Angel City Books on Santa Monica Boulevard is an independent used bookshop that has developed a particularly strong California section — Los Angeles history, California literature, surfing and beach culture, photography books, and local press publications. The selection is curated rather than comprehensive, which means the quality is consistently higher than a generic used bookshop.
The staff know the stock and can make recommendations in the California section specifically. It is the right place to find a used copy of Joan Didion's Slouching Towards Bethlehem, a Raymond Chandler in a vintage paperback edition, or a history of the Santa Monica pier that you would not find in a general bookshop.