My brother and I were spending the day exploring Kittery, York, and Kennebunkport and decided to…read moreswing by Wells on our way back up to Portland to see if anything stuck out to us. We were driving up Route 1 and noticed a few antique shops when we approached Douglas Harding. Since my brother is a fan of bookstores, specifically ones that carry old and rare ones, we decided to stop and check it out. DH sits right on Route 1 in a prime location. It's kind of unassuming from the outside, but once you're inside it gives away to how grand the space actually is. There are rooms and rooms filled with books - I kept walking around thinking I reached the back of the store but it just didn't stop! The shop carries a big selection and is neatly organized by section. There are clear indicators as to what is where, and they keep their rarer finds behind glass cabinets. You can honestly get lost for hours in this place, there are so many shelves to browse, and they have something for virtually everyone - from historical encyclopedia to a tell-all guide to Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch. They also have a side room that is filled with maps of spots all around the world for sale. From what I can gather, a father and daughter own/run the shop - they were both friendly and offered help looking for something if we needed it. Overall, this was a great find in Wells - all the times I had been here I had never thought to stop in and I'm glad we did. It's definitely worth exploring if you're in the area.

Lovely to meet and talk to the owner; he's a bit hard of hearing but happy to talk books. He's…read moremoved fully into a smaller building, so not as many books but still an interesting collection.

Is this the cutest bookstore in Southern Maine?! Probably! We found this new bookstore just a few…read moresteps away from the busiest part of Perkins Cove and became big fans from the minute we saw it. The small and beautiful building it's housed in is quintessentially Maine. We stepped inside and were greeted right away by a lovely woman working the front desk. We immediately noticed an impressive variety of LGBT+-themed books as well as self-help/mental health ones, which we loved. Of course, they also had best sellers, cookbooks, and everything else. The inside was just out of a magazine. We bought one book and can't wait to return for more during our next Ogunquit trip. We love an indie bookstore!

Lovely shop, wonderful selection and kind service. Absolutely recommend and will be returning!read more

The Octopus Bookshop is such a cool little store. I walked out of this place maybe five minutes ago…read moreand I'm so glad we stumbled upon it. I'm in Maine with family (I'm from Los Angeles) and my dad is giving us a bit of a tour around the area. This small shop has so much charm, such a cool theme, and had such a nicely displayed curation of books that I'm actually mad I couldn't fill up a bag and hang out downtown Kennebunk and just hang out, but moving on. This store is beautiful, and even though we didn't interact with any of the staff, they just seemed super friendly. On top of a great selection of books you could also snag some mugs or shirts and I'm also regretting not getting that, but I'll for sure be back in the future, mark my word. Overall, Octopus Bookshop is the perfect little bookstore for a beautiful little town like Kennebunk. It might not be anytime soon, but I'll be sure to check this place out again when I return to Maine.

The Kennebunks are blessed with some nice local bookshops. Octopus is NOT one…read more Try Lupine Books in Kennebunkport at 28 Dock Square or Perkins Cove Bookshop at 12 Perkins Cove Rd in Ogunquit. Both have great local selections and appreciate customers and are NICE. My wife walked many blocks from our car to Octopus Books and had a book in hand that she was interested in buying, when the woman store worker was extremely rude to her. She actually insulted the size of my wife's professionally trained, papered service dog. She was very rude. Needlessly. Life is short and this is a book store with people purposely there to buy books and support local bookstores. To have a clerk treat book buyers disrespectfully is completely unnecessary and unacceptable. We will never cross the threshold of Octopus Books ever again. Shop someplace else.

Awesome store in the heart of Kennebunkport! I love stopping in here when visiting town and they…read morehave some sharp new Kennebunkport clothing as well!

Charming bookstore with a unique history. Buy the book, it is worth the read. Be sure to ask the…read moreowner about his dad!

My son's favorite toy store. Centrally located downtown. Prices are a bit more than target or…read moreAmazon but that's how it goes in a vacation town. Clean and fun toys. Generally local teens are working there which is nice to see, as well!

Lovely store and amazing staff and such an amazing selection of toys in a beautiful townread more

I love the amazing selection here they have so much jewelry, and really overall just a great store!…read moreThis is the first place I think of when going to buy gifts! The employees are always so friendly! I highly recommend!

Such a fun selection of gifts and trinkets. I always plan a stop here when I'm in KPT.read more

They have a nice selection of books that are in great condition. The sign out front said paperbacks…read morecost fifty cents, but they charged a dollar. The clerk was working on a puzzle at the counter and chatting with another worker. She took a while to ring us up, acting like we were inconveniencing her.

This store is pretty much wall to wall books, most of which are in great condition. The staff is…read morealways helpful and friendly and I can easily spend an hour or more browsing. My only complaint is that the more recently released books (as in, the last five years or so) are a bit pricey for being used- for example, one paperback I picked up today that was released in 2015 was marked $4.00. Older books, however, are very fairly priced. Most are $1.00 for hardbacks and 50 cents for paperbacks. I try to make a point of getting to this place a few times a year, and will definitely be back!

Nice shop, little tricky to find. It's on the second floor of the building, above the Subway…read moreRestaurant. Nice assortment of collectibles, cards, records, and some rare comics. Very friendly staff.