After DC got named the nation’s most literate city, someone got up and made themselves a list of our fine city’s best bookstores. Thankfully, they did not include some bookstore in Alexandria or another one of DC’s suburbs, which is something people do when making ‘best of’ lists about DC and which annoys me greatly. I don’t make a list of the five best coffeeshops in New York City and claim that number three is a hipster cafe in Jersey City, so don’t come around here and tell me the Arlington or Bethesda are part of DC.

You know what I like about this list? It doesn’t open up with Politics and Prose.

P&P is great bookstore, don’t get me wrong, but for the local man about town, I don’t actually think it’s the best.

This one names Kramer Books as the best. I’ll accept that. About ten years ago, I used to drink at the bar over there (yes, inside the bookstore) several times a week with a friend. Politics and Prose may be more nationally iconic, but as far as being a local culturally touchstone, Kramer Books probably better.

I’ve actually never been to the Lantern nor Books For America, both on the list. And I was disappointed that Bridge Street Books wasn’t on the list, though happy that our delightfully cluttered local hangout, Capitol Hill Bookstore, made the cut.