Boston's Best Children's Bookstores

While the number of bookstores of any genre is declining everywhere, Boston is still home to a few great children's bookstores. From niche books to toy stores with great book selections, kids can still find the books they love within the city. There are some bookstores that parents will enjoy for their educational and enriching selections. Kids can appreciate the books their parents want them to read, but those who are more inclined to love a good superhero or a challenge have stores just for them too.

New England Comics
316 Harvard St.
Brookline, MA 02446
(617) 566-0115
www.newenglandcomics.com

New England Comics is for kids and adults, but it has a lot of toys and comics for kids. An added bonus is that many of the items in the store are collectibles. When a child gets into a comic book storyline, she gets a story that is often longer than a novel and she gets to acquire a set of comics that may go up in value over the years. With films based on comic books, such as the Spider-Man and Avengers franchises, children are becoming more interested in superheroes. Comic books may just be the way to get kids who are uninterested in books interested in reading.

Related: Boston Best Independent Book Stores

Henry Bear's Park
19 Harvard St.
Brookline, MA 02445
(617) 264-2422
www.henrybear.com

Henry Bear's Park is mainly a toy store. However, the shelves are amply stocked with books for children. That they are surrounded by games and toys may make the store more alluring to kids who are not that into books. Kids can get some story time and interactive play at the Brookline Henry Bear's Park as well. Staff member Marcie offers family fun with crafts, stories, music and more on select Fridays. Other store events include children's music performances.

Porter Square Books
25 White St.
Cambridge, MA 02140
(617) 491-2220
www.portersquarebooks.com

Porter Square Books is an all-around great bookstore. Well-behaved canines are welcome and the children's area has some fluffy friends of stuffed variety. There is a wide selection of books, but the number of incentives to bring kids here almost trumps that selection. The store will help organize book fairs when it has open slots. It has a program known as Fresh Ink where kids from ages seven to 17 can read books direct from publishers before the books are published. On top of all this, preschool Story Hour with Doria happens every Wednesday at 11 a.m. Doria is so enthusiastic that she will even go to schools and libraries upon request.

Related: Best Bookstores On The South Shore And In Cape Cod

Eureka! Puzzles
1349 Beacon St.
Brookline, MA 02446
(617) 738-7352
www.eurekapuzzles.com

Eureka! is a fantastic bookstore choice for kids who like to use their minds. The entire store is focused on puzzles, including the books. This is not the place to find a recent bestseller. It is the place to find brainteasers, game books, crossword puzzles, mathematics puzzles, doodle books, sticker activity books and a lot more. Kids who love games, love to think and love to be able to write in their books will love the selection at Eureka!