Feminist and LGBTQ+ Bookstores

The Office of the GWS Librarian maintains the following list of women’s, feminist, and LGBTQ+ focused bookstores. We center feminist, anti-oppression, trans-inclusionary stores. The list is updated as we learn about new or closed stores. If you have a suggestion for our list, please email kmfoster2@wisc.edu.

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Feminist Bookstores in North America:

• All She Wrote Books – Somerville, Massachusetts – intersectional, inclusive feminist and queer bookstore
• Antigone Books – Tucson, Arizona – independent, historically feminist bookstore
• Big Blue Marble Books – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – literary fiction, poetry, LGBTQ+ books for kids, teens, and adults
• Bloodroot – Bridgeport, Connecticut – feminist restaurant and bookstore
• BookWoman – Austin, Texas – oldest, queerest, feminist-est bookstore in TX
• Burdock Book Collective – Birmingham, Alabama – intersectional feminist bookstore and community space
• Cafe con Libros – Brooklyn, New York – Intersectional Feminist community bookstore and coffee shop
• Card Carrying Books & Gifts – Corning, New York – creating a feminist future
• Charis Books – Decatur, Georgia – the South’s oldest independent feminist bookstore
• Common Ground Books – Tallahassee, Florida – LGBT+, feminist, and banned books
• Eleanor’s Norfolk – Norfolk, Virginia – local intersectional feminist bookstore & bottle shop
• Fulton Street Books & Coffee – Tulsa, Oklahoma – to increase intergenerational literacy and build better community
• Harriett’s Bookshop – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – celebrates women authors, women artists, and women activists (sister shop to Ida’s Bookshop)
• Ida’s Bookshop – Collingswood, New Jersey – celebrates women authors, women artists, & women activists (sister shop to Harriett’s Bookshop, physical location closing Jan 31, 2025)
• L’Euguelionne – Montreal, Quebec – feminist bookstore and non-profit solidarity co-op
• People Called Women – mobile feminist bookstore in Ohio
• Pocket Books – Lancaster, Pennsylvania – an eclectic feminist bookstore
• The Radical Cat – Reno, Nevada – feminist bookstore, cat adoption center, and community space
• A Room of One’s Own – Madison, Wisconsin – local, independent, feminist bookstore
• Socialight Society – Lansing, Michigan – celebrates Black women, curates Black books, and creates Black spaces
• Venus Envy – Ottawa, Ontario; and Halifax, Nova Scotia – education-oriented sex shop and bookstore
• Violet Valley Bookstore – Water Valley, Mississippi – a queer feminist bookstore
• Women and Children First – Chicago, Illinois – one of the largest feminist bookstores in the country
• Womencrafts – Provincetown, Massachusetts – promotes the work of female artisans, authors, and musicians
• Yes, Please – Scottdale, Georgia – a manifestation of our reverence for black women and gender expansive writers and readers

LGBTQ+ Bookstores in North America (also see list above):

• Bluestockings Cooperative – New York, New York – New York’s only queer, trans and sex worker run bookstore
• Bureau of General Services – Queer Division (BGSQD) – New York, New York – all-volunteer queer bookstore & cultural center
• Charlie’s Queer Books – Seattle, Washington – Seattle’s home for queer books and gag-worthy gifts
• Fabulosa Books – San Francisco, California – specializes in LGBTQ+ books
• Glad Day Bookshop – Toronto, Ontario, Canada – oldest queer bookstore in the world
• Helianthus Books – Kansas City area – pop-up bookshop
• Housing Works Bookstore & Cafe – New York City, New York – support New Yorkers living with and affected by HIV/AIDS
• The Irreverent Bookworm – Minneapolis, Minnesota – queer-owned new & used bookshop
• Libélula Books and Co. – San Diego, California – representation and accessibility in literature
• Lit. On Fire Books – Peoria, Illinois – proudly woman and LGBTQ owned
• Little District Books – Washington, D.C. – a celebration of LGBTQIA+ authors and stories
• Loudmouth Books – Indianapolis, Indiana – Black, queer, woman-owned independent bookstore dedicated to highlighting banned books
• Loyalty Bookstores – Washington, D.C. and Silver Spring, Maryland – centering Black, PoC, and Queer voices
• Petals & Pages – Denver, Colorado – feminist & queer bookstore, flower shop, and community space
• Philly AIDS Thrift @ Giovanni’s Room – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – oldest LGBTQ and feminist bookstore in the country
• Somos Voces – Mexico City, Mexico – queer bookstore and cafe
• Tubby & Coo’s Book Shop – New Orleans, Louisiana – queer, liberationist, decentralized independent bookshop
• Under the Umbrella – Salt Lake City, Utah – queer little bookstore
• WordHaven BookHouse – Sheboygan, Wisconsin – queer-owned independent bookshop and writing center

Outside North America:

• Antigone – Rome, Italy – gender studies, feminisms, art, and queer theory
• Berkana – Madrid, Spain – first bookstore specializing in LGTBIQ+ culture in Spain
• Black Feminist Bookshop – London, England – queer Black woman owned
• Category is Books – Glasgow, Scotland – independent LGBTQIA+ bookshop
• ChickLit – Vienna, Austria – feminist and queer feminist theory, fiction, lesbian novels, children’s books, graphic novels
• Dali Bom Books – Seoul, South Korea – feminist and LGBTQ
• Fem Books – Taipei, Taiwan – feminist and queer books and films
• Gay’s The Word – London, England – UK’s oldest LGBT bookshop
• GinGin – Taipei, Taiwan – first LGBTQ+ bookshop in Asia
• Les Mots à la Bouche – Paris, France – bookstore focused on LGBTQ+ cultures
• Librairie des femmes – Paris, France – books written by women, on women or for women
• Libreria de Mujeres – Buenos Aires, Argentina – feminist bookstore and archive
• Librería Mujeres – Madrid, Spain – renowned feminist bookstore
• Lighthouse – Edinburgh, Scotland – queer-owned and woman led
• Mujeres & Compañía – Madrid, Spain – women’s and feminist books
• Savannah Bay – Utretcht, The Netherlands – gender studies, feminism, LGBTQIA+
• The Second Shelf – London, England – feminist rare books
• Un livre et une tasse de thé – Paris, France – bookstore and tea room
• The Women’s Bookshop – Auckland, New Zealand – women’s writing, LGBTQIA+ books

Now closed:

• Athenian Press and Workshops – Wilmington, North Carolina – opened 2018
• Calamus Books – Boston, Massachusetts – Closed storefront September 2016, selling on Amazon
• Common Language – Ann Arbor, Michigan – 1991-2018
• Confraria Vermelha Livraria de Mulheres – Porto, Portugal – 2015-2020?
• The Feminist Bookshop – Brighton, England – 2019-2024
• The Feminist Bookshop – Sydney, Australia – established 1974, closed sometime between 2020-2023
• Food for Thought Books – Amherst, Massachusetts – ~1976-2014
• Harvest Moon Books – Albuquerque, New Mexico – 2019-2023, remaining stock available online only
• In Other Words – Portland, Oregon – 1993-2018
• Lavender Inkwell Bookshoppe – Syracuse, New York – 2006-2015
• Mother Tongue Books – Ottawa, Canada – 1992-2012
• My Sisters’ Words – Syracuse, New York – ~1987-2003
• New Earth Books – Kent, Washington – 1991-2008
• New Words Bookstore – Cambridge, MA – 1974-2002
• Northern Woman’s Bookstore – Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada – Closed late 2016
• Now Voyager Books – Provincetown, Massachusetts
• Ottawa Women’s Bookstore – Ottawa, Canada – 1982-1991
• OutLoud Bookstore – Nashville, Tennesee – Closed 2011
• Outwords Books – Milwaukee, Wisconsin – closed 2023
• The Salt Eaters Bookshop – Inglewood, California – 2021-2024, bookshop.org storefront open as of January 2025
• Sliver Moon Bookshop – Charing Cross Road, London – 1984-2001
• Sisterspace and Books – Washington, D.C. – Closed 2004
• Sisterspirit Books – San Jose, California – Closed 2010
• Toronto Women’s Bookstore – Toronto, Canada – Closed in 2012
• True Colors Bookstore (was Amazon Feminist Bookstore Co-op) – Minneapolis, Minnesota – Closed in 2012
• Valley Vixen – Wolfville, Nova Scotia – OPENED April 2017 – Books and adult toys – Retail store closed June 2018
• Wild Iris Books – Gainesville, Florida – Closed Dec. 23, 2017
• Word is Out – Boulder, Colorado – Storefront closed 2008, was online only temporarily