I'm lucky: I have the best local store ever.
I'm 21, and since I'm a city kid, it took me a while (and a lot of shopping around) to figure out all the different complexities of the firearm world.
Luckily, in a little, nondescript building just a few blocks from my house, there's the sweetest little shop I've ever been in. They don't have the biggest selection of firearms, and they're not the cheapest, but they have a lot of holsters, a lot of ammunition (which you can mill through in isles), and most of all, one of the shopkeeps is more than happy to make small talk.
Not only is he happy to talk about different models without giving me a weird eye, like most old, fat, conservative, plaid-garbed walking-cliché gun store owners, but he'll hand you model after model to check out without asking, giving you a little insight into each one.
"See how the Kahr's a little lighter than the Smith? It's a good gun, but it's twenty dollars less expensive than the Smith and Wesson. Most people will go with the Smith and Wesson, 'cause they know the name. Here, feel the weight difference. You can dry-fire it. It won't hurt it. Now, a semi-automatic like this one..."
I've never felt awkward going in there and looking at guns, ammunition, and accessories. Ever. That's what I want from a gun store.