7 Best bookstores in Canada
7 Best bookstores in Canada
Canada has a thriving bookstore industry which attracts users from across the world. You can get your next favourite title in the numerous bookstores in Canada. What you need is a guide on the best bookstores that will always give you satisfaction any day as a booklover. Here’s a list of Canada’s most-beloved independent bookstores.
The Bookshelf, Guelph, Ontario
The Bookshelf was founded in 1973 by Barb and Doug Minett. They added a café in 1980 to make it Canada’s first bookstore/café, and then seven years later added a cinema and bar. Shortly thereafter they acquired and renovated the building next door to add a music venue and restaurant. The Bookshelf has held readings by John Irving, Michael Ondaatje, and Margaret Atwood, and musical performances by Serena Ryder, the Constantines, and Sarah Harmer. It currently holds 14 film screenings a week and offers dinner and a movie every Tuesday to Saturday. The exciting description of The Bookshelf is that this is a bookstore that delivers wine which has a cinema that serves dinner and a bar that launches books. What a place to visit.
The Odd Book, Wolfville, Nova Scotia
The Old Book was founded in 1977 in the university town of Wolfville, Nova Scotia. The store specializes in second-hand, rare, and out-of-print books. When purchasing used books for the store, owner Jim Gow pays particular attention to interesting characteristics, such as Victorian-era binding, marks of previous owners like interleaved mementoes, or outrageous cover art. Ths is one of the most popular destinations for book lovers in Canada and beyond.
Librairie Drawn & Quarterly, Montreal, Quebec
Drawn & Quarterly was founded in 1989 by Chris Oliveros as a magazine but has since grown to become an internationally renowned publisher of comics and graphic novels. In 2007, Oliveros opened Librarie Drawn & Quarterly in Montreal’s Mile End neighbourhood, and it’s become a favourite spot among local authors and book-lovers. La Petite Librairie Drawn & Quarterly focuses exclusively on children’s literature, including graphic novels for kids. If you have kids that are bookstores then always visit this store.
Whodunit, Winnipeg, Manitoba
Whodunit was founded in 1994 and offers a full range of crime fiction plus so much more, with a collection spanning over 18,000 books. On the last Tuesday of every month, Whodunit hosts a Mystery Reading Club. In the summer of 2018, they moved to a new space that is twice the size of their previous shop – expanding their collection beyond mystery, as well. The store offers an extensive children’s section and more local authors, with lots of unexpected treasures from all genres. This is a store you should visit.
Mabel’s Fables, Toronto, Ontario
Mabel’s Fables was founded in 1988 and has since grown to become a sought-after destination for books for children and young adults. It is located in a two-story building in Toronto’s Midtown. Mabel’s Fables offers a book club and classes for adults on writing fiction for children (in association with George Brown College). The store also collects gently used books for Children’s Book Bank a charity that provides free books to low-income communities. It has visitors and users from across the world.
Munro’s Books, Victoria, British Columbia
Munro’s Books is located in the heart of Victoria’s Old Town. It has been a must-visit destination for book-lovers for more than 50 years. Original owners, Jim and Alice Munro, opened the store in 1963 in a spall space on Yates St. In 1979, it moved to a larger place on Fort Street, and then in 1984, to its current location, a beautiful neo-classical building with 24-foot coffered ceilings, originally built for the Royal Bank of Canada in 1909. Today, the store is one of the top bookstores in North America.
Café Books, Canmore, Alberta
Café Books is an independently owned bookstore selling new and used books. This store was voted in the top 11 magical bookstores to visit across Canada by Chatelaine. It is located in the heart of the Canadian Rockies and has an outlook of a tourist attraction. The majority of the furniture is reclaimed and salvaged. The main bookcase is made from an old butler pantry from a Pennsylvania Mansion; a Welsh chapel door from the 1800s was transformed into the washroom entrance; and an 18th-century French workbench with a draw and functioning vice is used as a table for the cashier tills. The store also has merchandise related to the books they sell such as Out of Print tees, sweatshirts and book quote necklaces and keyrings. Even the cupcakes they offer have tiny books on them. If you visit this store and sit on a couch, pick up your drink and open your book, the next thing is that you find yourself in a different land. There’s a reason this bookstore is voted as ‘One of the dreamiest bookstores’. You just have to visit to confirm this by yourself. The bookstore has great book selection, relaxing music, really good coffee, and knowledgeable staff t assist you anytime.
