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    The Painted Porch Bookshop

    4.4 (44 reviews)

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    Inside the bookstore
    Virginia K.

    Incredible vibes and there are autographed copies of Ryan's books available! Highly recommend! .

    Mary G.

    Everything I expected it to be and then some ! This book store has been on my bucket list for a while and I'm so glad I stopped by! Parking: There's plenty of street parking around. I parked at the end of the street and had a nice stroll up to the shop Selection: The selection is clearly curated but is still diverse. The Daily Stoic/ Ryan Holiday has an entire section , which I expected since it's his store but was pleased to see how much of it there was. Aside from books, there's also records and t-shirts Vibe: The vibe is very relaxed and slow. I could have stayed there for hours! I loved it. Can't wait to go back !

    Book decorated fireplace in the center of the store.
    Rachel D.

    On the way out of town today we stopped by The Painted Porch Bookshop in Bastrop. The whole experience was just magical for me. The curation of the books... not everything under the sun but carefully selected books and other items. I took time browsing because I was interested in what I was seeing. The atmosphere -- and even bookstore cats, yes cats. It was cozy and we just felt so comfortable. The staff -- while not many staff the quality was stellar. The lovely woman who checked us out was kind, friendly and it was a pleasure. Experience like this MATTERS. We absolutely will drive off our route again and again for this experience next time we go out of town.

    Amy S.

    I love this store. I could spend all day there in each section picking up gems and snapping pics. The team was super helpful and happy to see my sweet pooch! (Note - the store is dog friendly on the weekends. On the weekdays there are two cats that reign the stacks). I can't wait to come back another day and spend more time checking out all of the owner and bookseller's recommendations. We need many more bookstores like this!!

    Front door
    Maribeth P.

    Second time here and we just love this charming shop. Great selection of books in an easy to browse atmosphere. I found the Wildsam Field Guides here and I just bought the Texas book. I am excited to use it on the rest of our trip. They even have many vintage records for purchase. Easy parking behind the store with a convenient back door entrance. Look for the sweet black cat roaming the store.

    Fireplace
    Erica G.

    What an eye-catching bookstore. Pretty exciting when entering, and my jaw dropped when seeing their fireplace. It really captured how creative and beautiful this old town, eccentric library is. This bookstore has genres for all ages. An absolute hidden Gem right in the heart of Bastdrop Texas and right next door is a shop where they house tons of vynils and CDs. Super cool spot for sure. I would definitely recommend stopping by while visiting this artsy side of town. They have everything from funny candles with Betty Whites face to cool cook books inspired by Hocus Pocus. I even saw local handmade earrings that were spired by Star Wars light sabers.

    J. Antonio H.

    Decided to take a side trip on the way to ATX. Stopped for lunch and some shopping . I happen not into this bookstore. Inviting comfortable with a large selection

    Funny card
    Tony B.

    Cats in the ceiling! Viewable through plexiglass. And a cool stacked "fireplace" and some fanciful cards and books. If you need a unique gift, you'll find it here, or in the incredible record store next door. See my pics.

    Trinkets and books
    Morgann G.

    Super cool bookstore nestled on Main Street. Nice children section/room. Cool and unique trinkets. Absolutely recommend swinging by and checking this gem out! They do have 2 cats that take up residence in the store (in case anyone is allergic). The fireplace of books alone is a reason to come visit this amazing store. I found a Melissa & Doug Dino sticker book very reasonably priced. Anyone who's even remotely into books needs to check this place out. You won't be disappointed.

    Rain W.

    2.5 This is a cute bookshop with some creative displays like a Christmas tree and a fireplace made entirely from books. The shelves are easy to look at and not cluttered which is part of my issue. There weren't many things that I would buy. The books were sparsely placed on the shelves. There was no science fiction section for one. Disappointing. The staff was friendly though. They do have restrooms and a patio behind the bookshop you can walk out onto. It's located right on the main street so it was easy to find and also one of the few things open on New Year's Day.

    Tania D.

    Cute bookstore in Bastrop. The sign at the door says keep the door closed because cats roam the store but we didn't see any cats. Some unique gifts and they have a little treehouse for kids in the children's reading area. The store is super cute. There is an old tree in the back of the store and the fireplace is made from books. A nice stop if your on Main Street.

    One of the books we bought

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    11 months ago

    Diverse selection of books recommended by the staff, plus pet friendly on weekends. Who could ask for more?

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    2 years ago

    What an awesome find! It's an absolute treasure. If you're going to Austin, take a detour onto Main Street to visit The Painted Porch.

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    Page 1 of 2

    Ask the Community - The Painted Porch Bookshop

    Review Highlights - The Painted Porch Bookshop

    Could have spent so much more time browsing, but I was only able to spend a short time in the shop.

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    The Book Burrow - Cats and Christmas trees...

    The Book Burrow

    4.9(19 reviews)
    29.2 mi

    We found this place due to looking for independent bookstores when we travel. This one is tucked…read moreaway in a nice little spot. Parking is pretty good. It is not super big but it makes great use of the space it has tons of pre loved books, stickers, various gifts, oracle and Tarot cards, witches candles and so much more. SHANA SAYS: Super cute atmosphere, fun organizing of the books like pre loved, and lots of cute gift items. Plus a cat with its own hours! Kathy was super friendly and helpful. Made the whole experience better and is a genuine person. They do have a game room and a snack bar with free water as well as a keuring and snacks for sale. The bathroom is for everyone and they are very welcoming. Of course as an independent bookstore they have a wide variety of titles with some new books thrown in. They do mystery sells and bundles where you get a vague description of a book that is covered up and you take a chance. It should go without saying but as you are supporting local businesses the prices are a little higher the HPB or Amazon but it means more here and you should buy local when you can. I highly recommend this place. They even have a section where if you spend $50 you get to choose a free gift from books to sunglasses to other items. Go in, say hi to Kathy and The Cat!

    What a wonderfully weird place! I was looking for a local bookstore that was close to my hotel and…read morewould let me explore a little. The Book Burrow did the trick! I will start with the "downsides" (as few as they are). This place is pretty small. Like smaller than I thought. Because of this, its not the greatest place for browsing. They had some "witch" stuff which was interesting, but I was looking for a book. Also, most of the books are used which isn't terrible, but not exactly clear. As for the positives, this place is a true small business so you really get the personal touch when it comes to service. I also picked this place because it did a "blind book" service where they will pick out a book or two for you based on your description. A bunch of bookstores do this, but the Book Burrow understood the assignment exactly. They got me THREE books and all of them were PERFECT. I was surprised how they found my vibe and found me unique books! They also wrapped it in a beautiful paper and addressed it to me! It was like a little birthday gift to myself! As you can tell, I was very floored by the selections. This is the small business of small businesses so I am so HAPPY that I was able to stop by! While the place is small and their selection is in flux, I really appreciated the personal touch from the staff at The Book Burrow.

    Photos
    The Book Burrow
    The Book Burrow - Entrance

    Entrance

    The Book Burrow

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    The Little Gay Shop - Sincerely and Queerly

    The Little Gay Shop

    4.8(32 reviews)
    26.4 miEast Austin

    This store is genuinely great for gift shopping. If you need a present, you'll probably find…read moresomething perfect without the usual chaos of fighting traffic and crowds on Congress. Much easier to just slip over to 12th Street, do your shopping, and then reward yourself with a drink next door (as you should). Highly recommend for a relaxed, feel-good browse. Also, I've heard about their Pride Market in June ...definitely on my list to visit!

    10 STARS ACROSS THE BOARD FOR THE LITTLE GAY SHOP!!!!…read more Anytime I'm traveling, I look for bookstores and libraries. Lucky me this time I paid a visit to The Little Gay Shop. As many times as I've been to Austin, this was my first visit here. We stopped in before getting on the road to head back to Houston. There's a large selection of apparel, socks, stickers, cards for many occasions, enamel pins, decor, art, and books. In my opinion they didn't have the largest selection of books but just enough. It's colorful, bright, and welcoming! Kirt was really friendly and provided us some history/details about the bookstore. We left with enamel pins, stickers, a card, and sweatshirts! The goods are highly worth the value (I mean it's books- duh) When I'm in Austin, I'll make a priority to stop by this bookstore. I looooooooved it! Oh the day we went there was a walk/run going on so streets were blocked and the general parking lot was not being used. All street parking was free and typically is. Their parking lot lies directly across from the bookstore. Enjoy! Check them out!

    Photos
    The Little Gay Shop - The parking lot view.

    The parking lot view.

    The Little Gay Shop - Socks

    Socks

    The Little Gay Shop - Me everyday

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    Me everyday

    Recycled Reads

    Recycled Reads

    4.5(99 reviews)
    29.2 miBrentwood, Allandale
    $

    We came here as our city is being a jerk and closing this down. I know some of that is that our…read moreolder generation didn't want any new taxes on anything as they are selfish and don't want to pay taxes on the 3 houses they own or whatever. Still it sucks to see this going away. We came in, bought some books and browed a bit. They place had a fair amount of people, still quite a few books, music, and movies. I couldn't find much I was intersteied in but Shana did and even found me a book or two. The bathroom is weird, it is around a corner that looks like you are not allowed to go to and there is a key on a hanger that you take in with you, you don't need to unlock the door and I am not sure it even locks. If the key is missing that is how you know the bathroom has someone in it, there is a small hook on the inside to hang the key while you are in the restroom. So you have to hope people notice it is gone and you have to hope everyone puts the key back. But they are clean and they have a sign in the bathroom that the front desk can supply you with pads if needed. The one misstep here was the guy running the front desk, he was not super friendly, I heard his reaction to a lady gushing about how great the place was and how many books she found for such a good price, some were gifts and he could care less. He wasn't rude but he was doing that thing where you just nod and say uh huh. I also heard him later say he was from another branch of the library, I don't know which but I hope we don't run into him again. We got something like 7 or 8 books for 9 bucks which is fantastic. He checked us out fast, as he had better things to do and we headed out.

    Recycled reads is a really interesting place. I found out about it from Google when I was looking…read morefor a used copy of a specific book. Let me start with - it's not a big place, and the selection isn't huge so it's not terribly likely you'll find something very specific, much less a popular title. However, it's a nice concept. They sell retired library books for VERY cheap, so if you're list looking for a new book in general, this is actually a pretty decent spot to get some and save money. They have a small lot out front but I had no trouble finding parking. The staff there were really friendly and helpful; they don't have a catalog because of all the turnover but they do have things arranged by genre so they could point me toward where I might find the book I was looking for.

    Photos
    Recycled Reads
    Recycled Reads - Recycled Reads Shoppers

    Recycled Reads Shoppers

    Recycled Reads - Large selection of titles

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    Large selection of titles

    The Painted Porch Bookshop - bookstores - Updated May 2026

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