The Best Bookstores in the Front Range

If you’re a fan of reading and/or writing, you might be aware that (in the US) Independent Bookstore Day happens annually on the last Saturday in April.

To celebrate the day and encourage visits to indie booksellers, a group running the Colorado Indie Bookstores Instagram account pulled together a Colorado Indie Bookstores Passport. The rules were simple — visit one of the bookstores on the list, get a stamp. 10 stamps made you eligible for entering into prize giveaways, with additional entries for every 3 stamps after.

While some of the participating shops were already on my list of faves, hunting down passport stamps introduced me to over a dozen I hadn’t been to yet. Here are some of my favorites from the past month. You can see all the bookstores I visited and what I picked up at each on my Instagram.

Favorite Bookshop for Writers: Petals and Pages (Denver)

These first two are going to come as no surprise to anyone I’ve talked to or who follows my Instagram as they first made appearances long before the Indie Bookstore Passport. Opened in October 2023, Petals and Pages in Denver’s Santa Fe Arts District already feels like a Denver writing institution to me thanks to the significant portion of its square footage that’s taken up by the most aesthetic writer’s corner you will find anywhere. Any time during their open hours, writers can come set up at the table, make a cozy cup of tea (with even more drink options and goodies to come when The Botanical Bakery opens inside later this year), and type or scribble away. For those of us who need a little bit of community with our writing time, designated social writing hours happen every Tuesday from 4 to 7pm. And the owner, Dylah Ray, has teased writing workshops to come.

It’s also an art gallery, flower shop, and community space with a wide variety of events. Oh, and a feminist, queer bookstore too! It’s truly become one of my favorite places in Denver and I’m so excited to see how it grows!

Got my stamp with: Women! in! Peril! by Jessie Ren Marshall

Favorite for the Coffee People: The Read Queen (Lafayette)

The Read Queen is my go-to for getting bookish presents for niblings and other kiddos in my life, as well as for adults of all ages. A welcoming vibe and well stocked coffee bar make this a great place to hang out in downtown Lafayette. Don’t miss their bonus space, The Queen’s Lounge, which is filled with cozy places to read with a cup of their coffee.

Got my stamp with: The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna

Favorite for Getting Introduced to a Cute New Town: Sudden Fiction (Castle Rock)

All I knew about Castle Rock before April was that a) it’s not Stephen King’s Castle Rock, cause that’s in Maine, b) it’s where the outlets on the way to Colorado Springs are, and c) it’s got a big rock jutting up from one of the hills that looks like a fortress. I definitely didn’t know it had an absolutely adorable downtown area with one of the coolest market collaboratives I’ve been to.

Nestled in the 2nd floor of Ecclesia Market is Sudden Fiction, a cozy shop with a great and well organized selection of fiction and non-fiction books (as well as some fun surprises… see if you can find the store within the store). In their poetry section, I picked up a collection under their local authors label, only to find that its author (Angelina Portfilio) was a former employee at the shop.

Got my stamp with: Flowers for Your Grave by Angelina Portfilio

Favorite Way Up 25: Old Firehouse Books (Fort Collins)

I have an adorable, elderly dog (I promise this is related to books) and we’re lucky to have the Colorado State University Vet School just an hour up the road from us in Fort Collins, Colorado. While the pup’s been up there for drop-off procedures, my partner and I have taken the opportunity to explore the college town. It led us to the very eclectic Perelandra Bookshop at Wolverine Farm on a previous visit, which was a great place to browse and set up to get some writing done.

Our most recent visit, I took the opportunity to get a stamp (and a book, obv) at Old Firehouse Books, which had been in my "Want To Go” list on Google Maps for a while anyway. A welcoming vibe gave way to a long alley of new and used books.

Got my stamp with: Intuitive Eating by Elyse Resch and Evelyn Tribole 

Favorite Romance Selection: Words of Windsor (Windsor)

I’d seen the town of Windsor on maps a bunch — it’s the kind of name you tend to notice and give a double take. But I never knew they had a bookstore - Words of Windsor. Walking in to the bright shop (which houses a room for its copius events and book clubs upstairs), I was delighted to find one of the best Romance selections I’d seen (or would see) at a shop of its size. A bonus: the books have inserts with spice levels, so you never have to be disappoints with a closed door or surprised with a hot and heavy open one.

Got my stamp with: Orphia and Eurydicius by Elyse John (bonus: check out my review)

Favorite for a Large Selection: Boulder Bookstore (Boulder)

Celbrating its 50th year, Boulder Bookstore is an institution. It (along with the Tattered Cover locations in Denver) are the stops for the big book tours and launches: Patrick Stewart, TJ Klune, Temple Grandin, and Alix E. Harrow being some of the recent big names. Another soon to be big name: Alexandra Kiley, who hosted one of her launch events for Kilt Trip here. With the big names they draw, they still make sure to feature and host local Colorado authors, something that keeps them a favorite in Colorado writer’s hearts. Its three floors of books will keep you browsing for a while.

Got my stamp with: Kilt Trip by Alexandra Kiley

Favorite Used Bookstore: The Book Rack (Denver)

I’m going to make a startling admission: some used bookstores creep me out. The ones with disorganized shelves and books shoved in every nook and cranny and — I’m most sorry for this — the bad kind of Old Book Smell… I can’t with those. I like a discerning quality in my used bookshop, a sense of organization, but also that allows you to just browse and find something surprising. The Book Rack fit the bill of everything I would ask for in my ideal Used Bookshop. Bonus: they’ve got a great puzzle selection and wonderful smelling candles from local vendor Threaded Candle Company.

Got my stamp with: The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner and Funny Feelings by Tarah DeWitt

Favorite for Deep Reads: The Shop at MATTER (Denver)

Part art studio/bookstore/gallery, part typographic letterpress studio, and part bookstore, The Shop at MATTER has big “HQ of the Future Revolution” vibes. While you’ll find a selection of fiction, the shop specializes its curation in three areas: all things Design; inclusive children’s literature, and activist non-fiction, especially focusing on queer and BIPOC topics.

Got my stamp with: One Person, No Vote by Carol Anderson

What are your favorite Indie Bookstores? What have you picked up this month? Share in the comments!