Mystery Pier Entices Bibliophiles in Weho

Where in the world but on the famous Sunset Strip would you discover a bookstore that attracts the likes of Johnny Depp and mystery buffs the world over? The answer lies within 8826 Sunset Blvd., the location of

Nestled off Sunset, a stone's throw from and , the unexpected delight features understated atmosphere. Stroll shelves and cases of hard-bound tomes, as well as bound film scripts, some annotated by Hollywood luminaries.

Find Dickens and Orwell, Steinbeck and Vonnegut. Particularly noteworthy is Winston Churchill’s six-volume series on World War II inscribed to Lord Dufferin and Ava. A find for any bibliophile is the Harper Lee-signed To Kill a Mockingbird.

"Mystery Pier is an outstanding store run by nice gentlemen with rare personalized items filled with fascinating history,” said author Peter H. Brothers, who stepped inside the shop after a book signing at Book Soup next door.

Part shop, part astonishing print museum, Mystery Pier is, as British film star Michael Caine says, “like the most wonderful museum, except you get to buy the exhibits.” Autographed pictures of Hollywood stars grace shop walls spilling into the owners’ office, home to British transplant Harvey Jason and son/partner Louis.

Some of Mystery Pier's contents are pricey, and some priceless. Jason notes the first known feminist novel, The Awakening by Kate Chopin, is for sale at his shop, as is one of 11 original copies of Robert Louis Stevenson's classic, Jekyll and Hyde.

Representatives from “across the pond” are alive in West Hollywood. “We brought Harry Potter to America,” Jason says gleefully. J.K. Rowling-signed copies grace the shop. Books from Mystery Pier, says Jason, fill the private libraries and bookshelves of U2 singer Bono and actors Nicole Kidman and John Malkovich.