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    The Monkey's Paw

    4.6 (26 reviews)
    ModerateBookstores
    Closed 12:00 pm - 5:00 PM

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    Jessica R.

    Really awesome bookshop. So glad I went out of my way to stop here because they have such interesting finds. The prices are a bit steep but I think that's to be expected in a store with such unique books. The book machine was a really spectacular feature for $5.

    Sydney B.

    Found the monkeys paw on yelp and had to try it for the book vending machine. It was $3 and dispensed a vintage book, and I'm so glad I did it! I got a book called "My Canada" by Elinor Marsden Elliot. The bookstore is small and has old books from the early 1900s. Books range from $30 and up. The books are lovely and I found a couple I would want, but found the pricing a bit too much for me. Still very cool to walk in and take a look at, I'm happy with my $3 souvenir!

    Erica M.

    It is time for another book store review because I can't help myself. I have a gravitational pull to book stores that kicks in almost as quickly as I get off the plane. When heading over to The Monkey's Paw, I was in full tourist mode, which included having my camera at-the-ready. Stephen Fowler, the owner of The Monkey's Paw, looked at me a little disapprovingly when I took the above picture outside of the shop. So, I was slightly embarrassed when I cautiously walked in, but then he asked me to keep the coffee I as clutching at the front of the store. TWO book store violations in just a few minutes. I was not in top form. In my nicest and meekest voice possible, I said "sure" and tried not to break any more rules. I truly am in the elite class of book-store-frequenters; these were rookie moves. Just to be clear, he wasn't mean or aggressive. His look to me outside and his desire to keep beverages at the front was to protect the goodies inside his shop that were well selected and curated. He seemed like a thoughtful person. In his conversations with customers, I heard him offer to email recommended books to customers while giving a thorough origin story to The Biblio-Mat. From the website: The Biblio-Mat is a coin-operated vending machine that dispenses randomly-selected old books. It is the first device of its kind, allowing curious bibliophiles to sample the excitement and mystery of antiquarian-book hunting for the coast of a single $2 coin. The Biblio-Mat was designed and constructed for the Monkey's Paw by animator Craig Small. The Biblio-Mat is ridiculously awesome. Customers were fascinated by it AND were actively using it. Seeing what each customer was getting (the topics were pretty wide-ranging) was really fun. For a place that looks a little haunted, it has some levity as well. Speaking of haunted, The Monkey's Paw's interior was designed to reference the W.W. Jacobs (horror) short story with the same name. Do you remember that story from your (insert the name of a Liberal Arts College) Short Story Class? Just me? Ugh, it was so awful. Here is my amazing summary: There was this guy who came back from a trip to India with a monkey's paw (because he was in the service, possibly- bear with me, I am just getting warmed up here). He tells this small family (a husband, wife and their grown son) the story of the monkey's paw, which was that the paw has the ability to grant three wishes, but the last person who made three wishes used their third wish to ask for death. Big stuff. The guy who came from India tried to destroy the monkey's paw dramatically while telling the story, but the husband he was telling the story to saved it and used it to wish for money. Not a ton of money, just enough to pay off his house. Then, (this is the first gross part) the son is killed by machinery in his company. Coincidentally (actually the opposite of coincidentally- this is all because of THE PAW), his family is compensated the exact amount of money his father asked the monkey's paw for to pay off their house. Ewwwww. THEN, the wife uses the monkey's paw to revive her son (although he has been dead AWHILE now) and there is a knock on the door. The husband (who made the first terrible wish and the second to bring back his dead son because his wife asked him to) makes a third wish for his son to go away before the wife can answer the door. So messed up. Seriously, stop messing with fate. Man, I should write book reports professionally and only about stories I haven't read in 15 years. Solid career choice. ANYWAY, is it a place where you could spend hours walking around? Probably not. It is a relatively small store and, where the texts are interesting, the store is a little more resistant to that type of lolly-gagging than most other books stores I have been in. But here (following The Monkey's Paw theme), your wishes are books that you can straight pay for (using "loonies" and "toonies"- Canadian money is hilarious) instead of having to lose a loved one. Just saying. In closing, a series of questions and answers that really could be written as statements, but aren't because it is more fun and theatrical to write this way: Are there medical drawings on the wall? Yes. Is everything arranged by subject? Yes. (And some of them are... interesting.) Is there a stuffed crow on a typewriter? Yes. Did I buy a copy of a Calvino and a Neruda? Duh, of course. Swing on by, just be cool about your camera and keep your coffee at the door.

    Melissa J.

    If you're the kind of person who appreciates the smell of an old book more than a new one, who loves looking at old pamphlets, and who craves owning the first edition of their favourite novel, this is the place for you. The display at Monkey's Paw will be enough to draw you in -- medical drawings on the wall, the window bragging about all things "old and unusual", the crow on the typewriter... But once you're inside, you won't be able to stop looking around. The store may have strange hours (closed Monday and Tuesday, open randomly throughout the week) but it still manages to attract people from all over searching for the perfect book or the perfect gift. The interior resembles the short story after which it is named (by W.W. Jacobs), with a haunted feeling inside, and the hope that your three wishes will be granted -- except here your wishes will be books, and you won't have to lose a family member to get them. Everything is arranged by subject, except for the short shelf at the front that is exclusively for new arrivals -- check it out to grab the second edition Kafka that I left behind (SIGH). They've got shelves upon shelves of stuff -- old cookbooks, books on Satanism from the 50s, pamphlets trying to understand why women are promiscuous (how out of character for us!), and dozens of other books that you might just find amusing or could complete your lifelong collection. This store is a gem on a relatively boring stretch of Dundas, and is a must-see for any lover of books or history!

    I got Art Nouveau!  I'll take that as a prediction of my summer!
    Dawn V.

    Five stars for the one of a kind book dispensing machine in the back! For $2 coin, you take your chances on an old and unusual book. Like a vending machine for the eclectic reader! Love it!

    Fred L.

    Fun little adventure to go see the Biblio-mat. We read about it online, hopped in the car, and drove over to see it in person. It's $2 per go - I got The Battle of Kohima and my girlfriend got History of England. Take the time to browse this quaint little shop afterwards because they have some very cool stuff in here (cool books, short stories, stamps, and bugs).

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    Review Highlights - The Monkey's Paw

    The best part about the shop is their book vending machine called the Bibliomat.

    Mentioned in 4 reviews

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    Balfour Books

    Balfour Books

    3.8(13 reviews)
    2.0 kmPalmerston
    $

    I'm pretty well-versed in Toronto's used bookstores from Spadina westward, and I got to tell you,…read moreif you're looking for a operated by two grumpy old white men who feel at ease with making inappropriate judgements about your book selection, then this is the place for you. I was looking for Sylvia Plath's "The Bell Jar" and the stockier gentleman responded "they run out quickly, guess suicidal and mediocre has become in fashion again." This wasn't the only thing I noticed. I was curious about the name "Balfour," and it only occurred to me from the various Israel-themed content in the bookstore that it's most likely commemorative of Arthur Balfour, the British administrator of post-Ottoman Palestine who promised a Jewish state for Zionist Jews in the UK (see "Balfour Declaration, 1917). For a used bookstore that I've been frequenting for at least 8 years now since I've moved to this city, their selection has been consistently in desperate need for non-white authors, especially in their social sciences, religious studies, philosophy, plays, and art sections. The prices, sure, can be low, sometimes lower than other bookstores (especially the smaller, vintage-looking paperbacks at the front), but they've increased over time. $25 dollars for a Foucault book? Come on now! Moral of the story is: if you're a bookworm with a shred of an ethical compass, I implore you to avoid this bookstore at any costs. Don't let the price or the antiquarian section deceive you, Toronto is a reader-heavy city with many competing bookstores that you can visit and indulge your imagination in!

    Super warm and wonderful staff! Love this place, will definitely be coming back again many times!read more

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    Balfour Books

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    The Monkey's Paw - bookstores - Updated May 2026

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