Bookshop Santa Cruz

Bookshop Santa Cruz has been a pillar of the Pacific Avenue community since 1966, surviving earthquakes, economic downturns, and the rise of online retail through sheer force of community devotion. The store's spacious interior reflects Santa Cruz's eclectic character, with sections devoted to marine biology and environmental activism sitting comfortably alongside surf culture memoirs and radical political theory. After the devastating 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake destroyed its original location, the community rallied to help the store rebuild, a testament to how deeply this bookshop is woven into the fabric of Santa Cruz life. The in-store cafe is a popular gathering spot for UC Santa Cruz students and professors, and the events calendar is one of the most ambitious of any independent bookstore in California. On any given evening, you might find a Nobel laureate reading alongside a local surfer-poet.