Love having this place as my local indy bookstore. They have such a great selection of goods and what they don’t have they can order by request. My go-to for books, puzzles and stationery. Also, their staff is super knowledgeable, helpful and friendly. And, Cafe Zing has great drinks and snacks!

Great knowledgeable & helpful staff & great book selection. A nice variety of gift items at varied prices. Spend a lot or a little. They order books too. Buy your books here.❤ The nice indoor cafe is open with outdoor seating. Located near Porter Square T station. They just Opened a new location @ 50 Liberty Drive, Boston- short walk from ICA Art Museum.

I special ordered a book online and picked it up in store. Everything went super smoothly. pickup was fast and easy. Love this local bookseller!

Porter Square Books is my go-to local bookstore. Their staff picks are always great, theyve got a good selection for the size of the store. The staff is always up for helping you find the book youre looking for, and will order it for you of they dont have it. The fact that theyve got a nice little cafe where I can get coffee is just an added bonus :)

I love coffee shops in bookshops. Independently run coffee shops in independently run bookshops are the stuff of fantasy in a world where chain stores rule. So obviously Porter Square Books and Zing Cafe get points for merely existing, the latter inside the former. My obvious fanaticism aside, this is a great place to browse new books; from poetry to politics, sip on a latte or type away furiously at your latest writing project.

A very fabulous local bookstore. Wonderful selection of books for children and adults. Also a great spot to find a gift for someone.

Really convenient online ordering and curb-side pickup. Great selection in the store and they seem to have a warehouse that has every book ever written.

Home away from Home...such a great spot and the team at Porter is amazing.

This place is one of my favorite bookstores (and Ive been to a plethora). They have very knowledgeable and friendly staff, and they highlight local authors. The events hosted are wonderful as well, not too overwhelming or crowded. The staff picks, which are frequently amazing, are 20% off and change monthly. They have a pretty good cafe, too, that sell locally baked goods. Plus, theres a YA book club (for young adults and those young at heart) every month.

Has a little bit of everything including coffee, AC, cozy & clean. No rush.

An extremely knowledgeable, engaged, community-oriented bookstore. Its beyond queer friendly (get thee to their website and you will see), and once when I left with a particular stack of books they earnestly wished me luck smashing the patriarchy. The store is really a beacon of hope and goodness in our community!

Great atmosphere and excellent coffee and pastries. Perfect for a date.

Great shop and customer service. They have in-store shopping right now (which feels safe because theyre careful about capacity), as well as an efficient setup for ordering online and picking up outside of the store. I had a book on backorder from the publisher for a while and the bookstore was great about keeping me updated on its status.

Very quick pick-up process for pre-orders. I also browsed a bit before picking up my order, and they had my order ready to go and by the exit by the time I had checked out. Always very happy with their inventory of books (and plushies, and socks). Would highly recommend and happily visit again :)

A welcoming cozy book nook in the heart of Porter Square! Personable, knowledgeable staff, lots of new and old books, and amazing fresh coffee served in ceramic mugs.

Amazing customer service (special thanks to Leila and Dina)! I ordered a gift to be delivered to a friend - they were so kind to include a special note and took extra care to plan the delivery with my friend. Thanks so much Porter Square Books!

Good, somewhat cerebral and quirky selection.

Best selection of book and events

Is there anything better than a local bookstore? Maybe a well-run and staffed local bookstore? Anyway, we LOVE PSB. Awesome selection of picture books, MG, YA, and fiction. Other things, too... but thats what we tend to buy! I also have been known to dip into their fairly fabulous sock collection and have gotten more than one calendar, set of note cards, and other miscellanea there. Plus the pastries and coffee at the front are A+.Since the pandemic weve been taking advantage of their curbside pick-up and its been a fantastic option for keeping our book dollars local during the pandemic. Thanks for keeping your doors open, your shelves stocked, and our local community vibrant!!

Above-and-beyond, quick service! For my Boston friend’s birthday books, I wanted to buy from a small business. But having only recently given up the “2-day shipping” habit, I started online shopping just a few days in advance. Since I’m out of state, it was going to cost a fortune to get books to my friend on time. Enter Porter Square Books and their local delivery option to the rescue! The books got to him on time, PSB sent me email confirmations at every step in the process and a text when they dropped off the books, and they even added a Happy Birthday note on my behalf!!

The staff was incredibly rude and dismissive. When I asked for books written by authors that the staff clearly are not fans of, I was made to feel foolish for even asking. Could not believe the smugness and the Im better than you attitude

Didnt have my book but offered to order

They have a great selection of books and the staff are so friendly.

Always so helpful!

Stopped by Saturday evening and the employees were doing everything they could to keep the line moving and get as many people in the store to shop as possible while still being kind and keeping us all safe. Thank you. Plus, the store is beautiful as always!

This is a great independent bookstore!

Great independent bookstore.

Great place and atmosphere, good inspiration and advices if needed.

Friendly staff and great selection

I love this place! It’s just a magical, quaint bookshop with a great book selection for all ages. Coffee and pastries are also good. I’ve been going for ten years and the charm hasn’t worn off.

Great local bookstore with a well-curated selection. Good place for people to pick up gifts for others or a page-turner for themselves. Never tried the cafe there yet but may return to do so someday. Would definitely recommend any book lover to check out this location while nearby.

Support local bookstores! This bookstore is fantastic. They have a well curated selection of many genres plus a kids section and a small magazine offering. The middle gift/notebook/planner area is also an absolute treasure trove. The staff is knowledgeable (especially Josh). You should also follow them on Twitter--its hilarious.

Amazing customer service, 5 stars.

Dispel any myths of the local bookstore disappearing (at least in Porter Square) - this bookstore is packed with books AND people (both patrons and extremely friendly and helpful staff). They have some great recommendations sections; host open mic nights once a month; and frequently have authors, poets, or speakers giving intimate talks.

Great bookshop. Makes it worth it to ignore Amazon for a change.

Porter Square books is a treasure. In an age of rapidly dwindling brick-and-mortar book stores it is so refreshing to go to one like this. They have a café inside the bookstore that is also really good. They are dog friendly. They can special order any book for you that they dont have. They often have authors come to the bookstore to do talks on their books. The list could go on, but you dont have to take my word for it, go there now and rekindle your love of actual books made of paper.

Its really an incredible bookstore. I love that it is owned and operated by the employees! Suck it Bezos and Amazon! They have very friendly and knowledgeable staff. Theres a fabulous selection of literature. It has a really great cafe with tasty, local goodies. They offer lots of discounted childrens books. You can get a free membership that gives discounts on books and invitations to author events-which are held almost nightly and span the spectrum of interests. Theres a reading program for kids that encourages them to write a review of books and rewards them for doing so with cheaper prices for more books. (Yeah, I know. Its good for their business. But it also encourages and rewards kids for reading and writing, so I consider it a win.) You can find comfy places to sit and read. What more do you need in a bookstore?

Very cute book store right in Porter Square! The shop is a little small so the book selection seems kind of limited. However there is a coffee shop with some seating inside, and the customer service I received at the front desk was great. All in all a very inviting book shop!

Porter Square Books is my favorite local bookstore! Great place with drinks and pastries from Zing Cafe, wonderful selection of new books, and great displays of special or trending topics. 💗

Great bookstore! Readings, knowledgeable staff, good coffee and snacks, great selection! I wouldn’t buy a book anywhere else.

Fantastic bookstore with tons of really good books. Has great cookbook and graphic novel sections especially. (though their young adult section is also quite good) the books they offer and promote are often featuring LGBT characters which is extremely pleasant and makes it feel like a place you can really be yourself. Highly recommend this store.

Who doesnt love a great local bookstore? They have a great selection and what they dinner have theyll get from their warehouse in less than a week. The staff is kind and extremely knowledgeable. The cafe has tasty bites. And they have a bathroom. I know, whether a place has a bathroom or not is something I reference frequently in reviews but really its a key selling point and theirs is always nice and clean.

Love this place! A wonderful bookstore with a great selection and a helpful staff. Bookstores are a dying breed so I encourage people to go to this store so we dont lose the last one in the Boston area! As I always mention in my reviews when relevant, going here sports a small, local, independently owned business.

Awesome independent bookstoreGood diverse selection of kids books in a cozy corner with table, chairs and rocking chair. Also has a nice selection of nonfiction such as cooking books, biographies etc. Friendly staff. The also sell some small gift/novelty items (whimsical socks, literary pins etc.) and cards and small moleskin notebooks.

I adore PSB (and Cafe Zing!). I used to go every morning when I lived near Davis to have a coffee, do a little work, and browse before commuting downtown. The vibe is so sweet and comfortable and they can order in just about anything you could want, so I still go out of my way to get my books here. They have an impressive collection for the space, it’s like Hermione’s bag except bookshelves.

This bookstore is fantastic. They have an excellent and varied selection of books. The books range from classics to modern novels to kids books. They have art books and science books and graphic novels. They have a variety of prices available too so you can choose between the cheapest six dollar paperback to the fancy sixteen dollar version of the paperback to hardcover books. They have a nice sale section with cheap prices. The atmosphere is lively with lots of people and a bustling coffee shop. Ive also heard they run a book club that meets here and that its good (although I havent been yet).

My favorite bookstore! Great selection, helpful staff, and the cafe is awesome. Best chai tea Ive found (and they even have an herbal version!), and the rolls and baked goods are also great.

Friendly staff. Wonderful kids book selections. Inclusive welcoming location, lots of fun stationary as well.

Carefully curated collection, these are book people catering to book people. When I want to try something new in an area I didnt know, the person at the register found me someone who was quite expert in that segment. An entirely delightful place. My only complaints are that they get a lot of my money, and my bag is so very heavy on the walk home.

Fun local bookstore

Great independent bookstore. Cafe is nice too. And you can find the most interesting doodads, too, from puzzles to pins to resuable bags.

This is the best independent bookstore! I feel lucky to live nearby. The staff is great. Theyre so friendly and helpful. They have great authors events and are very supportive of local artists. They order books for me regularly and get them in quickly. Plus they have a cozy cafe with really yummy refreshments and eats. Its a great atmosphere and a wonderful business. I highly recommend Porter Square Books!

Great place for fresh spring rolls and coffee. The spring rolls sell out quickly so go early!! Also, one of the few places where you can sit in a cafe indoors and have your dog with you at the same time.

Fun little local book store with a great coffee shop. Very nice staff. Selection can be limited, but theres also a lot of cool stuff you never knew you wanted. They do some cool events and have space to sit and read.

Very nice local bookstore. A dying breed. Cafe is surprisingly good, and the best place in porter for a quick coffee of passable quality (bourbon coffee is better, but service is often slow, Dunkin is faster, but the swill they serve is unfit to drink)

Fantastic bookstore. If they dont have it theyll get it for you. Super nice and knowledgeable staff.

Very easy to order online with curbside pick-up

Lovely small book store. Rent or buy new and used audio books. Nice childrens book section. Better than expected graphic novel section. Good for gifts. Helpful friendly staff. Coffee Cafe with seating and a few food options.

Everything a bookstore should be- varied, cultured, busy, independent, and well-stocked. Wish it were cheaper, of course, but prices are pretty much normal for books in the US.

My favorite bookstore in the area! The staff is warm, friendly and always willing to help. They have an extensive selection of books. If, however, the book you want is not immediately available, they will order it for you in a timely fashion. The coffee is tasty too! Cannot recommend this place enough!!

One of the best places to hang out in Cambridge! Wonderfully curated new book collection with an emphasis on indie and local authors, great staff picks, fun gifts and stationery, and a really good cafe.

A super neat bookstore! Theyre constantly having talks by authors which is always great. They have lots of chairs and seating areas so that you can read in the store, or you can bring your new book (or notebook or card or stationary or board game... ) to one of the several coffee shops nearby.

Adorable little bookstore with a fantastic selection. This store is obviously very carefully curated.

Great small bookstore. The staff is super friendly and knowledgeable. The selection if books is a but small. There is a counter for tea and coffee and snacks, the selection of drinks is pretty good.

Lovely bookstore with great selection. Love that they have 20% for the staffs favorite books.

Nice bookstore with a cafe. Its small and cute. There is limited space here so it is hard to get a seat to sit down at sometimes. Other than that the staff is helpful and it is usually very quiet.

Great little Indy bookstore. Nice selection of books, very good little coffee shop inside, knowledgeable and passionate staff, and a great collection of bookstore knickknacks. A nice little.shop to spend a couple of hours in.

Extremely friendly staff,Good stock of childrens books & allied stuff like crayons, pencils, colouring aids etc.., together with some toys & past time goodies for children.Almost something of everything you need for the children, you will find.Very kind & guiding staff.

I love to browse in this book store and I love the ginger lemonade from the cafe. This is also a good place to buy a gift for someone. Its always busy in here when I come but still quiet.

This is a great local book store. They have a huge variety of books and good recommendations and a coffee shop.

A really lovely book store with its own cafe. The store isnt the largest, but it more than makes up for it in its thoughtful curation of featured books and ability to bring in authors for signings and other events. The childrens book selection is great too. The love and passion that the staff brings to this year shows, and its the reason why my wife and I continue to patronize the store whenever we can.

A stalwart holdout of a dying breed: the local bookstore. Theres a great little cafe in the store, and lots of personal touches that remind you why a local bookstore is vital. Staff favorites, local author highlights, and frequent readings and signings. Its worth visiting and paying a bit more than you would on Amazon.

God I love a bookstore. Wish they had one of those computer things to look up books on your own. Maybe they do? And I didnt notice? The non-fiction section is a little strange. I went from A-F and couldnt find the G authors and then the two lil cases in the middle were split by genre? Does the whole store go that way? Ive only been there twice. Loved the lil stamp bookmarks and do-dads all over the front counter. Loveee a do-dad.

Surely one of the most interesting last independent bookstores around. What a great place to come for worthwhile gifts for kids, in particular. Not only books,but all kinds of related materials and lots of surprising little gifty items. I love the comfortable little nooks, especially in the kids area at the back of the store . Their little coffee shop features great equal exchange coffee and lots of tees and a number of good lunch items are on hand including excellent vegetarian Vietnamese spring rolls with peanut sauce. Three of those for six bucks made an excellent light lunch and for an extra dollar you can add a cup of tea. Plenty of outdoor seating which was exceedingly pleasant on a mild summer day and no one minded that my girlfriend and I lingered there for a good long talk. So many other shops conveniently at hand all around also.

Great local book store with a coffee shop and large selection of books. All the employees are very friendly and helpful! I was in the area and went there for a book signing, but would definitely frequent there if I was a local!

Great for browsing new books I wouldnt have found otherwise. Check their website if theres something specific you want .

Porter Square Books is a wonderful old school bookstore: great, curated selection, really knowledgeable staff, good cards and small book related gifts. And a yummy cafe. The world needs more bookstores like this!

Sunny, welcoming, and well-stocked independent bookstore with delightful gifts and delightful (and very knowledgeable--ask them for a recommendation!) staff. The cafe has excellent coffee, tea, and snacks, especially their specialty Vietnamese soft rolls. A neighborhood gem! Check out their hurt books in the back for eclectic deals.

A great little book store and coffee shop. They hold books if I call ahead and will also order them if I know what I want but they dont have it in stock. They also have a fun selection of off-beat cards.

Nice place for having a rest in Porter Square. Reasonable prices and good pastries.

Local owners, friendly & knowledgable booksellers, author events, thoughtfully curated stock, good on-line ordering system for items not in stock. Great loyalty program - discount coupons never expire. Parking in the shopping center lot can be a bit tight, but right at the Red Line Porter Square T- stop.

I was searching for a rare book for my daughters thesis. They helped to book it (it had to be printed on purpose) and after one month I got my book!Thank you very much.

BEST. EVER!! Just get yourself here for authors, gifts and the Amazing 2$ spring rolls at the - wait for it ~ Indie cafe : ) a great read, sip and study Somerville spot.

A lovely independent bookstore in an era where thats an endangered species. Also has a small cafe inside with baked goods, lemonade/chai/coffee/tea/etc. (depending on the season) and a small amount of seating to go and work. Are you the kind of person who brings their laptop to a coffee shop to work? Imagine doing that in a little independent bookstore. Dream come true!

I love Porter Square Books! You can order anything on their web page and pick it up! Its a great place to stop for a coffee they. All the books are very well selected. They dont have every book ever, but they do such a good job curated that youre much more likely to leave with three books you want to read instead of the one book you needed. It is often packed, but it doesnt deter me from stopping by every time I go to TAGS for something boring.

Wonderful little bookstore with a surprisingly good selection. Ive had great luck finding what Im looking for here, and it also very pleasant for just browsing.

Just saw Peter and Paul from Peter, Paul and Mary at the bookstore. Fantastic experience. My first bookstore event visit and will definitely attend more, hopefully as wonderful as this one. Helpful staff and excellent book selections on the shelves, plus snacks and beverages. Cambridge vibe.

This is a small local bookstore that is nice but has an obviously limited selection and the books are definitely overpriced. I think I would be more okay with this if the customer service and engagement was more present. I never feel like they ever seen very interested or involved in their customers. There is a small cafe within the book store but it seems to follow suit when it comes to the selection, customer service and pricing. I often feel like I get this attitude that I should be so grateful for their service with no appreciation of me being a customer. The cafe does have some seating to sit on a laptop and work but it is TIGHT do be prepared to basically have people sitting on you and constantly being bumped by people trying to get by. If you are looking for a healthier menu this cafe is definitely a good choice.

Love PSB and Cafe Zing. Was a go-to when I lived here. Great place to visit when Im visiting.

Best book store in the world. Great kids section and the people there know their stuff. If they dont have what you want they will get it within days.

Cute book store with random paper goods, etc for sale on addition to books, and their own coffee bar. It was a great place to work for a few hours.

Friendly and knowledgeable staff, great selection!

I stopped by here while waiting for the light rail to buy some books for my niece and nephew. There was an area for childrens books, and I was able to find what I wanted quickly. It was also close enough to the station that Id consider visiting it again if I were to visit the area.

I like this book store. It has a good selection of books. I also like the coffee shop as. They have a good selection of good quality coffee, tea, and hot chocolate selections as well. I like that they spicy hot chocolate.

Nice local book store. Good selection. Interesting staff picks.

After the Stephen King/Joe Hill event last night I cant say Im a fan of this place. VERY poorly handled. For some inexplicable reason they chose to handle Deluxe ticket sales on their own inadequate website which of course crashed under the traffic leaving most with nothing. The only other choice was regular tickets through Ticketmaster, who shouldve handled both, and those only came with a CHANCE at a signed book. What a joke. First time Ive ever been to a book event and not received a signed book from the author. Just poor all around

Lovely Book Store with quality coffee & food. Very kids friendly as they have their very own playing area. Also, bring your own mug and safe ;)

Never EVER going here again. Purchased tickets, order went through, card was charged, just to be told they oversold tickets and that I’m out of luck. Was told I would get a refund but haven’t yet. Will be contacting Better Business Bureau.

Porter Square Books is the kind of place I think about when I think of the fact that a community is defined by and organized around its institutions. By that definition, Porter Square Books is truly a Cambridge/Somerville institution. It is a pillar of the community, a place beloved by all, and is truly a deep part of the community.This bookstore is the main reason I like Porter Square. Its the quintessential local community bookstore. PSB is an excellent place, with excellent customer service and a fantastic selection of books. They also have a small cafe which serves great coffee and sandwiches. And it is also a gathering place for the local community as much as it is a bookstore.

Cozy bookstore located right off of the T in Porter Square. They have a great childrens book section, cute odds and ends for gifts, and wide selection of cook books. The cafe is also vegan, vegetarian, and gluten free friendly. Excellent spot for people watching.