Amsterdam

Follow a different line of thought.

PLACES TO WANDER · CITY 15

Three independent bookshops worth finding in person. If you're looking for the best independent bookshops in Amsterdam, Places to Wander's edited guide includes American Book Center in Spui, Athenaeum Boekhandel in Spui and San Serriffe in De Wallen. Explore the selected shops below, with neighborhood context, drawings and links to each shop's own website. The guide is edited, not numerically ranked.

Amsterdam · The bookshop mapChoose a number

Map: Esri, TomTom, Garmin, FAO, NOAA, USGS, © OpenStreetMap contributors and GIS User Community. Selected streets and water; numbered points use the existing address matches. Use directions for your visit.

The illustrated issue

Browse the drawings. Open a shop for visiting details.

01 · Spui

American Book Center

English-language books · Fiction · Ideas

Opened in 1972 on the Spui, staffed by forty-five people who between them count seven hundred years of bookselling. Betty, the book-making machine, printed on the premises from 2010 until January 2026.

The Spui gives you plenty to look at. Save some attention for the shelves. American Book Center brings English-language reading into the middle of Amsterdam, from fiction to books for your working life. Start with a familiar subject; leave room for an unfamiliar voice.

A familiar subject first. Then an unfamiliar voice.

Spui 12, 1012 XA Amsterdam, Netherlands

02 · Spui

Athenaeum Boekhandel

Literature · Magazines · International reading

Opened in September 1966 by Johan Polak and Rob van Gennep, owned by its staff since 1976, with the Nieuwscentrum for newspapers and magazines on the corner since 1969.

A magazine can change your mind about what a page can do. At Athenaeum, the bookshop and newsstand make neighboring cases for sustained reading and a quick visual discovery. Give the covers a look. Then get past them.

The newsstand and the bookshop share a wall. Give the covers a look. Then get past them.

Spui 14, 1012 XA Amsterdam, Netherlands

03 · De Wallen · THE DETOUR

San Serriffe

Artists’ books · Design · Theory

In De Wallen, open Thursday to Sunday, and publishes books as well as selling them.

A small door, a useful change of scale. San Serriffe works with artists’ books, design, literature and theory. Our detour is for anyone who has stopped noticing the shape of a book: here, its form can be part of its argument.

Sint Annenstraat 30, 1012 HE Amsterdam, Netherlands

Questions about Amsterdam’s bookshops

What are some of the best independent bookshops in Amsterdam?

Places to Wander's edited selection includes American Book Center, Athenaeum Boekhandel and San Serriffe. The guide is not numerically ranked. Each entry explains why the shop is included and links to the shop's own website.

What is The Detour in the Amsterdam issue?

San Serriffe in De Wallen. In De Wallen, open Thursday to Sunday, and publishes books as well as selling them. The Detour is an editorial designation, not a ranking.

Which featured bookshops specialize in art and design books?

San Serriffe in De Wallen. Follow each shop's official link for its current selection.

Is there a map of the featured bookshops?

Yes. The Amsterdam issue includes a map and shop index. Select a shop to open its entry, then use the shop's official link for visiting details. The illustrated map is an orientation aid, not a turn-by-turn route.

The Corporate Artist: The Art of Working Beautifully by Morgan Sage Norman

Bring your creative self
back to work.

The Corporate Artist: The Art of Working Beautifully is Morgan Sage Norman’s book about bringing your creative self to everyday work. It explores how the roles we play, the conversations we have and the decisions we make can become creative practice.

Find your copy ↗

The book on Bookshop.org ↗

Have the book with you?

Try Every Role Has a Medium (Your Craft) for a different way to look at what you do.

Or turn to Nothing Is Wasted and Rightsizing Importance. Begin with the title that catches you.

Looking for books about creativity at work? Visit the Reading Room.