Dogtown Book Shop

Surprised to read so many negative reviews of the owner of this shop: he was reserved like most of my fellow New Englanders but very helpful to us. Definitely not a place for baby carriages, simply won’t fit. But the shop has an interesting and eclectic collection of books and in our case maps enjoyable for browsing, with an owner both knowledgable and friendly.

This store is a fun selection of used odds and ends; including much on local history. It’s too bad the owner is aloof and an utter curmudgeon. I recommend visiting The Bookstore down the street.

I like this bookstore because it has plenty of books on the topics I am interested in. I go every couple of months and find the books in the sections I peruse had a fast turnover, so I am always finding something new.
All of the books I look at are priced either $ 5 or $ 8.
Bob has always been pleasant to me. He has a couple of rules for protecting the books that as long as you follow them everything is hunky-​dory. If you break one expect a stern warning. One of them is not to bring in drinks. He has provided a tray as you walk in to put your drink on.

My husband and I travel to Gloucester every summer. We always visit Dogtown Books and have spent several hundred dollars there over the years. The owner is never friendly, but we come for the books, not his personality. Until today. My husband walked into the shop just after it started drizzling. He had barely any rain on his jacket. The owner told him he would have to hang his coat on a hook near the door. My husband explained that his wallet and other personal belongings were in the jacket. Rather than offer to hold his jacket behind his desk or offer another solution, he said «I won’t have you dripping rain on my books for the sake of your convenience». He said this in a nasty voice in front of other customers. My husband was so stunned, he walked out of the store.
We had been there the day before and bought books, and while I didn’t expect him to recognize us (although plenty of other vendors in town do), we do expect to be treated with some courtesy. There are other complaints about his demeanor in these reviews. We won’t be back, although I’m sure he won’t care.
By the way, my husband is a book collector, owns over 4,000 books and is well aware on how to take take care of books.

I love Dogtown Book Shop — people who’ve written reviews that have dissed the owner and his policies don’t have a clue about the place. He’s passionate about books, knows a lot about valuable old books, and does a good job of curating what’s in the shop.
Is it crowded, with narrow aisles? You bet. And that’s what makes it a great place to browse. My brother-​in-​law spends hours in the shop every time he visits. You’ll find things in this bookshop that you’ll never see anywhere else. It’s like wandering around someone’s somewhat magical attic library.
It’s not a place for people pushing strollers or looking for a Barnes & Noble experience. There are plenty of places that can give you that experience, so go there, not here. But if you love books, love to wander around and look at unusual things, go to Dogtown Books and chat the owner up a bit. You’ll find he’s an interesting– and very nice – guy.

Being a new resident to Gloucester I did not feel the need to go on Unilocal for reviews before visiting this «bookstore.» I put that in quotations because I’m pretty sure Josef Stalin had more sense of compassion than the owner of this place.
I was taking a nice stroll with my girlfriend and son, who is 6 weeks old and in a stroller, when he decided to visit this bookstore. We opened the door and the owner had his back to us blocking the entrance while talking to a customer. After saying excuse me a few times he turned around and we gently started entering. My girlfriend ever so gently grazed a box that was lying on the floor. You would have thought we had decided to Greco Roman wrestle by his reaction. His exact words were, «Do not touch or bang into anything in here. In fact if you can’t see you can’t go anywhere.»
Well guess what, neither can you with your personality. I’m sure you have some silver spoon lucky sperm winning clients but you just lost two hardworking people that enjoy buying books. Not to mention I as well as others will make sure no one visits your precious bookstore.
FYI. There are these new things called iPads and kindles where people can just download books not to mention ummmm oh yes the internet where I can order it in my boxers while sipping on my 7.99 Cabernet.
Enjoy your pathetic bookstore and make sure you kiss the ass of anyone who decides to make a purchase at your store. Cause I would have a better chance of getting Ted Cruz to vote for Obamacare then you ever showing a glimpse of personality.

This is a pretty decent place.
The employee was pleasant and helpful. (Forget the name, slipped my mind. I think it was Bob but I’m not so sure.)
This store is named after the historic Dogtown.
It has a big selection for a small store which is surprising.
I’d reccomend it!

You need to understand before you even set one foot inside, this is a bookSTORE, not a bookSHOP. The «aisles» are much too narrow to push a stroller around, and you’ll probably find yourself discouraged from thinking about taking your kids in anyway. Be sure to leave all drinks by the door as you enter — multiple signs order you to use «two free hands» when browsing.
I didn’t make it far enough past the elitism to fully appreciate the store, which is a shame since it seemed like a pretty unique place. Lots of collectible used books and hard-​to-​find editions would have made it the perfect place to linger, but for the prominent lack of places to sit. Absolutely no chance of enjoying a coffee while you browse, though. Great selection, but I was turned off by the «strictly business» atmosphere…

St. Mark’s, The Strand, Left Bank, Shakespeare and Company, Raven are the places I enjoy spending hours and even days exploring. Dogtown is not one of them. Please spare yourself and especially the owner the visit.
I would describe this unfortunate shop as a hoarder’s home filled with junk that the hoarder collected over a lifetime but cannot part with. The shop’s «two hands free» policy is perfect for this fire trap. I needed both hands free to navigate the disorganized piles of overpriced crap.
The owner of this hoarder’s paradise was precious as well. If you were expecting a friendly, knowledgeable and helpful used book shop owner you have come to the wrong place. He can be best described as a miserable ex-​hippy college professor, who never published and is living off the family’s trust fund. I watched as he insulted customers (the few who came in the store) and even those who had the nerve to call! There is no love of books here. There is no concern for the customer. There is complete disdain for those of who dare step foot in this pathetic book shop.
The only positive thing I found was walking out the door and writing this review.

Wow, talk about lack of customer service! I was looking for a book and since Gloucester is sorely lacking in good bookstores, I figured I’d pop in and see if they had it. I walked in, got glared at with a cursory hello as if I was disturbing the man by entering the store. Tried to browse but found no rhyme nor reason to how things were stacked, and finally asked. The man wouldn’t even check. He basically said huh? never heard of it. And that was that. No offer to order it, check the computer, not even an apology. Yikes. I won’t be going back in there which is a pity since I can spend hours lost in quirky bookstores like this one purports to be!

This was a cool shop. It has an eclectic selection, and good prices. Not the cheapest used books I’ve seen, but very reasonable. (about $ 8 for a used book) I found several good reads browsing the shelves here.
Though you may not find what you’re looking for, you’re likely to find a surprising gem amongst this solid selection.

Went here while «staycationing.» Great location and general atmosphere. The business card was right, I did find some great «unusual» finds. The general literature/​fiction section was a bit smaller than I’m used to, but I’m spoiled by the amazing Cambridge used bookshops.
The clerk/​owner? was a little less than friendly concerning his clearly stated «have two hands free» policy. I was a bit taken aback when he told my father «I would rather you drop your camera rather than drop my books.» I would have preferred a polite note somewhere stating a you break you buy policy.

I browsed a lot of used bookstores in my time. The majority act as junk warehouses. Not so at Dogtown Books!
I bought three quality reads at Dogtown, and I didn’t even have to look that hard. The shelves were stocked with great stuff. No digging required. The bookmark tucked into my purchases is actually a business card. Reads:
Dogtown Book Shop
Bob Ritchie
books, used & unusual
While I browsed the «used», my bf sought out the «unusual». He spent a spell thumbing through historical fiction written by uncelebrated local authors. There was a whole section of yellowing clothbound books pertaining to Gloucester’s unique maritime history.
Bob, himself, is a nice guy. Cheery demeanor, white beard and longish white hair — a popular look among used bookstore proprietors. Wished us a happy vacation on our way out.