Boston's literary crowd could have a new favorite pastime: pairing a bookstore haul with a well-poured drink nearby.

Why it matters: The city's independent bookshops and its bar scene sit close enough together that a browse-then-sip route becomes obvious.

• It's part treasure hunt, part happy hour.

The big picture: Several Boston bookstores have a nearby watering hole within an easy walk, turning neighborhoods like Beacon Hill, Harvard Square and Jamaica Plain into built-in crawl routes.

Beacon Hill: Beacon Hill Books & Café's beautiful Charles Street shop has its own restaurant on premises.

• More importantly for cozy-spot readers, it also sits just steps from The Sevens Ale House, a wood-paneled dive that's been serving pints since the end of Prohibition.

Downtown Crossing: Book diggers already know they can spend hours at Brattle Book Shop's outdoor discount lot.

• Then they can head to jm Curley for burgers and whiskey, or down Temple Place to Democracy Brewing for house-brewed flights.

Coolidge Corner: Brookline Booksmith is one of the behemoths of the Massachusetts book scene. The shop hosts all the top author talks and draws readers in for new releases and events.

• Nearby options include the intimate, French-inspired Bar Lunette or, for a more traditional pub read, Publick House is about 10 minutes away in Washington Square.

Jamaica Plain: Papercuts, a woman-owned indie shop on South Street, would pair well with the dog-friendly Brendan Behan Pub around the corner.

• There's also the low-key Jeanie Johnston Pub, closer to Forest Hills.

Harvard Square: Harvard Book Store is the other big name in author book talks.

• After time in the legendary bargain basement, head straight to another subterranean haunt: Grendel's Den in Winthrop Park. Grendel's has welcomed writers and students since 1971.
• A couple blocks away, the romance-focused Lovestruck Books has its own café and wine bar, and the tiki bar Wusong Road is right around the corner.

Back Bay: Trident Booksellers & Café has long hours and plenty of shelves to make it easy to browse late or just hang at the bar.

• To move the crawl to the next stop, the obvious choice is Bukowski Tavern near Hynes Convention Center for some dimly lit reading and drinking.

South End: More Than Words is a youth-run used bookstore with a wonderful curated selection.

• Even better, it sits nearly across East Berkeley Street from J.J. Foley's Cafe, one of the best Irish-American pubs in the city.

Fields Corner: JustBook-ish opened in 2024 by former Boston Poet Laureate Porsha Olayiwola and Bing Broderick, focusing on marginalized voices and functioning as a community gathering spot.

• Down the block, Acapella by X — which took over the old Blarney Stone space — has an upscale setting for dinner and a cocktail.

Pro tip: These combinations work both ways.

• Start with one too many drinks and end up browsing shelves and going home with several too many new books.

What's next: These nine pairings across the city could be just the start. Let's make the bookstore/bar bucket list something all Bostonians have to do at least once.

Send this to a thirsty bookworm

Five shootings across Boston early Sunday left two people dead and 11 injured. (CBS Boston)

• Police Commissioner Michael Cox blamed the violence on large gatherings with illegal fireworks and alcohol.

A Cambridge DPW employee was found dead from a gunshot wound at Sennott Park Saturday. (NBC Boston)

☀️ Boston broke 100°F on Thursday and Friday — the first time reaching the triple digits on back-to-back days since 1944. (MassLive)

• It was also the first time Massachusetts had two 100-degree days in a year since 1952.

🚘 Boston drivers go on average 3.7 years between car crashes, the worst among 200 U.S. cities ranked in Allstate's 2026 America's Best Drivers report. (Boston.com)

State House visitors got the chance to peek at a 1776 copy of the Declaration of Independence on display at the State Library last week.

• It's the commonwealth's original copy of the Declaration, signed by Quincy business leader (and president of the Continental Congress) John Hancock.

Every day, our newsroom works to bring you clear, trustworthy reporting that helps you understand what's happening in your community.

Why it matters: Behind every edition is a team committed to covering the stories that matter most. Member support helps us continue that work and keep our journalism focused on your city.

📬 Become a member today. You'll help support independent local reporting and strengthen the newsroom behind the stories you rely on.

Thank you for supporting local journalism.

If you're ever hungry before your flight from Hungary, you can get a taste of home at O'Learys, an oddly Boston-themed sports bar inside Budapest's Ferenc Liszt International Airport.

It's covered in Patriots, Celtics, Bruins and Red Sox memorabilia with a menu promising "classics inspired by Boston," but it's just fish & chips and a bunch of typical American bar food.

• The only true New England classic on the menu is the Chocolate Chip skillet cookie.
• Of course, the very first chocolate chip cookie was invented in the 1930s by Ruth Wakefield at the Toll House Inn in Whitman.

Zoom in: O'Leary's is a Swedish chain where they say "the vibrant spirit of a Bostonian neighborhood bar meets a modern take on entertainment and dining."

• There are dozens of locations across Europe.

Send this to someone with a layover in BUD

Monday, 7/6

Christopher M. Finan at Harvard Book Store features the former executive director of the National Coalition Against Censorship discussing the country's battles over free speech and book bans, 7pm.

Tuesday, 7/7

Noah Kahan kicks off a massive hometown-hero residency at Fenway Park featuring Gigi Perez and Annabelle Dinda, 6:30pm.

• Kahan also performs Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

Wednesday, 7/8

Lionel Richie and Earth, Wind & Fire are at TD Garden for a co-headlining spectacular covering decades of funk, soul and pop anthems, 7:30pm.

Thursday, 7/9

The World Cup quarterfinals match between France and Morocco in Foxborough brings soccer to its peak in New England, 4pm.

Friday, 7/10

Shakira brings her global, hip-shaking pop anthems to TD Garden for a weekend kickoff show, 8pm.

• She also plays Saturday.

Forward this to a friend

ICYMI, Jaylen Brown gave a heartfelt farewell to Celtics fans after a head-scratching trade.

• "Saying goodbye isn't easy when you've invested your heart into something."

What's next: Brown plans to continue his work with BostonXChange and the 7uice Foundation, his nonprofit supporting Black entrepreneurs.

• That includes the foundation's Bridge program, a STEM day camp for high schoolers from historically underserved neighborhoods.