Vermont Book Shop

Bibliophiles are a lucky sort in Vermont. The Green Mountain State is home to an enviable number of small, independent bookstores worth a visit even if you’re not looking for the latest bestseller. Come for the author meet-and-greets, or simply test-drive a few pages of that paperback classic in a comfy couch at the shops’ side-on cafés. Curious? Here’s 10 of our favorite Vermont book stores.
Success—or at least multiple stores—need not be the arbiter of independence, as this regional bookstore shows. Phoenix, with multiple locations around Vermont, boasts the combination of new titles and community involvement (everything from tarot readings to literacy drives) expected from a local purveyor of the written word. With staff recommendations, e-books, works from local authors, and a periodic discussions with writers, Phoenix is well worth a stop.
Phoenix Books Essex, 2 Carmichael St., Essex, VT, USA, + 1 802 872 7111
Phoenix Books Burlington, 191 Bank St., Burlington, VT, USA, + 1 802 448 3350
Phoenix Books Rutland, 2 Center St., Rutland, VT, USA, + 1 802 855 8078
Phoenix Books Misty Valley, 58 Common St., Chester, VT, USA, + 1 802 875 3400
Phoenix Books, Rutland | Courtesy of Phoenix Books
Cozy and quaint, the well-curated selection at Bridgeside Books has something for everyone, be it a new cookbook or historical fiction. With plush armchairs, bright walls, and floral displays, you’ll want to spend hours absorbed in their world even as you drift into the author’s creation.
Bridgeside Books, 29 Stowe St., Waterbury, VT, USA, + 1 802 244 1441