Hours
Monday–Saturday, 1–5 PM. Closed Sunday. We’re also open evenings while meetings are going on — you’re welcome to browse or buy.
50 years in existence · 35 years on the West Bank
Books. Ideas.
Community. Action.
May Day Books is a volunteer collective and no-profit bookstore in Minneapolis’s West Bank community — left and political books, magazines, used books, author talks, and a room where things get organized.
- 15–20%below cover price, on every book, all the time
- Volunteer-runa no-profit collective since day one
- Since 1975not making a profit — on purpose
What you’ll find down the steps
A whole store of books for a better world
Fiction and non-fiction, new and used, plus the magazine rack you won’t find at a chain. Every book 15–20% below cover price.
New Books
Left and political fiction and non-fiction — every book 15% below cover price, hardcovers 20% below. All the time.
MoreUsed Books & Cut-Outs
A constant stream of used books from Twin Cities leftists and estates, plus deeply discounted cut-outs from our own stock.
MoreMagazines & Newspapers
A wide rack of political magazines and left-wing newspapers you won't find at the chains.
MoreEvents & Author Talks
Public events, author talks and political education — the store is a hub for social movements in the Twin Cities.
MoreMeeting Space
Groups meet here regularly. Call the store to reserve the room for your event or meeting.
MoreBook Orders
Don't see it on the shelf? Call or email and we'll order it for you.
More
The deepest left selection in the Twin Cities
One store. The whole left.
Every tendency argues on the same shelf.
- Activist
- Labor
- Progressive
- Populist
- Revolutionary
- Working class
- Union
- Anarchist
- Green
- Socialist
- Marxist
- Radical
- Feminist
- African-American
- Latino
- Indigenous
- LGBTQ
- Community
- Do-It-Yourself
- History
- Fiction
- Rock & folk music
- & more
Why “May Day”?
The name comes from a fight
May Day was born in Chicago in 1886, in the fight for the eight-hour day — later declared an international day of labor and celebrated by working people all over the world. It’s a paid holiday in many nations, except the country where it began.
May Day Books carries on the tradition in its original home.
Read Our Story“I never died,” says he.
— Joe Hill, 1915
Finding us
In the heart of the West Bank
301 Cedar Avenue, below the Afghan Relief Society. Go down the steps.
Directions
Below street level at 301 Cedar Avenue — take the steps down. Parking in the large lot in back; ask us about a parking pass.
Getting here
Green Line: West Bank Station, half a block. Blue Line: Cedar-Riverside, four blocks. Buses 2, 3, 7, 16 and 22.
Comrades & customers
People keep coming down the steps
4.7 stars across 100 Google reviews — read them on Google.
I come to Minneapolis bi-monthly for work. I will make sure I stop in and grab a new book every time I visit. You guys are incredibly lucky a place like this exists in your community.
Came in from out of town, put this on my list of things to do. I'd highly reccomend this place for many reasons. Vibes are immaculate, chatted with some older comrades while browsing for books.
Mayday Books is THE left-wing bookstore for hundreds of miles in every direction.
Help May Day survive
We’re a no-profit, all-volunteer store — donations keep the lights on and the discounts deep. Write checks to “May Day Books”, or bring one by the shop.
Reading the left since 2007
Visit the Blog
Book & culture reviews on the May Day blog
New-book write-ups and an archive of left book and culture reviews going back to 2007.
Come down the steps.
301 Cedar Avenue, on the West Bank — open Mon–Sat · 1–5 PM. Browse, argue, join a table, or just use the Wi-Fi.