The good news is that bookstores are alive and kicking. Twenty years ago, it seemed there was no end to the rise of Amazon Books and, as a result, the demise of neighborhood bookstores. Indeed, the number of bookstores had crashed from about 4000 to 1600 nationwide.

But things have changed! Consumers have rediscovered the bookstore experience, and they love it. The efficiency of an Amazon checkout page just can’t compete with the cozy and meditative experience of a bookstore. Bookstores continue to be valued for the experience they offer but also for their hosting of community events, book signings, and author readings.

In the Boston area, bookstores are thriving, with new shops popping up all over the city. Examples are Beacon Hill Books & Cafe, a five-story shop and restaurant, or Porter Square Books: Boston Edition, an offshoot of the Cambridge location in the Seaport.

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Bookstores in Boston

Barnes & Noble Shop Online>
Well known chain of bookstores with expansive collection of books, magazines, games, and educational materials.
North Shore Mall, Burlington Mall, Natick Mall, Northshore|Lynnfield

Grolier Poetry Bookshop
Oldest continuously operating book shop dedicated solely to the sale of poetry books. In 2006, Ifeanyi A. Menkiti, a Harvard Ph.D graduate, saved the Grolier Poetry Book Shop in Cambridge when he purchased it to prevent it from shuttering. In the spirit of Ifeanyi, his family continues operating the Grolier.
Harvard Square, Cambridge

Harvard Coop Shop Online
Official bookstore of Harvard and MIT including men's, women's and children's university apparel, gifts and decor with Harvard and MIT insignias. The Coop has enjoyed the distinction of being the oldest and largest college bookstore in the United States.
Harvard Square, Cambridge

Papercuts Bookshop
Award-winning, women-owned neighborhood bookstore. Offers an extensive thoughtfully curated collection of books. Carries national and international books as well as books from local authors and about local history.
Jamaica Plain

Porter Square Books Shop Online
Branch of established Cambridge bookstore. Their Boston Edition is a welcoming space to gather with your neighbors, linger over books, read with your kids, and chat with booksellers.
Seaport Area

Used Bookstores in Boston

Brattle Book Shop
America's oldest and largest used book store. Features two floors of general used books, a third floor of rare and antiquarian books and an outside sale lot.
Charles Street

Commonwealth Books
Used bookstore with over 40,000 titles, from medieval manuscript leaves to recent mysteries. Also carries art monographs, decorative arts, poetry, history, and literature, among others. "...Browsers are always welcome!..."
Dowentown Crossing

Million Year Picnic
New England's oldest comic bookstore offering trading cards, unique t-shirts, new, old and rare comics, newspaper comic strip reprints and Japanese Manga and animation videos.
Harvard Square, Cambridge

Raven Used Books Shop Online
Book store specializing in scholarly and literary titles. "...hundreds of books come through the doors every day, sold by professors, grad students, and the general literary community. This turnover of 1200+ books every week keeps the stock at Raven Used Books fresh and exciting..."
Harvard Square, Cambridge