leave a comment, and follow our page and @torontoantiquarianbookfair 📚
Winners will be contacted directly by DM. We won’t ask for any personal information, credit card details, etc. 🎟️
@abac_alac @ilab_booksellers_worldwide #oldbooks #toronto #antiquarianbooks #bookfair
The @torontoantiquarianbookfair starts next Friday, and this charming piece is coming with me!
This Parkins & Gotto Victorian Journal Box (ca. 1850) is complete with lock and key, brass and marbled glass mounts, a leather lining, and a velvet bottom panel which pops up when unlocked to present the books inside.
Enclosed are the three original red leather-bound books: "Cash Accounts," "Visits & Addresses", and "Daily Journal."
Stay tuned for more previews of what you`ll find at our booth during this year`s fair. 😊
September 20-22, 2024
📍 Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre
6 Sakura Way
Toronto, ON
A look into our morning routine ☀️
We never know what the day will bring around here, but open the shop always looks something like this:
☕️ fuel from our neighbours @thombargen
🙌 admire the view
🎶 throw on an album
And then it’s time to get down to business 👩💻📚📦
We’re open Monday to Saturday, 10-4:30. Come by tomorrow, we’d love to see ya!
The latest instalment of our Books of the Centuries series brings us to the 18th century with De Zeden der Wilden van Amerika, the first Dutch edition of Lafitau’s study of Indigenous tribes of Canada (chiefly the Iroquois).
Published in 1731, this vellum-bound marvel is decorated with a blind-tooled central arabesque to both boards and a still-legible, hand-written title on the spine. Both title pages are present, along with a detailed map and 41 of the 42 called-for engraved plates.
The English-language edition of this title was published in 1974 as part of the Champlain Society’s General Series.
#antiquebooks #18thcentury #oldbooks #lafitau #engravings #vellumbinding
📣 We are hiring! 📣
📆 Part time: 10 to 15 hours per week, mostly on Tuesdays and Thursdays between 9 & 5.
📚Requirements: we are looking for someone who is kind and friendly, familiar with books, motivated and reliable, who has good communication skills, affection for readers, and proficiency with computers.
📚Duties: in person and virtual customer service, general shop maintenance, shipping, data entry, and whatever else comes up!
📚Assets: customer service experience, familiarity with local bookshops/culture, good taste in music.
📚Offered: reciprocal respect and loyalty, an intellectually stimulating work environment, a predictable schedule, access to great books!
Minimum wage to start.
🤗 If you would like to be considered for this position, please supply a résumé and cover letter to Bison Books, preferably in person.
#helpwanted #winnipeg #jobs #booksellerlife #ywg #winnipegnow
I spent the morning hunting and gathering, tearing through countless boxes in a steamy downtown sunroom. 😮💨
Here are some of the fruits of my labors. 🍽️
DM to hold or inquire.
🤗 We are open 10 to 430, Monday through Saturday (closed holidays)!
📬 We also ship worldwide, and offer inexpensive citywide delivery.
#cooking #gastronomy #chefs #cookbooks #classicbooks #recipebooks #secondhandfirst #finditdowntown
We’ve moved some things around 📚🔀
After some laborious and necessary shuffling, the literature wall is looking pretty — and Literary Criticism has a new home!
You can find literary essays, books about books, and the like tucked neatly between Poetry and Drama/Theatre on the right-side wall, along with shelves and shelves of fiction!
Come by and check it out ☺️
We’re open 10-4:30, Monday through Saturday.
#bookstore #secondhandbooks #bookshelves #smallbusiness
Books of the centuries: a new series from yours truly ☺️
A little while ago, we had a request that we show you some of our oldest books, so we recently put up a reel showing a lovely 16th century tome.
Today, we present one of our favourites from the 17th century; 1652, to be exact.
This book is profusely illustrated with engravings of various monuments, headstones, and markers of Padua. Some of them, as you see, are quite quirky!
The book in question is the spectacular “Monumenta Patavina“ by Sertorio Orsato, a celebrated antiquary, historian and poet. Born in Padua Italy in 1617, Orsato taught natural philosophy at the University of Padua. This sought-after work constitutes a moving tribute to his city.
#antiquarianbooks #oldbooks #Italy #monuments #Padua
@nytimes released a list of the 100 best books of the 21st century, and here are the ones we have in stock! 📚✨
Have you seen the list? Which title do think should have made it on there? There`s a good chance we have it on the shelf 😃
#nytbestbooksofthe21stcentury #bookstagram #booklover #usedbooks
📣 Show and tell!
One of our older items at the moment is this beautiful vellum-bound history, by Emanuel van Meteren, published in 1598.
Replete with 22 engraved portraits, it also boasts a double page map of the Low Countries (The Netherlands).
The spine is lettered by hand, and the title page engraved.
Like most books of that era, it is entirely in Latin.
#oldbooks #antiquarianbooks #vellumbinding #oldmaps #europeanhistory
Fresh summer stacks 📚☀️🏖️
DM to hold or purchase, or pop into the shop. We are open 10 to 430, Monday through Saturday… and our space is generously air conditioned!
#bookstacks #usedbookstore #downtownwinnipeg #winnipeg #goodbooks #beachreads
