Get those To-be-read lists cleared for winter. A good book, and a warm and cozy place to read the book, are the perfect way to avoid the ugly weather outside; and you can make your escape from the weather with Calgary’s local bookstores and cafes.
A good book, and a warm and cozy place to read the book, are the perfect way to avoid the ugly weather outside; and you can make your escape from the weather with Calgary’s local bookstores and cafes. Within the local bookstores of Calgary, you can find new and used titles, as well as rare copies of older books, or copies of out-of-print books. It may take some time to browse these shelves, as you’ll run into old favourites, authors you’ve never heard of, or genres you haven’t yet dived into.
But once you have your books, you might want to dive in right away. Each of these local Calgary bookstores is near a selection of cafes that offer warm and inviting places to get into your books.
A few of these stores offer online shopping with local delivery, or in-store pickup, in case you are short on time or would rather browse and read at home.
The Next Page
The stock of books at Calgary’s Next Page is always changing and growing and gives you a healthy selection of things to read, entertain, and delight. Browse their wall-to-wall collection of new and used books in nonfiction or fiction; or find something new from the Next Page’s Indie Press collection which features dozens of independent publishing houses. Details
Address: 1217A 9th Ave SE, Calgary
Where to read: Au Croque Monsieur Inglewood
Owl’s Nest Books
Owl’s Nest is Calgary’s local place to go for new book of all sorts of genres. And if you’re an indie author, or know of one, you can request to have your books bought on consignment. This means the shelves at Owl’s Nest contain a great selection of new, local, and independent authors. Otherwise, their selection includes fiction of all sorts and nonfiction of all sorts. Details
Address:815A 49 Avenue SW, Calgary
Where to read: A-OK Cafe
Pages on Kensington
Pages on Kensington can buy your used books or can offer a huge selection of other preowned books to add to your TBR list this season. You may also consider saving a bit by finding a great preowned gift on these shelves- right on time for the holidays. They offer an array of fiction and nonfiction if you’re in search of your own brand-new copy of a title, and you can check online first to save yourself browsing time. Details
Address:1135 Kensington Road NW, Calgary
Where to read: Higher Ground Cafe
Shelf Life
Get your book shopping on any day of the week at Calgary’s Shelf Life, a local store that focuses on some cool literary areas. They offer a variety of Canadian authors, independent and smaller publishers, and kids’ books, and on represent a variety of voices through the books they sell. All of the copies at Shelf Life are new but offer something different than what the larger new bookstore chains can offer. Details
Address:1302 4 St SW #395, Calgary
Where to read: Kaffeeklatsch
Sigla Books
The small Sigla Books store in downtown Calgary has a big goal of curating rare, lesser-known, or out-of-print book copies. The store features a unique archive of rare books from all around the world, some of which date back as far as the 1800s. You may find other novels and nonfiction pieces, too, which may have at one point been banned, or which are tough to find these days. Details
Address:1040 8th Ave SW Calgary
Where to read: Waves Coffee House
Fair’s Fair
Find the greatest deals on preowned book titles from Fair’s Fair and spend hours building your collection or browsing for the one perfect book. The Inglewood Fair’s Fair location is set up as a regular bookstore, while the Chinook location is the official warehouse for both shops. You can visit either stores to sell your books, or to shop for books. Details
Address: 907 9 Avenue SE, Calgary or 104 61 Avenue SW, Calgary
Where to read: The Mad Hatter Coffee Community (Inglewood)