This 199-year-old antiquarian bookseller is crammed, top to bottom, with rare and secondhand titles. You could spend hours inside thumbing the creased spines of thrillers, romances, and classics, or in the adjoining alley outside the store, hunting for $1 and $3 deals on the shelves. The Brattle made a cameo last year in the Oscar-winning movie The Holdovers, starring Paul Giamatti as a classics teacher, filmed flipping through the stacks.

No Boston book lover needs to be told about six-plus-decade-old Brookline Booksmith — it’s beloved for a reason. It’s huge, with more than 50,000 books including the used book cellar, and holds stellar events in-store or across the street at the Coolidge Corner Theatre. Buy a book recommended by the veteran staff or a gift from the way-above-average bookstore tchotchke section.

In the heart of Roxbury, Frugal is the place to buy popular anti-racist titles, deep dives into the history of the African diaspora, and children’s books that feature characters of color. Come for the readings with poets and thinkers, then stay for the expansive clearance section. Long hailed as the only Black-owned bookshop in Boston, Frugal also regularly hosts clothing drives, library story times, and book club meetups for the community.

No, this 92-year-old stalwart is not affiliated with the Ivy League school across the street that shares its name. But the 5,500-square-foot shop — co-owned by John Henry, owner of the Globe — still has a hallowed, scholarly feel, thanks to floor-to-nearly-ceiling shelves packed with bestsellers, academic titles, and much more.

It’s easy to spend an afternoon in the cushioned window nooks at this Dorchester bookshop cafe, the brainchild of former Boston poet laureate Porsha Olayiwola. Its collection — a curated hodgepodge of fiction, philosophy, and children's books — is a celebration of writers of color whose work “challenges political paradigms.”

Devoted to graphic design and typography, this bright and tiny bookstore/art space is curated by designer and proprietor Michael Russem, who brings an eye for the elegant to a selection of books you won’t find elsewhere — such as an anthology of hand-painted street signs from India, a collection of typographic messages of protest, a colorful look at the lunar cycle, or an alphabet book by artist Leonard Baskin. It’s a singular jewel on the Boston bookstore scene.

The primary feeling sparked by Harvard Square’s Lovestruck Books is joy. The joy of a quiet patio, tucked under a cheerful floral trellis, offering space for conversation and coffee (or wine and charcuterie). The joy of a selection curated to both its core audience and general readers — there’s Emily Henry and Alice Walker on these shelves. Among romance’s core tenets is the HEA — happily ever after — and Lovestruck delivers.

Tucked near Chinatown, the industrial South End storefront is a treasure trove of leather-bound finds (in the back), carts of $1 used paperbacks (outside), and the usual slate of new releases (everywhere else). Each purchase benefits underprivileged youth from foster care or those coming out of the court system, who also help run and manage the $4 million enterprise. The shop has a second location in Waltham.

Behind Papercuts’ unmissable lavender front door is a nook piled high with feminist literature and buzzing with uber-friendly staff. The women-owned bookshop in Jamaica Plain offers an unmatched lineup of events with female and queer authors. Plus, it runs the indie Cutlass Press (with several in-house titles available for purchase) and sells adorable merch emblazoned with the Orange Line and Papercuts’ signature chickadee.

On the outside, Porter Square Books is an unremarkable storefront in a busy shopping plaza. But the inside is a true escape: a menagerie of trinkets, cards, and, of course, books. You’ll find hand-picked reads, new releases, and themed sections that rotate regularly. Many of the staff are writers themselves and give fantastic recommendations. Oh, and the store offers complimentary gift wrapping.