North Carolina has long been known as the “writingest state,” and the thing about writers is — we read, y’all. So having a good bookstore or twenty is as essential to us as air. It’s no secret that pre-COVID, you would find me haunting a bookstore once a week on average. Often I would traverse the length of North Carolina to visit a particular bookstore because I had not been there in a long time or had never visited. My husband and son are wise men, and they always set aside half a day of any vacation/trip for me to explore the local bookstores within reasonable driving distance.
During the COVID pandemic, I placed orders, trolled bookstore lists, and kept my eyes peeled for anything new and exciting to add to my already groaning nightstand and heaving bookshelves. Not only did it save my sanity, but I like to think it helped, purchasing one book at a time to keep small, independent bookstores open in hopes they continue to operate long after life returns to normal.
Bookstores are essential businesses, gathering places for people with one thing in common — reading. It doesn’t matter what you read, and yes, I am aware there are groups of people who certainly think that it is essential and are attempting to remove books from shelves faster than new ones are published.
Reading is fundamental, and it is something we do every day. Even if you say you hate to read, if you’re using the Internet, chances are you’re reading. We owe books and the people who create them so much. Books are created by artists who pour their blood, sweat, and many tears into a finished project they hope to one day see on the shelves of a bookstore.
This list is constantly changing. Please message us if you have books to add to this list or updates!
Independent Bookstores in North Carolina:
- Foggy Pine Books, Boone http://www.foggypinebooks.com
- Park Road Books, Charlotte https://www.parkroadbooks.com
- The Curiosity Shop, Murphy https://murphybookstore.com
- Books to Be Red, Ocracoke https://ocracokebookstore.com
- McIntyre’s Books, Chapel Hill https://fearrington.com/mcintyres-books/
- The Next Chapter Books and Art, New Bern https://thenextchapternc.com
- Quail Ridge Books, Raleigh https://www.quailridgebooks.com
- The Country Bookshop, Southern Pines https://www.thecountrybookshop.biz
- City Lights, Sylva https://www.citylightsnc.com
- Blue Ridge Books, Waynesville https://blueridgebooksnc.com
- Quarter Moon Books, Topsail Beach https://www.quartermoonbooks.com
- Bookmarks, Winston Salem https://www.bookmarksnc.org
- Main Street Books, Davidson https://www.mainstreetbooksdavidson.com
- Malaprop’s Bookstore, Asheville https://www.malaprops.com
- Paper Skyscraper, Charlotte https://www.paperskyscraper.com
- Highland Books, Brevard https://www.highlandbooksonline.com
- Island Bookstore, Corolla http://www.islandbooksobx.com
- Flyleaf Books, Chapel Hill https://www.flyleafbooks.com
- Epilogue Books, Chapel Hill https://epiloguebookcafe.com
- Buxton Village Books, Buxton https://www.buxtonvillagebooks.com
- Page After Page, Elizabeth City https://pageafterpagebookstore.indielite.org
- The Regulator Bookshop, Durham https://www.regulatorbookshop.com
- Golden Fig Books, Durham https://www.goldenfigbooks.com
- Island Bookstore, Kitty Hawk http://www.islandbooksobx.com
- Duck’s Cottage, Duck https://www.duckscottage.com
- Emerald Isle Books and Toys, Emerald Isle http://www.emeraldislebooks.com
- Books Unlimited, Franklin http://www.booksunlimitednc.com
- Unlimited Books for Kids, Franklin http://booksunlimitednc.com/unlimited-books-for-kids-franklin-nc.html
- Scuppernong Books, Greensboro https://www.scuppernongbooks.com
- Wonderland Books, Greensboro https://www.wonderlandbookshopnc.com
- Sunrise Books, High Point https://sunrisebookshp.indielite.org
- Downtown Books, Manteo https://www.duckscottage.com
- Adventure Bound Books, Morganton https://www.adventureboundbooks.com
- Read With Me, Raleigh https://www.readwithme.us
- South Main Book Company, Salisbury https://www.southmainbookcompany.com
- Page 158 Books, Wake Forest https://www.page158books.com
- Pomegranate Books, Wilmington https://pomegranatebooks.wordpress.com
- Two Sister’s Bookery, Wilmington https://www.twosistersbookerync.com
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