The 7 Best Bookstores in Brooklyn

Brooklyn in New York is a big, bookish borough. If fact, with so much literary history and so many bookstores, Brookie could be called Bookie. For book lovers looking to hit up the literary hotspots, here are some of the best bookstores in Brooklyn to visit.

7 Best Bookstores in Brooklyn

1. The Center for Fiction

This nonprofit bookstore is dedicated solely to the celebration of fictional works. Located on Lafayette Avenue, there’s always something going on from storytelling events with David Duchovny to dramatic performances from the likes of Reggie D. White. Whether you’re looking to join a workshop, get stuck into a great book or browse and do some shopping, the Center for Fiction has it all.

2. Archestratus Books + Foods

Located at 160 Huron Street in Greenpoint, Archestratus combines two of life’s most wonderful joys under one roof: food and books. At Archestratus, you can chow down on delicious homemade Sicilian specialities whilst browsing the shelves of cookbooks and other books on the facts and fiction of food. You can also enjoy beer, wine and coffee and pick up a box or two of freshly baked cookies.

3. Quimby’s Bookstore NYC

Located on Metropolitan Ave, this independent Brooklyn bookstore specialises in zines, small press, alternative magazines and books, and a great selection of liberal fiction and non-fiction. You’ll find the books here categorised into sections on race, LGBTQ, NY interest, and there’s even a punk section. Quimby’s Bookshop NYC is full of trinkets and other items to buy like cool tote bags, pins, badges, mugs etc. There’s also a fab selection of gift cards and journals.

4. Spoonbill & Sugartown Books

This cosy independent bookstore specialises in used, rare, and new books on contemporary art, architecture, and various design fields. Located on Bedford Avenue, this bookstore has been serving the Brooklyn neighbourhood of Williamsburg since 1999. The store also buys books from customers. On the shelves, you’ll also find a carefully curated selection of children’s books as well as cookbooks and food-writing titles and great lines of cards and notebooks.

5. Cafe con Libros

Cafe con Libros (coffee with books) is an intersectional feminist community bookstore and coffee shop in Crown Heights. It’s also a warm and welcoming space that aims to make everyone feel centred, affirmed and celebrated, specifically womxn-identified folx. On the shelves, you’ll find a wonderful array of feminist titles, especially by, for and about women and girls of colour.

6. Community Bookstore

Community Bookstore has been serving the Park Slope neighbourhood since 1971. This charming space with full, well-curated books shelves, also has a gorgeous garden and serves great coffee. You really can easily spend hours curled up lost in the good book here. Also on the shelves, under the tables, and in the garden, you’ll find the shop’s co-owner and local celebrity, Tiny the Usurper, the most well-read cat in all of Brooklyn.

7. Books are Magic

Books are Magic is an independent, bookstore on Smith Street in Cobble Hill. Quaint and cosy, this gem of a shop fulfils all your bookworm needs. From children’s books to independent authors to poetry journals, they’ve got it all. Emma Straub is the owner of Books are Magic. She is a New York Times bestselling author (“All Adults Here,” “Modern Lovers,” “The Vacationers”), and you’ll often find her in the bookshop socialising and talking all things literature with customers.

Melanie May

Melanie is an intrepid solo traveller, endlessly curious about people, places and food. She is a fan of slow travel and loves exploring the world by mouth, discovering a culture through its food. Having backpacked her way around the world she turned her wanderlust into a career and is now a full-time travel writer.

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