Cape & Islands Bookstore Trail

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Cape & Islands Bookstore Trail

Explore Cape Cod & the Islands through visits to our unique & independent bookstores!

4/29-10/7/2023

10/13/2025

Store Spotlight: Belonging Books!

Belonging Books is a community-focused bookstore that centers the voices and stories of people of color and other underrepresented communities on Cape Cod. Through creative programs and events, Belonging Books creates and holds space for joy, celebration, rest and connection.

Belonging Books opened their "doors" in the Spring of 2022 with a creative writing workshop for BIPOC high school students and a pop-up event at A-Way with Words, a spoken word event honoring those lost to police brutality. At the end of 2022, Belonging Books, along with three other organizations focused on art, culture and equity, formed The Arts & Justice Collective. Through this collaboration, Belonging Books has been able to reach more people, organize joyful community gatherings, and empower and uplift our historically-excluded communities.

They continue to partner with value-aligned community organizations all across Cape Cod and offer thoughtfully-curated books all year long. Recently, they found a home - a gathering place - at 438 Main Street in Hyannis.

Whether it’s a book club, writing circle, open mic night, school program or author event, they are most proud of being able to create and hold space for people of color on the Cape — to carve out a small sanctuary.

Belonging Books is a must-visit on your next trip to the big city (aka Hyannis)! Open Tuesday-Saturday 11-5. Learn more at belongingbookscapecod.com.

Today is the LAST DAY to enter to win a gift card to the participating C&I bookstore of your choice or a bookish tote stuffed with wondrous goodies! Learn more at capeandislandsbookstoretrail.com.

10/12/2025

Store Spotlight: Reed Books!

Reed Books is a charming bookshop located on Main Street (Route 28) in Harwich Port. It features gently-used and out-of-print books for readers and collectors as well as a great selection of new books!

Open daily from 10-5. Happy Book Trail!

The entry form for the Cape & Islands Bookstore Trail drawing closes on October 13th. Head over to capeandislandsbookstoretrail.com to enter!

10/11/2025

Bookstore spotlight: The Provincetown Bookshop!

The Provincetown Bookshop is Cape Cod's oldest bookstore at over 90 years old. The shop is a well-curated general interest bookstore, a door to discovery with a little something for everyone and a nod to local authors and LGBTQ+ stories.

Paul Smith originally opened the Provincetown Bookshop in 1932 at 447 Commercial Street (now Karilon Gallery), according to David W. Dunlap’s Building Provincetown. The shop specialized in local authors even then and allowed customers to both buy or rent books for 5 cents a day into the 1950s. The store is now located at 229 Commercial Street.

Fun fact: Filmmaker and writer John Waters, who worked at the Ptown Bookshop in the '70s, famously said, “I didn’t go to college, but I went to the Provincetown Bookshop."

They are open every day from 11-6. Stop by and say hello!

P.S. Only 3 more days to enter the Cape & Islands Bookstore Trail drawing for a bookstore gift card or a bookish tote! Learn more at capeandislandsbookstoretrail.com.

10/10/2025

Bookstore Highlight: Yellow Umbrella Books
Yellow Umbrella Books is a wonderful bookstore right on Main Street in Chatham where you can find all sorts of new and used books! Open 9:30-5:30 Monday-Saturday, 10:00-5:00 Sunday.

Happy Banned Books week! The last day to enter to win a gift card to the C&I Trail store of your choice or a tote bag full of wonders is Monday, October 13th! Head to capeandislandsbookstoretrail.com for more info!

09/23/2025

Spotted at Titcomb's Bookshop: This lovely booklover and her friend visited all 21 stores on the trail this year! Way to go Catherine!

How many stores have you been to? Visit capeandislandsbookstoretrail.com and enter by October 13th for a chance to win a gift card to the store of your choice or a tote full of bookish goodies!

09/07/2025

Store spotlight: Sea Howl Bookshop!

Sea Howl Bookshop is a small, independent bookstore located in downtown Orleans on Cape Cod. They pride themselves on their unique selection and carry over 5,000 titles covering all genres, with special attention to independent and scholarly presses, politically, socially and environmentally conscious titles, and underrepresented authors.

They also carry a small selection of used books, along with puzzles, greeting cards, stationery, journals, art prints, stickers and other paper goods. They make an effort to carry only environmentally friendly (FSC-certified) paper products from small studios and local artists/makers.

The name Sea Howl comes from the T.S. Eliot poem "The Dry Salvages" (No. 3 of Four Quartets). It reminded the owners of the roaring sound of the ocean that can be heard on a windy day, and especially in Orleans — the first town as you move out on the peninsula of Cape Cod to face the wild Atlantic Ocean.

Summer hours:
Monday–Saturday 10am–5pm
Sunday 11am–4pm

https://www.seahowlbookshop.com/

Happy Trail!

09/04/2025

Store spotlight: Edgartown Books!

Nestled in the heart of historic Edgartown, Edgartown Books has been a beloved literary haven on Martha’s Vineyard for over twenty years. Housed in a charming historic building on Main Street, the bookstore has long been a gathering place for book lovers, island visitors, and renowned authors alike. With an expertly curated selection of fiction, nonfiction, children's literature, and local interest titles, Edgartown Books offers something for every reader.

More than just a bookstore, it serves as a cultural hub, hosting author events, book signings, and community gatherings that celebrate the written word. Deeply dedicated to the island, Edgartown Books continues to foster a love of reading and storytelling, ensuring that literature remains at the heart of the Vineyard experience.

Upcoming events:

9/5 @ 2-4pm: Deborah Hammett - Young Salt at Sixty
9/6 @ 2-4pm: Kathryn Ford, M.D. - The Aperture Effect
9/9 @ 2-4pm: Tim Queeney: Rope

Store hours:
10-9 every day

https://www.edgartownbooks.com/

09/01/2025

Store spotlight: Parnassus Book Service!

Parnassus is a family-run bookstore on historic Route 6A in Yarmouth Port. They've served the needs of the Cape Cod community since Ben and Ruth Muse established their first store at Sherman Square Hyannis in 1957. Two years later they moved their stock to a 19th century building that had once been Knowles General Store. In fact, during the early years of the bookstore, customers would sometimes come in to inform them where the pickle barrel was located or where the candy counter had been.

Today the candy and pickles have been replaced by one of New England's widest and most interesting collections of books. The store is now in the hands of the second generation – Bill Muse, Sarah Romano, and Eben Muse. Housed in a charming 19th-century building, the store features a unique outdoor overhang where visitors can browse and purchase books at any time, operating on an honor system (leave your money under the door). Now in its second generation, Parnassus Book Service continues to be a beloved destination for book enthusiasts.

Store Hours:
Monday - Saturday 10am - 5pm
Sunday 11am - 4pm

Visit capeandislandsbookstoretrail.com and enter by October 13th to win a gift card to the store of your choice!

08/29/2025

Store spotlight: Herridge Books!

Herridge Books is a wonderful, cozy bookshop in Wellfleet. You're sure to get lost in their fantastic selection of new, used, and rare books! Herridge Books has been open since 1992 and the building that houses the collection was built in 1880.

Store hours: 10am-9pm every day (May 2 - October 18)

Happy Trail!
https://www.capeandislandsbookstoretrail.com/

08/28/2025

Store spotlight: East End Books Ptown!

A full-service bookstore in beautiful Provincetown on the East End. A lovingly curated collection of Books in print, Ebooks, Audiobooks, Vinyl Albums, really cool magazines & more. You can also visit East End Books at their new location in Boston Seaport!

Upcoming events:

8/28 6pm @ Provincetown Public Library: Everything Is Now: The 1960s New York Avant-Garde--Primal Happenings, Underground Movies, Radical Pop w/Jim Hoberman

8/29 6pm @ East End Books: Chris McLaughlin "Mississippi Barking" & Barbara Cohen "Dog Time" - A special human & Dog Event!

8/30 6pm @ East End Books: Nathan Kernan "A Day Like Any Other: The Life of James Schuyler"

Store hours:
Monday - Thursday 11-7pm.
Friday 11-8pm
Saturday & Sunday 11-7pm

08/10/2025

Store spotlight: Where the Sidewalk Ends Bookstore & Children's Annex in Chatham!

Where the Sidewalk Ends is a mother-daughter-owned bookstore in a welcoming, two-story “antique” barn with an attached Children’s Annex full of educational books and imagination-enriching toys for young children.

* Friendly staff
* A small cafe
* Covered Deck with Seasonal Outdoor Seating
* Stroller-friendly Children’s Annex
* Special Events and Signings
* Private Parking Lot & Ramp to the entrance

https://www.booksonthecape.com/

Check out fun events like silent book club, musical storytime, pop-up flower market, and more: https://www.booksonthecape.com/eventsportfolioformat

STORE HOURS: 9am - 9pm daily
*Closing time subject to change depending on weather and foot traffic

Address

432 Main St
Chatham, MA
02633

Website

http://capeandislandsbookstoretrail.com/

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