The Very Best Bookstores in New York City
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Whenever I visit a new place, the first thing I always look up is the best bookstores to visit in the area. Independent bookstores always give an insight into the character of their locale, and often spotlight local authors who may otherwise be overlooked. Plus, I almost never pack enough books for my trip, so it's the perfect excuse to grab a new novel (or two, or three).
So for those visiting New York City, for the first time or the hundredth, going to one of the city's many beloved bookstores is a must.
In alphabetical order, here are the 30 best bookstores in New York City:
Albertine Books
972 5th Ave, New York, NY
Albertine, located inside the Cultural Services of the French Embassy in the historic Payne Whitney mansion on Fifth Avenue, is devoted to French literature. The selection features works in both English and French, and the interiors of the bookshop were created by French designer Jacques Garcia. A highlight is the ceiling of Albertine, a hand-painted blue constellation.
Argosy Book Store
116 E 59th St, New York, NY
New York City's oldest independent bookstore is Argorsy, founded in 1925. The shop, located in a six-floor townhouse in Midtown, is in its third generation of family ownership. Argorsy specializes in rare books, with an emphasis on Americana, modern first editions, and antique maps and prints, among other things.
Astoria Bookshop
36-19 30th St, Astoria, NY
Astoria Bookshop is a queer-woman owned bookstore in Queens. Founded in 2013, it moved to a bigger space last year, and their mission is to serve their "diverse, vibrant community with the books we stock and the events we host," aimed at all ages.
Bluestockings Cooperative
116 Suffolk St, New York, NY
Founded in 1999, Bluestockings is a worker-owned bookstore on the Lower East Side. It's part bookstore, part community center, and features a busy calendar of events each month. We "promise to always be a haven that does not charge you to exist or use a restroom," owner Raquel Espasande told USA Today.
Bonnie Slotnick Cookbooks
28 E 2nd St, New York, NY
Bonnie Slotnick founded her eponymous bookstore in 1997, focusing exclusively on out-of-print and antiquarian cookbooks. In 2015, after 17 years in the West Village, she moved to the East Village. If you can't find what you're looking for, Slotnick herself will track it down for you. As a note: Check the hours before you go, posted on her website (bonnieslotnickcookbooks.com) or call 212-989-8962.
Books Are Magic
Multiple locations
Books Are Magic, with locations in Cobble Hill/Carroll Gardens and Brooklyn Heights, is a beloved Brooklyn bookstore for a reason (and not just its very Instagrammable exterior). Owned by author Emma Straub and her husband Michael Fusco-Straub, the shops offer a thoughtfully curated selection of books for adults and children alike, plus a robust calendar of author events.
Book Culture
Multiple locations
The student-focused bookstore, with two locations in Morningside Heights near Columbia University and one in Long Island City, specializes in academic books but carries a wide array of bestsellers as well. "As New Yorkers, we want to do our part to make sure that our city's rich history and reputation for being home to writers, publishing houses, editors, and bookstores, remains intact—as does our city’s position as the literary capital of the world," Book Culture's website notes.
Book Club Bar
197 E 3rd St, New York, NY
A book lover's ideal night out—reading and a glass of wine—is realized at Book Club Bar, a bookstore and bar in the East Village that is open until midnight Sunday through Wednesday and until 1 a.m. Thursday through Saturday. The bookstore also hosts events, including "Meet-Cute Hour" for singles and various lectures and author conversations.
Books of Wonder
42 W 17th St, New York, NY
Books of Wonder, New York's largest independent children's bookstore, is the only shop on this list that specializes specifically in children's literature. Founded in 1980, the Chelsea bookstore offers a wonderful curated selection for young readers, along with vintage, old, rare, and collectible books.
Bookmarc
400 Bleecker St, New York, NY
In 2010, designer Marc Jacobs opened Bookmarc on Bleecker Street in the West Village, and has since opened numerous book-focused locations around the world. The store primarily stocks art and photography books, though there are some novels to be found. There's also plenty of Marc Jacobs merch, making it a great place to shop for a present this holiday season.
Community Bookstore
143 7th Ave, Brooklyn, NY
Brooklyn's oldest bookstore, Community Bookstore, has been operating in Park Slope since 1971, and offers an eclectic collection of books, plus a turtle pond and a small red piano in the children's section. "I love too many other bookstores to think that we’re the best at one thing or another, but there is a good-humored warmth and bonhomie here that I’ve seen in few other stores, whether they sell books, shoes or widgets," co-owner Ezra Goldstein said.
The Corner Bookstore
1313 Madison Ave, New York, NY
Open on the corner of Madison Avenue and 93rd Street for nearly half a century, the aptly named Corner Bookstore, is committed to carrying "only the best of the best" across all genres for its customers—including a great selection of children's books.
The Drama Book Shop
266 W 39th St, New York, NY
Since 1917, the Drama Bookshop has been a cornerstone of the New York theater community, focusing on books related to the performing arts. (In 2011, the shop even received an honorary Tony Award for Excellence in the Theatre.) In 2019, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Thomas Kail organized a group to save the bookstore from closing, purchasing it and helping it find a new location on 39th street. "All of my early creative conversations and relationships were forged in that shop, and the thought of it not existing was painful. I couldn’t imagine New York City without it, and I didn’t want to imagine New York City without it," Kail said at the time.
Housing Works Bookstore & Café
126 Crosby St, New York, NY
Housing Works is one of the more famous New York City bookstores–Swifties may recognize it from the final scenes of Taylor Swift's "All Too Well" short film (above)—and all its proceeds go to supporting homeless and low-income New Yorkers living with and affected by HIV/AIDS. (Learn more on housingworks.org.) The used bookstore relies on donations for its stock, and is staffed by volunteers.
Kew & Willow Books
81-63 Lefferts Blvd, Kew Gardens, NY
After Barnes & Noble closed their doors in Queens, there was only one bookstore left (the aforementioned Astoria Bookshop!) for the 2.4 million people in the borough. Holly Nikodem and Vina Castillo launched a crowdfunding campaign to bring a new bookstore to Queens, and seven years later, Kew & Willow—which has books for children, teens, and adults—is a part of the community, hosting open mic nights, game nights, and more.
Kinokuniya
1073 6th Ave, New York, NY
Located near Bryant Park in Midtown, Kinokuniya offers a wide variety of books and manga from Japan in both English and Japanese. The original Books Kinokuniya was founded in Shinjuku, Tokyo nearly a century ago, and expanded overseas starting in 1969 with a location in San Francisco. Kinokuniya also sells stationery, toys, and other gifts from Japan.
Kitchen Arts & Letters
1435 Lexington Ave, New York, NY
For bakers, chefs, and food lovers, there's no better bookstore than Kitchen Arts & Letters on the Upper East Side, which specializes in food and drink books. After the shop opened in 1983, early customers included Julia Child, James Beard, and Laurie Colwin. The store stocks cookbooks, of course, but also beverage books, food history, memoirs, and more.
The Lit Bar
131 Alexander Ave, Bronx, NY
The Bronx's only independent bookstore is part wine bar, part community space, and an all-around great bookstore. Owner Noëlle Santos was inspired to launch the bookshop after Barnes & Noble announced they'd be closing their Bronx location, then the only bookstore in the borough. She launched a fundraising campaign, "Let’s Bring a Gotdamn Bookstore to the Bronx," and the Lit Bar opened its doors in 2019. "Books were my tool to economic mobility, my form of entertainment growing up. I felt like it was an atrocity to take that tool away from the youth that are coming up behind me. Books were my window outside of my little five-block radius in Soundview," she told Essence.
Liz's Book Bar
315 Smith Street, Brooklyn, NY
Perhaps the newest bookstore on this list is Liz's Book Bar, founded by author Maura Cheeks this year and named for her grandmother, Elizabeth. It's a bookstore, coffee shop, and wine bar in Carroll Gardens. "We were always going to bookstores when I was younger," Cheeks says of her grandmother. "She was always handing me a very thick book to read, and is part of the reason that I’m a writer as well. So it just felt like a great way to honor her legacy."
McNally Jackson
Multiple locations
With five locations (SoHo, Seaport, Rockefeller Center, downtown Brooklyn, and Williamsburg), McNally Jackson is arguably the most prominent New York City bookstore. The shelves are organized by region, versus genre, and it makes for inspired browsing.
The Mysterious Bookshop
58 Warren St, New York, NY
The Mysterious Bookshop is a mystery, crime, and espionage bookstore in Tribeca. Opened by Otto Penzler, founder of the Mysterious Press, in 1979 in Hell's Kitchen, the bookstore moved downtown just under two decades ago. Last year, director Rian Johnson brought T&C to the bookstore, saying, the Mysterious Bookshop "is for and by mystery fans, and you can really feel it."
The Ripped Bodice
218 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY
In 2016, sisters Leah and Bea Koch opened North America's first romance-only bookstore in Los Angeles, and last year, the Ripped Bodice opened their second location in Brooklyn, and it's quickly become a haven for romance lovers. And it's not just a place to find your next romance novel—the Ripped Bodice also hosts numerous romance-focused events, and publishes an annual "State of Racial Diversity in Romance Publishing Report."
Rizzoli Bookstore
1133 Broadway, New York, NY
First opened uptown on Fifth Avenue in 1964, Rizzoli launched an imprint a decade later, making a name for itself publishing gorgeous fashion, lifestyle, art, design, and photography books. Rizzoli Bookstore moved to NoMad in 2015 after its lease expired. Celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, Rizzoli is as beautiful and glamorous as ever.
Sister's Uptown
1942 Amsterdam Ave, New York, NY
In 2000, Janifer Wilson founded Sister's Uptown in Harlem, and the bookshop, focused on African American authors and African diasporic literature, has since become so much more. "We are not just a book store; we are a community resource center for the exchange of information and ideas," Wilson writes.
Strand
828 Broadway, New York, NY
Strand Bookstore is a New York institution and a tourist destination in and of itself. The bookstore, founded in 1927, is the largest independent bookstore in the city and quite literally is home to miles upon miles of books. Located on the corner of 12th and Broadway (just south of Union Square), Strand carries new, used, and rare books— there's truly something for every reader.
Sweet Pickle Books
47 Orchard St, New York, NY
One of the most charming bookstores on this list is Sweet Pickle, a used bookstore on the Lower East Side that also sells pickles. (Customers who donate books can also trade them for pickles instead of cash.) Owner Leigh Altshuler was inspired by the 1988 classic Crossing Delancey, where a pickle seller falls for a book dealer. "Sometimes I just look at the store and I want to cry because it’s so sentimental to me," Altshuler said.
Three Lives & Company
154 W 10th St, New York, NY
Three Lives & Company is a West Village staple, and possibly the platonic ideal of the best New York City bookstore. "One of the greatest bookstores on the face of the Earth," novelist Michael Cunningham said of Three Lives. "Every single person who works there is incredibly knowledgeable and well read and full of soul... I go there when I'm feeling depressed and discouraged, and I always feel rejuvenated." Its selection always includes the latest bestsellers in fiction and nonfiction, along with highlighting New York authors.
The World's Borough Bookshop
3406 73rd St, Queens, NY
In Jackson Heights, the World's Borough Bookshop is dedicated to works by BIPOC authors. Opened last year by Ecuadorian entrepreneur Adrian Cepeda, the bookshop is "por y para la comunidad" ("for and by the community"). Cepeda, who goes by "Book Papi"on TikTok, says, "Some people think books are really high brow and only for intellectual readers, but I want to make reading fun and bring books to the streets of my neighborhood."
Yu & Me Books
44 Mulberry St, New York, NY
Chinatown's Yu & Me Books is a a bookstore, café, and bar, and the only bookstore in New York City owned by an Asian American woman. Yu & Me is explicitly dedicated to immigrant writers and authors of color. After a devastating fire destroyed it last summer, owner Lucy Yu was dedicated to rebuilding it. It reopened just six months later, and the thoughtful curation of both what's on the shelves and the events it hosts continue to shine.
192 Books
192 10th Ave, New York, NY
A cozy, hole-in-the-wall bookstore in Chelsea, 192 Books, owned by gallerist Paula Cooper, has been open for over two decades, offering a varied, yet carefully curated selection of books of all genres, including literary fiction, art and photography books, and more.
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