Dashwood Books — Local services in New York

“It’s not for you.” — What I was told at Dashwood Books

I visited Dashwood Books to inquire about a specific tote bag. As soon as I walked in, I noticed a large stack of the exact item on the shelf in the back — a white canvas bag featuring a drawing of a stick figure and a tree.

However, the Japanese staff member who greeted me, Ms. Susuda, responded with a noticeably cold and condescending attitude.

When I asked, “Is this tote available for sale?” she curtly replied, “It’s sold out.” I pointed directly at the stack and asked again, “Then how can I get one?”

She looked at me and said flatly, “It’s not for you.”

Not, “Sorry, this isn’t for sale,” and not, “It’s only available to select customers.” Just: “It’s not for you.” She kept repeating, “It’s sold out,” her voice rising with an increasingly sharp and dismissive tone.

Yet the shelf behind her clearly held a full stack of the very item I was asking about. She simply refused to offer any explanation.

This wasn’t just cold service — it felt targeted. In that moment, I felt entirely excluded — perhaps because of the way I look, the way I speak, or simply because I didn’t fit the image of a customer she deemed “worthy” of that bag.

“Respect shouldn’t be conditional — granted only to those who fit a certain mold.”

I came with the sincere intent to support an independent bookstore. Instead, I was met with rejection and quiet contempt — a subtle form of discrimination, wrapped in minimalist design and a self-important sense...

Just had my first and only experience with this business. I ordered something from their website of a photographer that I admire that he advertised on Instagram as a book. I ordered three copies of it because it seemed like a good price ($18 per copy) and well, because I like his work. I also paid $15 for shipping to Canada. What I received is what you can see in the attached pictures. It's literally 5 sheets of paper stapled together in the center and folded over. there is no cover, not protection, nothing to keep it intact. I contacted them and told them that I was unhappy with my purchase. The response was: sorry that you don't like it, you can send it back as long as it's in mint condition, we won't cover your shipping cost. The declared customs value of this was $0.68 per copy, which I think is probably a fair value. I could have done a better job at my home printer with a screenshot of the images and it would have taken me 3 minutes to put together a cover to not make it an amateurish...

A must stop for any photographer. Excellent selection of new, used and out-of-print photobooks. Only complaint is the organization of the shop feels a little random, or is at least not made clear to customers. I went looking for a book or two by a specific photographer (who was in stock, according to their website). The person working was very helpful in trying to find it herself, but had no luck. Just as I was about to give up and leave, ran across what I was looking for in the back corner, and it was on sale. So, left a happy customer ... and will no doubt be back again...