Renaissance Books at the Milwaukee International Airport

I went to Milwaukee to have Thanksgiving with Susie and Cindy again this year and had a great time as usual. We spent a lot of time with the new Wii (particularly Wii fit) and even more time eating to excess (hence the need for Wii fit). But on the way back I stopped be Renaissance Books at the Milwaukee International Airport. What a terrific bookstore to find in a huge place like that. How they stay in business is beyond me but they are superbly stocked. The variety and prices of these old books is impressive enough but the man that runs the place seems to do it alone. Given, I don't hang out there all day but I've never seen anyone else working there that I can recall. Dubious, I know, relying on my powers of recollection. Moving on.

I first noticed the place years ago when I first flew to into MKE. It looked like one of those old treasure trove bookshops you'd find in a strip mall or tucked into an alley somewhere. Dingy, dank and smelling of molding paper. Beautiful, in a word. The proprietors are inevitably gruff octogenarians, suspicious of your ability to care for tomes properly (as they should be; look at the state of yourself!). The old man at Renaissance isn't particularly gruff or suspicious but he has managed to transport his realm of mystery into the most soulless of places, the aeroport. But when I first encountered the place they had not made any of the renovations you'll see in the photo. The windows were boarded and there were stacks and stacks of books all over the floors. Sure, that's no big deal in a used bookshop but this is in an airport. They tend to frown upon disorder and dishevelment as a rule. That was what first drew me to it. How could this place possible exist? Who let this happend? "Hurry!" I thought to myself, "before they find out and close it forever," whover they in this case. But if they did find out about it they simply required the place to spruce up a bit and go about business as usual. Which was fairly brisk on Monday. I picked up a gift and a book about fortresses for myself. I needed it, you understand, for business reasons.

Should you find yourself in MKE for any reason take a moment to visit. The only other options are the PGA store and Brooks Brothers and if I'm giving you trip advice you're most likely not a douche in the first place so you won't be patronizing these establishments anyway.