There are many places to buy a book — plenty of which, nowadays, are not even brick and mortar — but not every bookstore is the same.

From the iconic City Lights bookstore in San Francisco, which served as a hub for the Beat Generation, to the nationally renowned Prairie Lights in Iowa City, America’s indie bookstores have long served as a home for intellectualism, progressive thought and as a counter to all that is corporate and mainstream.

Several small, independent bookstores in the tri-state area provide an atmosphere supporting conversation that helps local readers and writers flourish, all in their own way. Below are the stories of just a few of the region’s locally owned bookstores.

River Lights Bookstore

Location: 1098 Main St., Dubuque.

Originally located on the West End, then-partner Sue Davis moved River Lights to its downtown location in 2007 and took over as sole owner.

All these years later, she still thinks it was a great decision to bring the store to a more walkable, densely-populated neighborhood.

“Being near the library is a good resource, as well,” Davis said, adding that Carnegie-Stout Public Library, with its larger capacity, sometimes hosts events for River Lights.

The store’s name is inspired by the legendary indie bookstores of Iowa City and San Francisco. Like those stores, Davis prides herself on not being corporate-owned.

“There’s local choice for what’s carried in the store,” she said. “It reflects our community.”

Davis said River Lights started with the motto, “Community, connectedness, culture.”

While the motto is no longer often used, she said it still reflects the goals of River Lights.

“We thought that’s what we were aiming for — sharing culture and making connections,” she said.

Many books on the shelves of River Lights were written by Dubuquers.

“We mostly are open to any local authors,” Davis said. “We really want to support writers and poets.”

The store is also a hub for events — a schedule of which can be found at riverlights.com/events. The store hosts numerous book clubs, frequent author appearances and a monthly poets’ workshop.

Customers recently have skewed younger, Davis said, which she attributes largely to a rising popularity of the romance genre.

Visitors to River Lights will find a welcoming atmosphere and opportunity for conversation and learning.

“The big thing is coming in, meeting the staff and other customers and getting recommendations,” Davis said.

Limerick Candle & Vintage Reads

Location: 1108 Iowa St., Dubuque.

Among the newest additions to the region’s bookstore scene is this cozy Iowa Street store.

Owner Angie Ma opened the store in September 2024, a few years after she and her husband started as Dubuque Farmers Market vendors of hand-poured candles and wax melts.

“People kept asking us if we had a store for the candles,” Ma said.

The store’s inventory now includes those products, used books and car scent diffusers. The shelves at Limerick Candle & Vintage Reads feature a wide breadth of books — and they won’t break your bank.

“Books are expensive,” Ma said. “Hopefully (our customers) can find something that fits their budget … and was on their list to read.”

Ma said visitors to her store are in for some treats.

“We have stuff you can’t find at Walmart or Barnes & Noble,” she said.

Paper Moon

Location: 206 A St., McGregor, Iowa.

Located in a quaint Mississippi River town of 725 residents, just over an hour north of Dubuque, Paper Moon punches above its weight and has gained a reputation as one of the most iconic indie bookstores in Iowa.

A bustling tourist scene in McGregor keeps the store busy, especially on summer weekends. Some, however, travel from far and wide to McGregor simply to visit Paper Moon.

“We do get a fair amount of tourists (to McGregor) but a remarkable amount of people come just to see the store,” said Louise White.

White credits this to the store’s extensive use of social media, reaching audiences far outside of McGregor.

The store has grown quite a bit since White founded it in 1994, taking up several floors of the Civil War-era building it occupies. She still works at the store, but says her daughter, Jennifer, runs the show now.

Paper Moon has developed a loyal customer base, White said.

“They tend to come back … We’ll really go the distance for the customer,” she said.

Aside from books, the store sells chocolate, stuffed animals, occult supplies, stickers and greeting cards, among other items.

In keeping with the progressive history of indie bookstores, visitors will be able to find rainbow colors and liberal slogans on some of the store’s products, even in ruby-red Clayton County.

“We’re pretty liberal without a problem,” White said. “We serve the community as best as we can and I think we’re well received.”

Rivertown Fine Books

Location: 148 Main St., McGregor, Iowa.

The readers of McGregor are spoiled rotten. Only a couple storefronts down from Paper Moon is Rivertown Fine Books, an antiquarian bookstore.

“We deal in used books, primarily rare books, difficult to find,” said John Malcom, who owns the shop with his wife, Diane. “It’s amazing what’s out there.”

Founded in 2001, Rivertown Fine Books manages to pull visitors from far and wide.

“We draw customers regularly from as far away as Milwaukee, the Twin Cities, Cedar Rapids and Dubuque, too,” Malcom said. “People who like books will find good bookstores.”

Malcom said the store has developed relationships even with those who never visited in person. Occasionally, he said, a caller from across the country will reach out, having heard of the store from a relative, and ask if they have a particular rare book.

Those who do regularly visit in person don’t let anything get in their way, Malcom said. When extensive road construction blocked access to the store, he said his customers were not deterred and “fought their way in.”

Events at the store are rare, Malcom said, primarily due to a lack of room for large groups. However, his store is not cluttered — just well-stocked and making good use of its space.

“Most people haven’t seen anything quite like it,” Malcom said. “People say things like, ‘This looks like one of the English bookstores you see on TV’ … We’re really fortunate.”

Galena Book & Paper

Location: 306 S. Main St., Galena, Ill.

Jason Stauter, who has had an extensive career in the publishing field, opened this store in October 2020.

“It was not a grand plan, dream,” Stauter said.

Rather, he felt the need to take advantage of a store vacancy and fill a need after a previous bookstore in Galena closed.

Visitors to Galena Book & Paper will also find greeting cards, pens, papers and notebooks.

Events at the store are rare, Stauter said, primarily because of Galena’s large tourism scene, which means many of his customers are not familiar with local authors or live too far to return for events.

However, Stauter’s customers, whether tourists or locals, understand the value of an independent bookstore.

“The reason I exist is people are willing to (pay) full retail price,” Stauter said. “I’m trying to serve to the best of my ability and experience, and the best of my staff’s ability and experience, to create something vital and unique.”