Bell House Books

08/18/2026

📚 Story Time this Saturday! 📚

Join us at Bell House Books for a special story time with local author Jennifer Wagh, who will be reading her delightful children’s book, Eggasaurus!

Parents, grab your coffee from the new Cornerstone Coffee Co. cart right here in the Ice House Mall and settle in for a morning of story time, fun activities, and a little bookish magic with Ms. Jennifer!

Link to events in bio for all the details.

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08/10/2026

Happy Monday, romance readers!

This Saturday we’re celebrating Bookstore Romance Day at Bell House Books, and we can’t wait to share the love of all things romance with you.

Stop by between 10 AM–5 PM and enjoy:
🌷 Fresh bouquets from Grace Gardens
📚 Blind Date with a Book
💕 Special savings on romance books

And don’t stop with us, make a day of it! Plan your own indie bookstore book crawl and visit a few other participating bookstores in the area. There’s no better way to spend a Saturday than supporting local bookstores and finding your next favorite romance read.

You can find the full list of participating bookstores here: https://bookstoreromanceday.org/participating-bookstores/

08/08/2026

📚Help us stock our classrooms, one book at a time!🍎

We’re so excited to partner with 19 incredible teachers across 9 of Barrington District 220’s 12 schools to help build classroom libraries for their students this school year.

Whether you’re a parent, grandparent, neighbor, former student, or simply someone who believes every child deserves access to great books, this is a wonderful way to make a direct impact in our community.

Stop by Bell House Books to browse each teacher’s wish list and purchase a book for their classroom. We’ll keep track of every list, prepare the orders, and make sure each book gets into the hands of the teachers who requested them.

Every book helps foster a love of reading, sparks curiosity, and creates opportunities for students to discover stories they’ll remember for years to come.

Thank you for supporting our local teachers, our students, and our community. Let’s fill these classroom shelves together!

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08/06/2026

As summer winds down, we’re getting excited for a new school year!
Today we launched our Back-to-School Teacher Wishlist Book Cart at Bell House Books!

Teachers from Barrington District 220 shared the books they’d love to add to their classroom libraries, and now we’re inviting parents, families, friends, and community members to help make those wishlists a reality.

Simply stop by the shop, choose a book from a teacher’s wishlist, and purchase it for their classroom. Over the next two weeks, teachers will pick up their donated books just in time to welcome students for the 2026–2027 school year.

Every book purchased is an investment in our local students, our amazing teachers, and our community. Plus, you’re supporting a small independent bookstore at the same time, a true win-win!

Let’s fill these carts and help our classrooms start the year with stories that inspire.

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08/02/2026

August is here, and so is a month full of books, story time, and community. 🍎📚

Here’s what’s happening at Bell House Books this month!

August 6, 22 & 29 – Kids’ Story Time
August 15 – Romance Bookstore Day
August 24 – Bell Pepper Book Club
August 27 – The Next Chapter Book Club

We’ll also be closed Wednesday, August 12 for some fun in the sun as we gear up for the start of the school year.

Event details, registration information, and everything you need to know will be shared throughout the week and will be available on our website soon. We can’t wait to spend another month reading with you!

07/31/2026

You asked, we listened! The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion — Volumes 1–8 are here!

Welcome to St. Crispian, a cozy, quirky neighborhood in London where we get a glimpse into the day-to-day life of Ms. Emma M. Lion, complete with charming neighbors, everyday adventures, a wonderfully dysfunctional family, and all the little details that make you feel like you’ve wandered right into her world.

And yes… these books are absolutely living up to the hype. I’m currently on Volume 3 and can’t get enough.

If you’ve been curious about the series, consider this your sign to start reading!

Come grab the full set at Bell House Books and settle in for a visit to St. Crispian.

07/29/2026

Bell House Books × Barrington 220 Teacher Wish Lists

We’re getting ready for back to school by helping our Barrington 220 teachers build their classroom libraries!

Teachers in Barrington 220 are invited to submit a classroom wishlist through Bell House Books. Simply complete our Teacher Wish List Request Form by August 5, and we’ll take it from there!

This is a quick, two-week community effort to help get more books onto local classroom shelves before the school year begins.

Once submitted, Bell House Books will:
-Create and manage your classroom wishlist
-Organize lists by teacher and school
-Make books available for purchase in-store and online
-Track purchases throughout the campaign
-Prepare each classroom’s books for teacher pickup before school starts

Want to support a local classroom?

Once teacher wish lists are live, parents, grandparents, neighbors, and community members can choose a book or a few from a local teacher’s list.

Whether you purchase one book or help fill an entire shelf, every contribution helps bring more stories, knowledge, and joy into a local classroom.

Barrington 220 teachers: Submit your Teacher Wish List Request Form by August 5 to participate! (Link in bio)

Community: Stay tuned! Teacher wish lists will be available to shop in store as soon as we get them!

Let’s fill some Barrington classrooms with great books before the first bell rings!

07/26/2026

07/24/2026

Two July releases I’ve picked up lately

The Exquisite Torment of Loving Your Enemy by Brigitte Knightley
If you love enemies-to-lovers romance and have a soft spot for Dramione fanfic, this one is for you. The second book in the duology was every bit as delightful as the first, with the perfect slow burn, sharp banter, and all the tension you could hope for.

Make Nice by Ryan Effgen
The perfect beach read! A family vacation full of secrets, complicated relationships, and plenty of family drama, all told through multiple POVs. It was one of those books that keeps you turning the pages to see how everyone’s stories come together.

I love when two books couldn’t be more different, but both ended up being exactly what I was in the mood for.

Come chat books with me this weekend! I’d love to hear what you’re reading, what you’ve loved lately, and what’s next on your TBR. I also have a stack of books I’m so excited to dive into, and I’m always happy to swap recommendations.