New York City's Housing Works Used Book Café offers customers an ample stock of bargain-priced books, a beautiful venue for some of the country's most esteemed authors to read their works, and, most important, support and assistance for homeless people with HIV/AIDS.

"First off, on the most basic level, it's a very appealing physical space. There's also a feeling about it that's unusual," Susan Orlean, author of The Orchid Thief (Ballantine), told PW. "It draws people in a way most book places don't. It's got a spirit and esprit that's unusual. There's a feeling among the staff of tremendous commitment, and the place draws a different kind of audience—people who seem passionate about supporting a place with such an unusual mission."

Used Book Café is an entrepreneurial venture of Housing Works Inc., a not-for-profit organization that provides housing, health care, job placement and other services to homeless people with HIV/AIDS—all of Used Book Café's profits go to these programs. Located in Manhattan's SoHo district, Used Book Café opened in 1996.

"Housing Works recognized a need to think differently," store manager Joel Tippie told PW. The organization runs four thrift stores around New York City. "We had an abundance of book donations at the thrift stores, and no place to store it all. It kind of came out of necessity."

The Used Book Café was originally run by volunteers, Tippie said, but the store's profits were minimal and changes were needed. "The organization recognized that we needed to bring in book lovers and people with a knowledge of how to run a bookstore," said Tippie. "Initially, we were a book dealer heaven. You could pay $1.50 for first editions—which was great for them, but not for our business. We work very hard to maximize profits for the store and cause."

The store now employs 10 people, along with volunteer help, to manage the inventory of 45,000 new, used and rare books. It also hired book expert Nancy Cooper to evaluate the rare books, most of which are sold online. The store relies entirely on donations from the public, publishers and reviewers.

"We get a lot of books from publishers, literary agents and a lot from magazines like Book Forum and O," said Darcy Cosper, the store's publicist. "Sometimes we get large one-time donations or—with the magazines and agents—we'll pick up everything they have every couple months."

"Yeah, or Simon & Schuster will give us 80 tremendous and frightening boxes," Tippie added with a laugh.

Events and Readings

Housing Works, with its 20-foot ceilings, decadent spiral staircases, mahogany-paneled balconies and an intimate cafe, offers visitors a homey and comfortable place to relax, browse and read. But it's the store's events and readings, featuring both literary stars as well as up-and-coming writers, that have made it a hub for the literary community and fans of the written word.

Orlean said, "I did an event there recently with Louis Begley, and I remember pulling up and seeing this long line of people outside waiting. It's very exciting, especially in a time where the death of print has been much heralded—you go to Housing Works and think, 'What are they talking about?' "

Over the last year or so, the Used Book Café's reputation as a place for authors to be seen and heard has grown. The staff and board have worked hard at generating buzz.

"We felt like we couldn't focus enough on promotion, events and readings," said Tippie. "We were reliant on the whims of people in the area— we had good days and bad days, but we never did anything to draw attention to ourselves. You have to be consistent and keep doing things to bring traffic."

"The readings generate some sales, but we mostly do them to get people here so they can see what we're about," added Cosper. "If we have Zadie Smith reading here, maybe some people from the Upper West Side, who weren't aware of us, will make the trip down. It raises the profile of the store and the organization."

Despite the bookstore's reliance on donations and its nonprofit status, publicists are eager to have their authors read there. They donate books, as well. According to Claire Greenspan, associate publicist at HarperCollins/William Morrow, her company usually donates two boxes—around 40 books—to an author's reading. "I don't look at it as helping promote book sales. I like the following the store has. I also notice that some freelancers with prominent affiliations, whose articles appear in Time Out New York and the L.A. Times, are big supporters of events there. They will send out personal e-mails to get people to Housing Works," Greenspan told PW. "Also, every time I've been there, other authors who are not connected to the event have been there to check it out. It's like their nesting ground."

The Used Book Café has hosted readings for stars such as Paul Auster, Michael Cunningham, Dave Eggers, Rick Moody and Jonathan Franzen, as well as lesser-known writers. To raise money, it also rents out the store for events. The New Yorker rents the space twice a year, Harper's magazine holds its holiday parties and fundraisers there and the store has played host to events sponsored by the New Republic, Castle Rock Pictures and Simon & Schuster.

"It's a balance," explains Tippie. "We want to make money, but we don't want to alienate our regular clientele, so we try to keep the renting to a few times a month. We want to give people the opportunity to come here and veg during the week and not be kicked out their seats. It's about being inclusive—making a buck but with a conscience."

"Housing Works is the only bookstore I can think of that I'd actually want to take up residence in," said Jonathan Safran Foer, author of Everything Is Illuminated (Perennial), who recently appeared at the store with Zadie Smith. "It's physically beautiful, in a nice neighborhood, clean but not uptight, usually filled with smart, nice-looking people, and the keeper of good coffee.

"I did a lot of editing on Everything Is Illuminated in Housing Works, at one of the tables on the balcony," Foer continued. "I'd take the train in from Queens every morning and spend about four hours up there, completely out of the sight and attention of everyone in the store. It was a great place to go about my business in peace. Also, I was close to dictionaries, which was quite useful."

Tippie is happy with the amount of money Used Book Café has been able to raise for Housing Works and the awareness it has been able to generate for the cause. In the future, the store may branch into musical events; the store would also like to sponsor more discussions about authors' works, rather than just readings and, perhaps, start a partner series with the 92nd St. Y.

"Housing Works is one the most congenial, best places in New York," said Frederic Tuten, author of The Green Hour (Norton). "There is a sense of being in a friend's living room and in a wonderful old bookstore, where people feel comfortable sitting and reading all day drinking coffee and talking about books. In a time when the independent bookstore is disappearing, Housing Works is a boon to writers and I'm grateful for its being."

For information on donations, volunteering, rare books, upcoming programs and more, visit www.housingworks.org.