Independent Bookstores in Rhode Island

• Books on the Square
• 471 Angell St.
• City: Providence
• Phone: (401) 331-9097
• Type: Primarily new with some used books
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We carry over 20,000 titles in store and have a searchable database with 3,000,000 more at our website. We host many in-store events with authors, book clubs, and children every month. For more complete information, including discount programs, check out our FAQ.

• Brown University Bookstore
• 224 Thayer St.
• City: Providence
• Phone: (401) 863-3168
• Type: New books
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• Cellar Stories Bookstore
• 111 Mathewson St.
• City: Providence
• Phone: (401) 521-2665
• Type: Used books
• Specialty: General Interest
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We have have been buying and selling all types of books for over 30 years. We have a stock of approximately 60,000 volumes covering all categories from vintage paperbacks, pulps and collectible ephemera to antiquarian volumes on many subjects. 

• Riffraff
• 60 Valley St, Unit 107A
• City: Providence
• Phone: (401) 421-4371
• Type: New books
• Specialty: General Interest
• Sidelines: Coffee/Tea
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Riffraff is a bookstore, coffee shop, and bar in the Olneyville neighborhood of Providence, RI. We aim to stock diverse books by underrepresented voices, including a lot of books from independent presses and titles in translation, and especially books that you might not have heard of before. All our events are free and open to the public.

• Symposium Books
• 240 Westminster St.
• City: Providence
• Phone: (401) 273-7900
• Type: Primarily new with some used books
• Specialty: General Interest, Art, Literary
• Sidelines: Greeting Cards/Postcards, Magazines
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New, used, and remainders. Located in the heart of Downtown Providence, RI since 2003. We focus on independent presses, academic publishers, art publishers, and other quality presses. New book ordering. Shipping available worldwide. Symposium Records – We also carry new and used vinyl records. Second location – Symposium Books @ Waterfire Arts Center. 475 Valley Street, Providence, RI. Curated collection of Art, Design, Photography, and Architecture.

• Symposium Books at WaterFire
• 475 Valley St.
• City: Providence
• Phone: (401) 443-5553
• Type: Primarily new with some used books
• Specialty: Art
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Home of WaterFire Providence. An unparalleled event space on Valley Steet in Olneyville. In partnership with Symposium Books, bringing you select art titles.

• Twenty Stories
• 107 Ives St.
• City: Providence
• Phone: (401) 216-7380
• Type: New books
• Specialty: General Interest, Feminist, LGBTQ+, Literary
• Sidelines: Artwork, Gifts, Greeting Cards/Postcards, Magazines
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Twenty Stories is an independent bookstore. Every month the two owners, Alexa Trembly and Emory Harkins, curate twenty new book titles in the genres of fiction, poetry, and nonfiction, as well as literary and cultural magazines. The book selection values innovative and emerging writers and presses, as well as established authors in the literary community. During the warmer months, their mobile bookstore, which operates out of renovated vintage van, pops-up in a new location every weekend and can be located with their online schedule, updated weekly, on their website and social media platforms.