8 Federal St, Greenfield, MA
I drove to Greenfield on a sunny spring morning, delighted to find not one but at least three indie booksellers open. The first one I stepped into was the delightful Federal Street Books, easy to spot by its stylish exterior design and large pillar signage out front. I also found a cart of dollar books out front, always a good sign, and things got even better when I stepped inside.
6 Church Street, New Paltz, NY
As noted in a previous review, New Paltz has a unique “bookstore block,” in that both of the town’s indie bookshops are located directly across the street from each other right downtown. Directly across from Barner Books is Inquiring Minds, housed in a brick building and a bright red ground-floor exterior with $1 bookshelves built right into the wall. There were also display tables outside with large coffee table books on discount. Once inside, I realized the shop’s offerings were almost as expansive as the other location I reviewed up in Saugerties, NY.
349 Nassau Street, Princeton, NJ
A brief review for a small bookshop, but one worth investigating by intrepid book hunters seeking mystery, crime, and noir.
28 Holden Street, North Adams, MA
North Adams is one of many artistic bastions in the hills and mountains of western Massachusetts, and Mass MoCA is one of it’s major draws, hosting art exhibitions, music festivals, and cultural events year-round. So for a town as interesting as North Adams, I expected a bevy of bookstores. I only found one, The Bear and Bee, a new and used bookshop, but it does a phenomenal job of representing the literary interests of the area.
The Hudson Valley has become an increasingly revitalized haven for NYC exp-pats, with towns like Hudson, Beacon, and Kingston blooming into re-gentrified versions of themselves in recent decades. But some towns, like Woodstock or New Paltz, always retained their ‘60s counter-culture vibrance and found ways to hold on to that quirky way of living even during leaner years. Driving into New Paltz these days could land you in a little traffic jam and a maze-like hunt for public parking on nicer weekend, but the trip is worth it. The cafes, art galleries, music and food, all a mix of new and old artistry coming together in the compact little town not far from the SUNY College campus. And of course, there are bookstores. By chance the two notable ones in town are right across the street from each other, and the first I visited was Barner Books.
365 Main St, Greenfield, MA
Sometimes I step into a bookstore and the first shelf I see catches me in a web. I’m stuck, peering eagerly at each spine and title, awash in desire to take home every other book I see. The next shelf is no different, and by the third I’m reading the first page of every book trying to decide which one is going be the lucky novel I pick. Yes, The Imaginary Bookshop had its hooks in me, and for one very good reason. All the books most shop hide in the back—the creepy horror novels, the gothic nightmares, the apocalyptic anthologies, and the ghoulish haunted house stories—were right up front, greeting me as I entered. I knew right away this was the store for me.
15 Old Orchard Street, Old Orchard Beach, ME
We’ve all been on that vacation where we bring a beach read, a book for the plane, a paperback thriller for the cabin getaway, and we finish it way too soon with nothing else to keep us entertained. If you’re in an airport, you likely have access to one chain bookshop or another. But if you’re vacationing at Old Orchard Beach in Maine, you’re still covered with Barnett Books right downtown. *Note: I sometimes see this shop listed online as Wholesale Books, too.
1313 Madison Ave., New York, NY
This shop has been on my list for a long time, and I saved it for a special occasion. You see, I frequently travel to the upper east side area of NYC from upstate NY for cancer tests and treatments at Sloan Kettering, and sometimes after I leave an MRI or CT/PET scan, I’m exhausted, shaken, and feeling really low. So after a particularly hard morning of scans, I decide it was time to treat myself. I wandered over toward the Carnegie Hill neighborhood as the aftereffects of my valium wore off, and I sat myself down inside this shop for a bit, taking in its simple beauty. It’s only one room, but with its excellent selection and a subtle classiness that matches the neighborhood, it’s the perfect shop to have “right around the corner.”
453 S Spring Street, Los Angeles, CA
Among the canyons of downtown Los Angeles on an autumn evening, the last remains of light fading to a monochrome blue against skyscrapers and sidewalk, the shadows turning black, the neon lights apoplectic up and down South Main Street. We’d only been in town for a few hours but we decided not to wait. I really wanted to make sure I crossed this bookshop off my bucket list, and when we turned the corner and saw the little red neon sign flowing in the distance, my steps quickened past panhandlers dancing to boomboxes on sidewalks as wide as streets in other cities. We were close, closer, and then we walked through the door, past the doorman keeping an eye on those coming and going, and into a vast open room sprawling out into other floors and wings and nooks, revealing one of the greatest bookstores I’ve ever stepped into.
Monument Square, Portland, ME
Portland, Maine is one of my favorite places to go book hunting, and not just because I can grab one of the best milkshakes in the universe at Duck Fat while I do it, but also because there are so many bookstore options available, from those exclusively selling brand new releases to those specializing in secondhand and hard-to-find vintage titles. Longfellow Books has a perfect balance between them, with all the best new bestsellers as well as loads of discounted books, new and old, and plenty of gifts too.
3806 Main Street, Culver City, CA
We took the coastal highway south all along Big Sur, Morro Bay, and down through Malibu, heading to Los Angeles on a road trip we’d been planning for years. After a quick stop at the beach just outside the city, where we carefully edged down a steep trail to bask in the cold waters of the Pacific as houses clung to cliffs overhead, Amelia and I finally entered Los Angeles proper and headed to one very specific bookshop she was very excited to visit. Before the hotel, before we ate, before anything else, we wanted to see The Ripped Bodice, a shop renowned for celebrating all things romance. And wow, did we made the right choice.
261 Columbus Ave., San Francisco, CA
City Lights has loomed large in my literary memory for decades, and as far as bookshop hunting goes it has been a sort of great white whale for me, waiting out beyond the horizon for some future visit. Well, this autumn I finally had the opportunity to stop in and wander the same aisles so many of my early literary inspirations roamed and see the impressive space for myself. And what can I say about this shop that hasn’t already been said by countless others? It’s legendary for a reason, not the least of which their extensive, wide-reaching selection over multiple floors.
316 Main Street, Rockland, ME
Since some dear friends moved to Maine a decade ago, I’ve had the great pleasure going to visit them and exploring the coastal towns and villages, especially the Boothbay, Damariscotta, and Rockland areas, and this shop might be the real gem of this entire stretch. Right in the heart of Rockland and paired with a coffee shop, this bookstore is vibrant, thoughtful, beautifully curated, and full of wonderful discoveries.
97 Main Street, Cold Spring, NY
I had the pleasure of visiting this wonderful bookshop at the height of summer, the streets of Cold Springs bustling, the roads leading into town full of hikers, almost a parade of people, and the shop was just as busy. It made for an exciting browsing experience, and it had the feeling as if this was THE place to be on such a gorgeous day. Now, months later as I reflect back, I think of how the shop must feel the same even if the summer crowds have gone. The leaves are falling, the heaters are turned on, and I imagine the shop feels just as vital: a warm, cozy place to find that next great read.
Terminal B, Chicago O’Hare International Airport
Well this is a first. Is it possible to review an actual indie bookstore in a major airport? It seems like it! Like other regional chains I’ve reviewed (Sherman’s of Maine, Half-Price Books, etc.), I still consider something like this an indie shop, because Barbara’s has a number of shops in the Chicago area but you’re not going to see it in many other places. I love the idea of an indie grabbing some major real estate like this, because I’d rather buy a book from a regional indie chain than those shops that are 10% books, 70% snacks, and 20% t-shirts of whatever city the airport is in. And this shop had a lot for such a compact space!
7959 Fredericksburg Road, San Antonio, TX
Thirteen years ago when I lived in San Antonio, I used to visit Nine Lives when it was in its previous location. It was much bigger then, with a deeper selection of used titles to browse through, not to mention numerous bookshop cats darting around (hence the name), but now the name has another meaning, I suppose. The new shop is smaller, and less extensive in its literary offerings, and it seems to be starting over as a more multi-media shop. A new life, and hopefully not its last. From the value offered, one imagines it should find a unique niche in the local market.
(Image above is borrowed from the store’s Facebook page.)
121 Market Street, Northampton, MA
How much more convenient can a bookstore be than three doors down from our Airbnb, which was also a two-minute walk from the heart of downtown? Yet the block and the shop itself felt pleasantly quiet, quaintly set back from the hustle and bustle, allowing for a leisurely browse through the narrow aisles stacked and jammed with books. The number of books they have piled about in this small shop is impressive, and I thoroughly enjoyed taking a look!
8 Main Street, Amherst, Massachusetts
Amherst Books quickly reminded me of some of my favorite bookstores, the multi-room shops full of eclectic displays and a selection of books that will always surprise and keep you guessing each time you walk through the door. With books new, used, and vintage, this two-floor shop has something for everyone, even if your wallet is a little lighter than it used to be with these gas prices.
