The stalwart of the local scene is Words’ Worth, which has sold English-language books in the shadow of Ludwig Maximilian University since 1985. For-merly located at Schellingstrasse 21a, the business moved to a new location at Schellingstrasse 3 late last year. Its more than 10,000 titles include crime novels, coffee table books, children’s titles, literary criticism, linguistics texts, and bestsellers, of course. The friendly staff is always ready to make an appropriate recommendation for your reading pleasure. (Tel. 28 36 42. Open Mon.–Fri., 9 am–8 pm; Sat., 10 am–4 pm.)
Also in Maxvorstadt, The Munich Readery is an excellent option for thrifty readers. With more than 40,000 books in dozens of categories, it is Germany’s largest English-language secondhand book store. Every item is priced at 30% to 70% off current list prices. It’s also possible to trade in books for store credit. Owner John Browner and his wife Lisa have more than 30 years of bookshop experience between them, and their love for the business and each other permeates the warm little shop. (Augustenstr. 104, Tel. 12 19 24 03. Open Mon.–Fri., 11 am–8 pm; Sat., 10 am–6 pm. Email bookmanjb@readery.de for more information about trading in texts.)
If searching for a bestseller or classic title, try the English-language Hugendubel on Salvatorplatz. (Salvatorplatz 2, Tel. 01801/ 484 484. Open Mon.–Sat., 10 am–8 pm.)
The best deal of all, however, is of course your local library. The many locations of the Münchner Stadtbibliothek house more than three million books, newspapers, and media items, some of which are in English. Card holders may borrow up to 20 items at once, for a period of four weeks each. Present a picture ID, proof of address, and € 18 fee at your local outpost to be issued a card. Information on each location is available here.
For a local library entirely devoted to English texts, try The Bookshelf: a non-profit library that has been run by volunteers for the past 15 years. For a € 42 yearly fee, members may borrow as many as five books at a time from the collection of mysteries, travel guides, bestsellers, and classics. There’s also a small selection of children’s books for budding bibliophiles, and an English-language story hour on the third Saturday of each month at 3 pm. (Blumenstr. 36, Alte Katholische Kirche on Sendlingertorplatz, Tel. 61 62 27. Open Mon., Wed., Fri., 3 pm–6 pm; Sat., 11 am–3 pm.)
Munich is also home to a few speci-alty libraries offering English-language materials. The most impressive is that at the Amerika Haus. The cultural institute’s library does include many academic texts relevant to American and Canadian studies, bolstered by a wide selection of novels, around 50 current newspapers, a collection of documentary videos, and DVDs of American and Canadian movies and TV series. Unfortunately, only students and teachers may borrow video media, but the library has several machines for on-site viewing. Anyone may take out American novels or nonfiction bestsellers for up to four weeks. The library does not issue membership cards, but visitors must present some kind of identification and a valid German address to borrow. The library also hosts monthly literary discussions, the schedule of which is announced at www.amerikahaus.de. (Karolinenplatz 3, Tel. 55 25 37 20. Open Mon.–Fri., 1 pm–5 pm; Weds., until 8 pm.) LMU’s Amerika Institut houses a similar selection of texts, but restricts public visitors to on-site reading. (Schellingstr. 3 front side, Open Mon.–Thurs., 10 am–6 pm; Fri., 10 am–4 pm.) Finally, the library of the Stiftung Lyrik Kabinett has a few examples of English-language poetry books. (Amalien-str. 83a, Tel. 34 62 99. Open Tues. and Thurs., 3 pm–9 pm, and Sat., 12 pm–6 pm.)
Happy reading!
