New York bookstore banks on homeless - 26 Feb 08

A shop selling used books in New York City has turned to an unconventional group of individuals to help find rare collectibles: the homeless.

The Strand Bookstore pays the homeless handsomely for their troubles. Owner Fred Bass tells Al Jazeera how this section of society has been instrumental to the success of his business.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Al
• Jazeera
• aljazeera
• New
• York
• City
• Strand
• Books
• homeless
• collectors
• Fred
• Bass
• first
• person

[breaks0]

Strand has two locations in ny, one near wall street and the other near union square. It's easily the best used book shop in the city and one of the top book stores period. If you ever come here, by all means visit.

[DamNationDiplomat]

That's good; the vast majority of americans treat the homeless like shit, and, even if many will never succeed in a 'classic' sense, EVERYONE deserves a chance, and most of these people haven't had one.

[Carterofmars]

Long live the printed book!

Reject eBooks. They are great for newspapers and some magazines but there should never be anything between the person and the printed page. eBooks are useless if you don't have a reader or it breaks. Then the data is inaccessible.

Books never break.

[TheUniverse3000]

I'd like to visit this bookstore. I've never set foot in a bookstore in NYC before.

[xlovenuggetx]

LOL

[punkrocksknot]

@ 0:38 it looks like that dude i pooping or farting... seriously though, awesome idea.

[melodramakid]

Well excuse me for thinking a librarian would have some respect for the English language.

[tumadoireacht]

i was at strand before the events you allege. i saw guys arrive with boxes of books and fred offer them a low take it or leave it price. i emptied the libraries of dead men from their apartments(greek classics concealing yellowed playboys) that fred had bid for and won. his is a perfect capitalist business. it is also a great social service in recirculating many titles.

[armita22]

I do resent "your" contrasting experiences because your "contrasting experiences" where better than mine. It could've been jealousy. But because i'm a growing human being I do apologize for my juvenile remarks. I admit I was hurting and resentful at the time I wrote this. We all gotta grow sometimes and the pain I went through definitely helped.

[armita22]

I know u posted this ages ago but like the saying says "Past is prologue" and it still is, and like Eddie Murphy said in Coming to America "Fuck You, Fuck You, and Fuck You, Next" Lol. And by the way, it's called short hand typing it is the 21st century, get with the program or get left behind it honey...now piss off!

[filmerado]

Probably paid some elderly woman $3 for the signed Capote and wouldn't make eye contact with her, the way of a thief.

[filmerado]

Those are awful AWFUL people who own the Strand. I worked there a year, was groomed for managerial, and after I abruptly quit was in the NYC book trade for 15 years, and oh could I tell some stories about those monsters. They are primarily a criminal operation.