The Book Loft

In a town that alternates between the historical and invented, the sincere and contrived, the Book Loft is a genuinely good shop, with well maintained used books in most categories, reasonable prices, and a friendly, knowledgable staff. Plus, hand-​carved wooden signs throughout.

Such a cute and quaint little bookstore in beautiful Solvang! I really liked the ambience and the selection. As soon as you walk in you feel at peace and all you want to do is read a book right off the shelves. I bought a Jane Austen novel and was tempted to get myself a book bag and a novel t-​shirt. I will be coming here again on my next visit! I love this store! Make sure to check out the second floor (which I failed to do so), they have a huge selection of used books.

Clean, nicely organized, with a huge assortment of party games, a used book section, and an adjoining coffee house– it’s worth a stop if not just window shopping. Because my family is auditioning for Family Feud, I bought the home game here, knowing it was only $ 1.50 more than Hell-​Mart, which is a great price for a small business! Is The Book Loft a great bookstore? Word.

I was in Solvang from LA visiting family and I wasn’t sure what to expect of this small bookstore, but it’s awesome. Surprisingly great selection of small press books. Left with a bagful. Will definitely be back on next visit.

Nice bookstore! The staff was very helpful and they had just the book I was looking for

Walking through the door, I was struck by the beauty of this bookstore. The physical architecture, general layout, and the selection of books gathered within its walls. For me, just this bookstore alone, was well worth the drive from Oceanside to Solvang.
As with all bookstores, I immediately went looking for its poetry section — as a general rule, over the years I’ve come to realize that a good yard stick to measure the quality of a bookstore (new or used) is the selection of its poetry section, or whether they have a poetry section at all. Again, Book Loft did not disappoint, their selection of poetry was amazing and it is by far one of the best that I’ve seen in any bookstore new or used.
Heading up to the second floor there was a wide range of used books (including another poetry section of just used books, the one on the first floor is all new books). They also had a replica Gutenberg press on display as well as several other early press types.
Another great find was the museum dedicated to Hans Christian Anderson. Again there were lots of titles to see and buy as well as a wealth of historical items to check out.
My visit to Solvang was short, but I’ll be headed back to explore more of this gorgeous little town at some point in the not-​to-​distant future — the Book Loft will be one of my must see places to visit again.

You can’t miss the Hans Christian Andersen museum upstairs! I especially enjoyed the replica of his home. This is a great little bookstore, and a must-​visit if you’re in Solvang. They have many first-​edition copies of books, shelves dedicated to Scandinavian literature, and signed collectibles that are fun to browse through. Definitely worth your time!

The literary savior of the valley. An adorable little book store with a great coffee shop and good selection of books to roam through. The guys who work there are very nice, as well. The Hans Christian Andersen museum upstairs is also a plus.

Good variety of books at a decent price. Not a discount store by any means. My kids were able to find books for the drive home. There is a coffee shop adjacent to the store. Make sure to finalize your purchase before going into the store. We were not greeted on the way in and the staff didn’t acknowledge us. You knew who the regulars were because they were greeted by name. Guess out of townees aren’t as important. Either way, we made our purchase and were out the door.

This bookstore is a treasure and worth the trip to Solvang!

A great selection of hardbacks mixed with soft cover books throughout the store, reasonably priced for the quality and rarities. It includes entire bookcases for Denmark, Sweden, Norway and even Vikings (with multiple translations of Beowulf). The staff are friendly helpful and love books as much as you do!

Be sure to go upstairs and find high quality used books as well as an excellent museum on Hans Christian Andersen. You’ll be glad you did.

A very nice book store full of me and used books. Spent way too much, we aren’t allowed to go back, ha.

Such an amazing, cute bookstore! I will come here every time I visit Solvang now mainly for the nostalgic feel. I wish I found this place when I was younger, the time before I had a job and bills and all I did was read and collect books lol. This place is a little fantasy land for book lovers, I could spend hours looking at everything. Great selection of such beautiful books, and amazing prices for an independent bookstore. Also, they have the Hans Christian Anderson Museum upstairs! Really cool! Also, the man that was helping us, who I believe seemed like the owner, was the sweetest. I took home a book, Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm as a little souvenir. It was just too pretty! I will definitely stop in next time I’m in town!

My husband doesn’t love shopping, but he and I both enjoy bookstores. Thanks to the advice of fellow Unilocalers, I discovered the Book Loft & made it a part of our first Solvang trip. A dragon topped sign directed us towards the store. Inside, we found a modestly sized collections of fiction, Danish and Norwegian literature, and a wonderful upstairs section with first edition books. I especially loved that they had a whole case devoted to the Oz books. I also enjoyed experiencing the Hans Christian Anderson museum. It was a wonderful surprise to discover that Hans Christian Anderson was also a gifted artist who created many unique paper cuttings.

Nice place!
Friendly and warm reception and a great knowledge on all our questions.
Will return!

Great little book shop with plenty of reading to keep everyone in the family occupied: local history for the oldest, origami books for the youngest, and a great collection of Hans Christian Andersen for me. We did end up getting the origami book and the paper to go with it, and the ladies were so helpful! And, if you have time, there’s a little gallery upstairs with information on Mr. Andersen. A must-​stop for book lovers if in Solvang.

This is a super cute bookstore right in the heart of Solvang. I always love walking through bookstores and browsing what’s available. Amazon browsing just isn’t the same. Walked out with a couple of books and although there is a much better discount on Amazon, I always like supporting smaller independent bookstores. We come up to Santa Ynez quite often so this will be on my list of must stops before we head up to the wineries.

This is one of my regular stops whenever I’m in Solvang. I just get so nostalgic when I’m inside this bookstore. I feel like a little kid all over again, mainly due to its great collection of Hans Christian Andersen’s books. Even though I grew up in Korea I read lot of Andersen’s stories when I was a kid so those images stuck with me. I feel safe and secure whenever I see old Danish toys and books. It almost makes me wonder if I was Dane in my past life.
There are general books on the first floor and used books and Hans Christian Andersen Museum on the second floor. I usually just go straight upstairs because that’s what sets this place apart from other bookstores. I know I can buy lot of these books at a lower price on Amazon or some other online store but I like supporting independent bookstores so I’ll usually pick up some Andersen’s fairy tales whenever I’m out here.
It’s nice to see this place has been in business for over 40 years. That’s quite an accomplishment given many of the large chain bookstores have gone out of business. This is truly a booklover’s bookstore with special focus on Scandinavian culture, children’s books, and Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tales.

Cozy, charming, and cute. i miss the excitement and yet sense of calm you get from browsing and exploring independent bookstores like these! The Hans Christian Andersen museum is upstairs, which features his tales in multiple languages as well as posterboards depicting his life– kind of neat, however not as grand as the title «museum» suggests. As a plus, there’s a café (Bulldog Café) attached to the bookstore which serves great coffee and offers free WiFi too.

This bookstore is best for browsing than actually purchasing since the selection isn’t very extensive. The selection ranges from random to classic editions. The space is small yet charming. However, I still prefer Bart’s Books in Ojai and Shakespeare & Company in Paris when it comes to charming hidden treasure bookstores.
This bookstore leads straight into the Hans Christian Anderson museum. The staff is friendly and will to answer any questions. It’s a nice, refreshing change from big bookstores like Barnes & Nobles.

Very cozy little book store down town Solvang! Whether you are a tourist, or a local, it is a wonderful spot to have a short break to smell the books, touch the pages, and read a story or two. You can also sense aroma of coffee, because they have a wonderful coffee shop on the grounds.
Do not be lazy and go upstairs to check out the Hans Christian Anderson museum. I grew up on his fairy tales, so it was at least curious to find out a bit more about the man who created magic. The museum could have been a bit better organized and staffed. But hey, I’ll take what they have to offer!