Buenos Aires is one of the metropolitan areas with the highest ratio of bookstores per capita in the world. And Corrientes Avenue is an epicenter of the city's literary appetite. What sets this place apart from other major streets around the world is that the booksellers don't close their shutters when the sun goes down .
Most of the bookstores on Corrientes Street are located between the old Esmeralda Street and Callao Avenue . It's a stroll where chain stores selling the latest releases coexist with tiny aisles crammed with old magazines and rare used books, hard to find in regular catalogs.
Let's look at the must-visit bookstores and the secrets of the great reading event that completely stops traffic once a year.
Kafka Bookstore
Kafka is a classic bookstore specializing in used and out-of-print books . Its catalog features literature, philosophy, and social sciences, categorized by genre to facilitate searching by author. Because they are secondhand books, the prices are lower than those in bookstores selling new releases . It's a place designed for those seeking antique editions or browsing bins of remaindered books.
Location : Corrientes 1117
Hernández Bookstore
Librería Hernández boasts a catalog focused on sociology, philosophy, politics, history, and Latin American literature . It's one of the best places to find works by lesser-known national authors. Offering new releases and recent publications, their prices reflect current market rates.
The space is divided into clearly marked aisles for organizing study materials and fiction. It's the perfect place to find academic essays or Argentine fiction, with expert advice from booksellers.
Location : Corrientes 1436
Eudeba Bookstore
Eudeba 's location on Corrientes Avenue is the sales point for the University of Buenos Aires Press . Its aim is to provide access to a catalog of university textbooks, research, essays, and academic publications .
Because it is a state-run publishing house, the books are affordably priced compared to commercial publications. The library offers access to technical texts and teaching materials required for university courses. For this reason, it is frequently used by professors, students, and researchers who need institutional support materials.
Location : Corrientes 2040
La Cátedra Bookstore
The Chair This bookstore focuses its inventory on the performing arts . It carries texts of plays, directing manuals, acting theory, and texts on set design and lighting . Due to its proximity to the theaters on Corrientes Avenue, its regular customers are actors, playwrights, and students .
Prices vary depending on the origin of the text, as they offer both new and used copies. It's the go-to resource for those working in the art world who need technical tools.
Location : Corrientes 1620
Zivals Bookstore
Zivals is a record store and bookstore , so its space is divided into two sections. On the main floor, it offers new releases, contemporary fiction, and art books . In the music section, it carries CDs, vinyl records, and audio accessories .
Book prices are the official publisher prices, while music prices vary depending on where it's imported from. Its location makes it a go-to place for the latest releases.
Location : corner of Callao and Corrientes
Lucas Bookstore
Librería Lucas is another option for buying and selling used books. Its catalog includes fiction novels, encyclopedias, textbooks, and collectible magazines . Prices are reasonable and depend on the condition of each book. It's a place to browse through stacks of books, ideal for finding out-of-print titles at affordable prices.
Location : Av. Corrientes 1247
Underground Bookstore
As its name suggests, Librería del Subsuelo (Underground Bookstore) is located below street traffic, on the lower level of a gallery overlooking Corrientes Avenue. It specializes in secondhand books, with a catalog focused on essays, psychoanalysis, philosophy, and literature at reduced prices. Descending the gallery stairs, you can browse out-of-print editions with the guidance of the booksellers.
Location : Corrientes 1187
The Night of the Bookstores
The city of Buenos Aires is unique in the world for the quantity and quality of community-based cultural experiences right on the streets. Every November, readers, writers, and the general public gather on Corrientes Avenue for an event that has become a classic: La Noche de las Librerías (The Night of the Bookstores ).
During that night, traffic is blocked, and the entire street becomes a single literary pedestrian promenade. Businesses extend their regular hours until nearly midnight and display enormous trays outside.
In addition to commercial offerings, the city management has installed infrastructure along the streets, such as the El Aleph Stage or the reflective Urgent Stage, where journalists, poets, essayists, and historians give free literary talks for residents . All of this takes place against the backdrop of the spectacular illuminated city center at night.