6 new Atlanta indie bookstores seek to be ‘third spaces’ for readers
In 2025, 422 new bookstores opened in the United States, according to the American Booksellers Association.
That number tracks with the recent explosion in Atlanta of independent bookstores that have popped up like toadstools after a hard rain, from Hapeville’s Impossible Moon Bookshop to Peoplestown’s Offbeat Books.
Trendspotters point to a number of reasons for this national uptick in independent bookstores: a younger generation of bibliophiles fatigued by the idea of giving Amazon boss Jeff Bezos any more of their hard-earned coins; and bookstores that are antidotes to our digital detachment, operating more like community-oriented “third spaces” where people can go for the latest Haruki Murakami novel but also for a game of Magic: The Gathering and a glass of pinot.
“I think the books themselves represent kind of an alternative to the digital world,” A Capella Books’ Frank Reiss said of the return of Gen Z and millennials to all things analog.
The ur-indie, Reiss’ bookstore, which opened in 1989, has weathered changing economies and mercurial consumer trends. He views this newest wave of independent shops as “driven by younger adults who are moving into Atlanta and making it their home and creating their lifestyle. And they seem to be embracing what books and bookstores represent in a way that hadn’t been embraced in the last decade or so.”
Though the hours are long, Reiss would not have it any other way. “I love it. And I feel like it’s a very happy, happy life that I’ve been able to experience through it, but it’s a lot of work and it’s not much money.”
We spoke to the purveyors of some of Atlanta’s newest indie book shops and asked them about their own pursuit of a literary life.
Offbeat Books
1161 Ridge Ave. SW, Suite 104, Atlanta
Owner: Lindsi Bollinger
Opened: August
In a nutshell:
A veteran of bookstores and a former buyer/merchandiser at a clothing boutique, Bollinger sought to open her own space, she said, “because I strongly believe that literacy is the key to both empathy and political consciousness, and we as a country are in desperate need of both.” Located in Terminal South in Peoplestown, Offbeat specializes in speculative fiction and unconventional nonfiction, Bollinger said. Community events live up to the shop’s title with esoteric book clubs devoted to “Weird Girl LitFic” and antiimperialist titles, along with Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering meetups.
Favorite book of all time?
“You should know this (is) an impossible question for readers! I’ll go with ‘Parable of the Sower’ for most impactful and ‘The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet’ for most enjoyable.”
The Grim Reader Bookshop
Pop-up locations in a hearse-turned-mobile bookstore, for now.
Owner: Olivia Doyle
Opened: September
In a nutshell:
What might be the most novel mobile bookstore ever conceived, Doyle debuted her horror bookshop in a converted hearse that stages pop-up events throughout metro Atlanta. It seemed like the perfect zeitgeist-y moment to go hard on horror, she said. The writing and marketing vet is planning to open a brick-and-mortar Grim Reader Bookshop in the booming Upper Westside in summer where she will continue to focus on “dark, mysterious and spooky” stories in the occult, horror and mystery genres. The Grim Reader joins other horror specialty bookstores across the country, including the Twisted Spine in Brooklyn and San Antonio’s Ghoulish Books.
Vibe:
Doyle is teasing the Grim Reader’s Upper Westside location as eclectic Southern Gothic. “Imagine moss-covered cemeteries, a quirky collector’s study and a starry, cryptid-themed community space,” she said.
A Small Place Bookshop
40 Franklin St., Suite 300, Avondale Estates
Owners: Enkeshi El-Amin and Jasmine Okafor
Opened: April 2024
In a nutshell:
Owners El-Amin and Okafor, friends for more than 20 years, wanted to create a bookstore that was also a community and gathering space centered on the Black experience. Okafor is a minister and nonprofit leader working with Emory University, and El-Amin is a sociologist and assistant professor at Agnes Scott College. To accommodate their families and busy schedules, their bookstore is open primarily on weekends where story times, tea parties, book swaps, wellness gatherings and book signings are all part of the mix.
Focus:
“At a time when book bans and censorship — particularly of Black literature — are on the rise, A Small Place Bookshop is a bold declaration of Black autonomy and self-determination,” El-Amin said. “Our name is inspired by Jamaica Kincaid’s ‘A Small Place’ and reflects our belief in the power of place, voice and storytelling.”
Long Story Books
717 Edgewood Ave. SE, Atlanta
Owner: Kate Kiefer Lee
Opening: late summer 2026
In a nutshell:
Former Paste editor and vet of Intuit Mailchimp’s marketing team, Lee calls bookstores “happy places where people can go to find comfort, learn something new, escape, connect with other readers and get inspired. They strengthen local communities, support authors in meaningful ways and create personalized experiences that algorithms could never.” She is refurbishing a hundred-year-old house in Inman Park as the shop location, where she will focus on contemporary fiction, cookbooks, children’s books, gifts for readers and Long Story Books-branded merchandise. “Book clubs and gatherings and events will be an important part of how we show up in the world,” Lee said.
Vibe:
Think domestic cozy with “wood floors, fireplaces, rolling ladders and design touches that are true to the period,” Lee said. There will be a cafe serving coffee, food and beer and wine and a courtyard and garden. “My hope is that Long Story Books becomes a home away from home for many of our neighbors.”
Impossible Moon Bookshop
585 N Central Ave., Hapeville
Owner: Breanna J. McDaniel
Opened: February
In a nutshell:
A native Southsider, McDaniel grew up in the Tri-Cities area. Her goal? “To bring a third space dedicated to diverse literary pursuits and intergenerational experiences to my hometown.” Her range of books offered includes adult fiction and nonfiction, fantasy/sci-fi, romance and self-development books, along with children’s and young adult books. Before opening the store in the heart of Hapeville’s downtown, McDaniel worked as a professor and for Apple and is a published children’s book author.
Community happenings:
Book signings and readings with metro authors, poetry nights, writing workshops and community events with local businesses, McDaniel said, will “encourage community members to visit and shop locally.”
Lostintheletters Writing Studio & Bookstore
1653 McLendon Ave. NE, Unit C, Atlanta
Owners: Scott Daughtridge DeMer and Stephanie Dowda DeMer
Opened: October
In a nutshell:
Lostintheletters is an all-purpose literary destination run by a husband and wife long involved in Atlanta’s arts and culture community. Even before the bookstore opened, Lostintheletters had been hosting live readings and writing workshops and the annual Letters Festival beginning in 2013. The pair continue to encourage literary engagement with writing workshops, book club meetings and even Reading Required challenges where participants work toward reading goals.
Focus:
“At the store, we only sell books by authors who have read at our events,” Scott said. That impressive list includes more than 200 authors, such as Jericho Brown, Roxane Gay and Justin Torres.
