A lovely and AMAZING bookshop! This is the gem of Madison. If you cannot find parking...this shop…read moreis where everyone is! I don't have the words to describe my experience here!!! Don't miss this shop - see for yourself! Delicious cafe too!!! Even very comfortable to eat alone!!!

I don't often, never, go into book stores. Had lunch at RJ Cafe & Bistro and popped in to find my…read moresisters newborn a Christmas gift of a book. I was very pleased with the service from the lady who worked upstairs. She was very helpful and knowledgeable with children books and even gave a lady and her newborn a quick story tell. She also gave me some insight on how to sell my mazes as they had a kids and an adult section for puzzles. Again, very pleased with this store and would recommend stopping in.

Good used bookstore. Reasonably priced. Very friendly staff. Good selection and a searchable…read moreinventory

I visited Books & Company recently for the first time & completely fell in love with it…read more Apparently, this store used to be in Hamden, but the owner retired & sold the building & the company. This is the new location & new ownership. I had never been to the prior store. I spent a whopping two hours in this little shop. It is set up & well curated like a fancy bookstore, on par with my experience at shops like Athena Books in Greenwich, CT, and Martin House Books (formerly Savoy) in Westerly, RI. It's on the smaller/boutique-style size, so don't expect a massive range of genres, like one would find at the Book Barn in Niantic, CT. There's no coffee shop, but there is a Keurig & water available, and a handful of chairs to sit in. The used fiction books were in good or very good condition, easy to locate in their sections, and priced around $8 for hardcovers if the book retailed $24+. I got two recent NYTimes bestsellers that had been on my wishlist. The children's & young adults books were also well selected, and I bought a handful, ranging in $2-$3/each for paperback & hardcover. The price stickers easily peeled off all of my books without leaving any residue, which I very much appreciated. The gift selection was perfect for stocking stuffers or small mailed gifts, including for nerds, gamers, and musicians. There were bowls full of stickers, $0.25 each, and postcards, $1 each. Funny magnets, like Mincing Mockingbird, were a full $3 cheaper than at other gift shops (e.g. Bowerbird in Old Lyme, CT). There were also some handmade gifts from locals. There's a shelf near checkout with wrapped mystery books. I thought this was the common "buy a date with a random book" thing. It wasn't -- You picked one for free with the purchase of any book in the store. The wrapping is a hint related to the title or theme, and a lot of the wrapping was sustainable, e.g. reusing a helium balloon body or old calendars, etc. I was surprised that the mystery book wasn't tied to a minimum purchase amount (and I wonder if it will be sustainable for the shop's bottom line, I have to admit). I was further amazed that all of the wrapped books were advertised as being at least 3.5+ stars on GoodReads. My mystery book ended up being a pristine paperback copy of "The Time Traveler's Wife." There's a selection of greeting cards as well, but I found those to be the only spot the store was lacking; they were expensive at $6+, and I've seen a lot better selections, e.g. at The Bowerbird, with a larger range of independent artists, at more affordable price points $3-$5. I normally buy a lot of greeting cards when I come across ones that aren't the big box brands (Hallmark has a massive monopoly, omg), but I didn't buy any cards here. There was a free section near the front door, and there was a fill-a-bag sale rack near the front. I asked the cashier/owner a lot of questions, and she was very knowledgeable and helpful. I heard her speaking with others who came in & from my understanding, when you trade in books, you get half their selling value in store credit. All in all, this is one of my favorite used bookstores I've visited, and I will definitely travel to the area again before the holidays to visit it. I would highly recommend it! If you like to shop used/vintage/antiques, there's also a little store next door in the same plaza, but it doesn't have A/C. This book shop does have A/C. =)

We love Syd's! Just…read morepulling up to their location with the welcoming signs for book lovers makes it apparent you are about to walk into a vast collection of books! We were immediately welcomed and shown the book sections. Syd's has an active social media presence and shows new books coming in. They had just had their sale so they no longer had the book but I'm glad as their sales were so successful l! I got one book for just $3! What a value and so excited to help their mission. You can donate books at any time and we saw some had been left at the front door and many people stopped in to drop off books while we were still there!

As a local author, reader, and small business supporter, this place is top tier…read more The selection is large! You may have some issues finding some specific books if you're looking for a particular title, but overall a massive selection of a range of authors. Since this is a donation-based bookstore, they typically have only 1-2 dublicates of a title. The value is also very good, with the books --even new ones-- being well under market value. The prices range from $.50-$9 on average and you can buy brand new books for cheap! Much better than Amazon or Barnes and Noble. Great if you just want a book to read or find children's books! The service is outstanding! Very friendly staff that love to strike up a conversation. Locally owned and a nonprofit so the owners are very passionate about reading and books and the town itself. Always fun to stop buy and have a chat while browsing and checking out! Will be returning and donating whenever po

Well played, Miller Memorial Public Library…read more We were looking for used bookstores & found a place in Hamden called "Second Hand Prose." Sounds cool, right? It's. in. the. library. Gah. Unfortunately, said store was closed. Instead, there was a small area near the checkout desk with an unexciting selection available for sale. So there is - or was - a used bookstore-- just not in the way we thought.

Reread books has quickly become one of our favorite spots. I love a pre-love bookstore, but they…read morehave so many other little details that make it just wonderful. They recently added the New England, coffee guy and a great coffee counter. He also has Kouign pastries for sale. The spot also attracted me because of their work with individuals with disabilities on their staff. There are tons of little spaces to sit in comfy chairs. The children's section in the back room is a really good size with just enough spots. There's a big round table in the back room that has a little retail of soap lotion. One of my favorite parts is the outside is a full covered awning so you can still sit out there even in the rain. We've been back many times and will continue to do so. Great spot.

It's an adorable store, located outside on the lowest floor of a larger shopping mall. It opens…read morewith tables and chairs outside, and a larger coffee and pastry shop inside. There is also a large desk to check out books - I got two paperbacks, one new, for six dollars. The inside has books divided up by children's, fiction, biography, history, etc. There are places to sit and chat, and playsets like a kitchen for the children. I could not find a restroom though, so maybe one is in the outer mall?

If I could give them 5000000000 stars I would. This is one of the cutest bookshops I have ever been…read moreinside, and the fact that it is all romance books makes my heart flutter with glee. It is quaint. It is cute. Mr. Darcy would most definitely approve of it. I found myself a cute connect the dots book of leading literary men and a sparkly smut sticker for my laptop. I could basically just move in here and they'd never know because I'd be curled up in the corner just reading with a good book. It's just lovely and I love it here so much.

Connecticut's first romance bookstore is here! Montgomery and Taggert had their opening this…read moreweekend and it is a perfect addition to the cutest town, Chester. They are a small shop with a great selection. Books are organized into type like period drama, romantasy, etc. There are chairs throughout that make you want to curl up and read. The owner was lovely and so was the experience. I see a very bright future for them. Welcome!

Stepped in to this unexpectedly lovely independent bookstore. This truly is a 3rd space, an…read moreinformal public space outside of home and work where people can gather and interact. Odobo means the importance of active involvement and participation in one's neighborhood to foster a sense of community. This bookstore does just that. They offer different community events like story time for children, adult yoga, karaoke night and even a self defense class. Today I simply bought some stickers and perused the books. I have my eye on a book for next time. I'll be attending a class next weekend. The space feels welcoming and safe. Looking forward to more visits.

Obodo Serendipity Books is such a welcome addition to the community…read more They have a great selection of books (new and used) and are happy to order whatever they don't have in stock. They're also making a concerted effort to be a community space by hosting various events, like reading groups and kids story time.

I found this bookstore last year on a recommendation from a co-worker and have visited several…read moretimes to pick up books. What I love about them is that they are creating a beautiful new place for the community to gather where all are welcome and you can books that might not be as easily found elsewhere, such as books by authors of color, Indigenous authors, LGBTQ+ authors, bi/multilingual authors, local authors, and poets of all kinds. They have also been offering events with authors both virtually and limited in-person. Lauren and the rest of the staff are super friendly and helpful if you are looking for personal book recommendations. Right now due to COVID, they are not open for browsing but you can place an order online and they will follow up with you via email when your books are ready for pick up. Their instagram @peoplegetreadybooks provides the best recommendations for timely reads from new releases and in response to world events. I highly recommend checking them out and they ship nationwide.

I recently moved close to this this great independent bookstore. I immediately started purchasing…read morebooks through their nice web site, where you can special order easily. At first, Covid regulations kept me from going inside. This week, I was able to go inside. It's a real community offering! They have an air conditioned room available! It looks comfy. Now, I want to head over there and read for a bit, just to get out of the house!