As far as books go, some people have gone digital and never looked back. However, other readers still enjoy the feel of a real book in their hands, the weight and texture of the pages, the smell of old novels, and the convenience of flipping exactly to the page you want instead of having to scroll through the text to find it. For book lovers like these, Seattle is a paradise full of bookstores where you can find rare old texts and out-of-print works that never got a digital copy. If you're looking for a hard copy to add to your shelves, try visiting one of the locations below.

The Elliott Bay Book Company

The Elliott Bay Book Company is on 10th Avenue just south of Anderson Park and East Pine Street. It's less of a bookstore and more of a book warehouse, with multiple floors, sections for new and old books, and a cafe. Elliott Bay offers a consignment service for budding local authors, but they get so many requests they can't guarantee that your book will show up on their shelves. They also offer book donations to educational groups and organizations in the Seattle area.  

Ada's Technical Books and Cafe

Ada's is up north from the Elliott Bay Book Company, sitting on 15th Avenue East between Republican and Harrison. Despite the name, Ada's Technical Books offers both fiction and nonfiction, but their collection does tend to favor science and science fiction. The books they sell include both popular science books that are easy to digest and highly technical books for students and professionals, plus they offer a range of children's books that introduce kids to the wonders of scientific discoveries.

Third Place Books

Rather appropriately, Third Place Books has three locations throughout the Seattle area. Like Elliott Bay, each Third Place Books location offers a large collection of new and used books, an on-site cafe, and regular author events where both local and nationally known authors stop by to read from their works, talk with the audience, and autograph whatever they bring in. The three locations also offer a Staff Picks section where the people who work at the store put the books they recommend to others.

Magus Books

Magus Books is on Northeast 42nd Street right by Parrington Hall. Magus is a bookstore that deals exclusively in used books, so if you're looking for something out of print or a rare and expensive edition, this is the best place to go. Some of their books are over 100 years old, and while their collection is on their website you may want to stop by the store just to see the books in person. Digital books are convenient, but they're no substitute for the feeling you get when you have a good book in your hand. If you still want physical copies to fill your physical bookshelves, the bookstores on this list will serve the needs of any book lover in the Seattle area. Image via Pixabay