Above the door of Yesterday, a bookstore and memorabilia shop located not far from Wrigley Field, hangs a sign that reads: "Where the past meets the present." One step inside this yellow, single-story building dating from the 1880s and you'll realize that the sign could just as easily read "Where as much of the past as will possibly fit into a very small space is sold" or, more succinctly, "Nostalgia Land."

To call Yesterday simply a bookstore would be a gross understatement. In fact, if you name nearly anything—a sports team, a movie star, a recording artist—odds are good that you'll find memorabilia for it inside. Movie posters, baseball pennants, Cubs photos, Elvis paraphernalia, records, figurines, 1950s board games, comics, Superman lunchboxes and newspaper clippings of JFK's assassination—it's all here somewhere, tucked and stacked among the shelves of this near-bursting shop. The inventory even includes the Midwest's largest collection of Life magazines.

Tom Boyle, who's owned and worked at Yesterday for the past three decades, estimates that there are over 3,200 baseball cards in his shop. He tends toward the paper-end of sports memorabilia (photos, cards, newspaper articles) rather than objects like autographed bats and balls. And while many items are certainly worth a pretty penny today, the shop is aimed squarely at indulging nostalgia rather than emotionless collecting.

Despite the size of the shop, the depth of inventory—and memories—lends itself more toward leisurely browsing than quick-stop shopping.

Centerstage Reviewer: Kate Rockwood