Incredible Utah bookstore looks like quaint European village and is stuffed with literary movie props
Moon's Rare Books is more than a bookstore - it's a time capsule disguised as a shop.
With its 200-year-old French brick floor, a relic of the Napoleonic era, the store is a living testament to history, and every corner holds a story waiting to be discovered.
Historian Reid Moon, the store’s encyclopedic owner and curator, breathes life into ordinary objects. His passion for storytelling transforms the shop into a living, thousand-year-old library amidst the modern allure of The Shops at Riverwoods in Provo, Utah.
'There are about 5,000 items in the store,' Moon told The Salt Lake Tribune. 'Our specialty is printing press forward, so [the] past 500 [to] 600 years.'
The space is a bibliophile's dream, from first editions of Jane Austen to movie props like Harry Potter's robes and Thor's hammer, the store is a captivating blend of literature and pop culture.
Moon's Rare Books is more than a bookstore; it's a time capsule disguised as a shop
Reid Moon, the store’s encyclopedic owner, curator, and historian, breathes life into ordinary objects. His passion for storytelling transforms the shop into a living, thousand-year-old library amidst the modern allure of The Shops at Riverwoods in Provo, Utah
Showcased in frequently updated display cases are a JFK-signed pamphlet, Conan Doyle's pipe, a first edition 'Grimm's Fairy Tales,' and Houdini's handcuffs.
Even a 14-pound chunk of the Berlin Wall, acquired with a special export permit, finds a home here.
The children's section is a whimsical contrast, housing Charles Dickens' original writing desk where 'A Tale of Two Cities' was penned.
Moon's passion for sharing his collection extends beyond the store's walls. With over 3 million followers on TikTok and Instagram, he introduces a younger generation who 'aren't collecting books like previous generations, because everything's digital.'
In an age dominated by digital content, Moon's success lies in his ability to tell captivating stories.
'People love a story. People are fascinated with stories. People will sit down and listen to a good story all day long. A good story beats anything you can see on TV,' he said. 'That's kind of in my byline — it's Reid Moon: storyteller … I tell the history of the world through books.'
Bookstores have been a family business, said Reid. When books started becoming digital, instead of fighting the change, Reid transitioned to 'used and rare' books.
The children's section is a whimsical contrast, housing Charles Dickens' original writing desk where 'A Tale of Two Cities' was penned
Showcased in frequently updated display cases are a JFK-signed pamphlet, Conan Doyle's pipe, a first edition 'Grimm's Fairy Tales,' and Houdini's handcuffs. Even a 14-pound chunk of the Berlin Wall, acquired with a special export permit, finds a home here
The store's crown jewel is the back room, a temperature-controlled vault brimming with literary and historical significance.
'When people come into this back room, we tell them, name any person, place, event, anything that's happened in the history of the world since the printing press, and we have something that ties to it with no more than one degree of separation,' Moon said. 'Every book, to be in the back room, it has to have a story.'
For an hour, a limited group of 25 guests can immerse themselves in a world of rare artifacts and captivating stories.
Tickets for these unique experiences are available for purchase, with all proceeds benefiting Generations Humanitarian, a nonprofit dedicated to aiding street children in countries like Venezuela.
A 'Where's Waldo'-style game challenges visitors to spot specific items among the countless treasures. From a handwritten Quran to a law ledger belonging to Alexander Hamilton, the back room is a historian's paradise.
Moon's collection of first edition Book of Mormons is particularly impressive, including copies owned by Joseph Smith's brothers.
Moon's passion for sharing his collection extends beyond the store's walls. With over 3 million followers on TikTok and Instagram, he introduces a younger generation who 'aren't collecting books like previous generations, because everything's digital'
For an hour, a limited group of 25 guests can immerse themselves in a world of rare artifacts and captivating stories in the temperature-controlled back vault
He believes these artifacts should be shared and accessible, and he often invites Latter-day Saint missionaries to experience them firsthand.
'It's not too late to start reading again,' said Moon. 'People are just so used to sitting in front of a screen and being entertained. But your own imagination and what you visualize when you read surpasses anything that you can see online.'
'I hope I'm still doing this in 20 years, because I'm not retiring.'
