Village Books and Paper Dreams

What an amazing experience! This place will blow you away, then hold you captive for the rest of your day! Multiple levels, a podium and chairs for authors to speak, a top notch children's section, a cafe inside, a patio outside, a green space for after... reading your treasures and nibbling on your treats...in fresh air if you choose! Just steps away. Some cool sitting areas inside as well, to browse, sit and decide. But best of all, the inventory. The price points are fair, and the assortment... endless. The service, home town feel and real. Highly recommend you find some time to wander around, eat, and mingle with the locals.

I adore this local bookstore and adjoining gift shop! Anytime I’m in Bellingham, I make a point to stop in here - I always find a great book (or five) to bring home. They have an impressive selection of curated books, including some of our family’s favorites:

• cookbooks (there’s a whole wall in the gift shop by the cooking gadgets)
• children’s books (I love that they have a section of picture books about artists, as well as musicians and other cultural icons)
• anime and graphic novels (some are downstairs in the tween/teen section and others are upstairs on the 3rd floor)
• fantasy and sci-fi (nice selection on the 3rd floor, including a shelf of recommended reads by the staff)
• local interest and travel books (1st floor/lower level, including some nice books on the PNW)
• home design & gardening (I found quite a few design books I never saw before… and lots on my “to read list”)

There are 3 levels: the 1st floor is accessible from the back of the building (or staircase/elevator on main floor), the 2nd floor is the “main” floor where you enter from the front of the building and shares access to the gift shoppe, and the 3rd floor is accessible from the staircase in the back left corner or elevator - there’s also a cafe/coffee shop upstairs!

The upstairs coffeeshop (Evolve Cafe) has soup, salads, sandwiches, pastries, and coffee/tea drinks. They also have gluten free food options, which is nice. You can eat in the little dining area to the left or there is a bar area overlooking the bookstore to the right. I’ve eaten here several times and the food is nourishing and delicious. (Tip: The cafe does close a bit early, so plan on being there before 4pm if you want something.)

06/24/23: when I searched bookstores in the Bellingham area, this one was placed first, so I thought we must check it out.

Amazingly, this bookstore is spacious, with three floors. There is a coffee shop upstairs in case you need to enjoy some great local coffee. I would say most books here are for children, and they sell tons of items for kids. Great place to check out if you are in the area

I would come back when I visit Bellingham again

One of my favorite places to look for books, the atmosphere can't be beat. Staff are incredibly helpful and kind but busy. Books are more expensive here than you might find elsewhere but the experience is worth it in my opinion.

This is a stellar bookstore! My favorite, or at least one of my favorite bookstores I have ever been in. I think that's saying a lot because I both grew up hanging out in bookstores, and managed a bookstore for 10 years.

Let me count the ways... Courteous and helpful staff, amazing selection, attached gift store has beautiful, quality gifts, great vibe, lovely old building with lots of nooks and crannies, pleasant places to sit and read, an extremely active author series... What's not to love?!

Great selections to find whatever you need to get through the day. Cafe has good options. Plenty of choices for books, socks, bags, kitchen needs, gifts, and so much more. Staff are incredible. Always!

Local, wonderfully curated book store in a walkable old neighborhood of Bellingham. This bookstore is 3 levels of new books with well marked sections. On the main floor it also has a gift shop with all kinds of neat home goods, gifts and jewelry. On the second floor is a cafe and restaurant that does all their baking in house. In the basement are more books and calendars. Highly recommend this place.
This bookstore is my daughter's favorite reward for good semester grades. We visit from Everett.

Stopped in while visiting from Delaware and was highly impressed! Village Book store is an amazing place. Located right off of a village green area which contains an outdoor movie theater, the bookstore runs several floors. It has a wide variety of new and used books, a cafe, and an area for kids literacy camp. We spent over an hour just wandering through. You should definitely check it out if you are in the area.

This is a fantastic bookstore and gift shop. It is located in a great spot and has fantastic displays and lots to look at. The store was great to walk through as they gave a variety of different paper items as well as local items to purchase. They have a great book selection as well with a variety of sections to easily navigate through. I appreciated their walls with recommended books as well as this is always a great place to start browsing.

Very cool place. Vocal staff and good vibes at coffee shop.
There was a tonic with an elder berry syrup, omg it was great.
Spent an hour walking around exploring all three floors found the books we needed.

This is a favorite stop in the Fairhaven neighborhood of Bellingham. It has a nice cafe on the ground floor and a great coffee shop on the second floor. The layout and decor is very fun. There are a number of chairs around to sip and read. Village has a pretty decent selection of books. I especially liked their travel and sci-fi sections. They also have a nice kids section with a great view of the sound. Enjoy the inside stroll!

Wonderful book store with amazing stock and amazing prices. They carry a mix of new books and used books, but I believe they lean more towards new. Even still, you can find some great deals. They also send out a nice little birthday discount card, if you join their program. The staff is incredibly helpful and kind. Absolutely the best book store in Bham.

One of the better book stores I've been to, absolutely worth the trip. Could spend hours in here poking around at their selection and genres. Staff was helpful, knowledgeable, and more than willing to order books if they didn't have them. Great scifi and fantasy selection, open seating for their cafe, but no publicly accessible restrooms at the time of this review. There's a gift shop as well too if the three stories of books didn't have enough to see. Will come again.

My favorite bookstore in Bellingham and maybe the west coast. Many levels, a gift store and cafe and so many great books. Sweet courtyard out front too for reading or coffee after you shop.

I love this place! Great selection of books and gifts. The customer service folks are always helpful with a smile and know what you're looking for and exactly where it's located. Well staffed and I've never had to go searching for help. I strongly recommend village books.

The polenta bowl is really special! Also recommend the blueberry puff pastry; they put cardamom in the glaze which is magical. Service tales a minute but definitely worth the wait!

I like to visit the Cafe on the third floor the mochas are really nice and creamy, barista('os) are super friendly people. I like the relaxing library vibe and the view is nice too. Great place to study, and the fudge downstairs is immaculate, got that thick texture.

Amazing place. Revisited after 20 years away and it hasn't changed a bit. Wonderful staff and amazing selection of books with great staff reviews. Looks like they host a variety of community events which is always good to see.

My favorite bookstore in Whatcom County.
This place won’t disappoint.
Three floors of almost every genre of book you’re looking for. There is a good selection of local authors and PNW focused titles.
The store puts together many local events with authors and books clubs. The staff are friendly and knowledgeable.
There is a coffee shop and cafe upstairs and on the bottom floor, the store is connected to Colophone cafe.
Be sure to check out their stickers and little trinkets throughout the store. They have a second location up in Lynden.

Plan to spend a lot of time at this awesome store. It not only has a great selection of books but wonderful gifts. There are so many things you never knew you needed that you'll want to buy. I could spend hours here. It's definitely a must-see during your visit to the Fairhaven area.