# Montréal | Places to Wander

Canonical: https://artist.fyi/places/montreal/
Publisher: The Corporate Artist (artist.fyi)
Issue: Places to Wander, Issue 001. Published 2026-09-13.

Four independent bookstores worth finding in person.

If you're looking for the best independent bookstores in Montréal, Places to Wander's edited guide includes The Word in Milton-Parc, L'Euguélionne in Village and Librairie Saint-Henri Books in Saint-Henri. Explore the selected shops below, with neighborhood context, drawings and links to each shop's own website. The guide is edited, not numerically ranked.

## Selected bookstores

### The Word

Open since 1975 in a building that spent seventy years as a Chinese laundry, begun from a VW van, with no computers, a rotary phone and no sign on the door.

- Neighborhood: Milton-Parc
- Type: Used and rare
- Address: 469 rue Milton, Montréal QC H2X 1W3
- Official site: https://www.thewordbookstore.ca/
- Entry: https://artist.fyi/places/montreal/#the-word
- Illustration: https://artist.fyi/places/assets/the-word-montreal-the-corporate-artist__marker-study__2026-09-12__v05.webp
- The Detour: this issue's editorial detour
- Founded: 1975

The Word has sold secondhand literature, philosophy and first editions on Milton Street since 1975. Its shopfront has no big sign; the shelves inside do the work.

A secondhand book arrives with a little history of its own.

### L'Euguélionne
- Neighborhood: Village
- Address: 1426 rue Beaudry, Montréal QC H2L 3E5
- Official site: https://librairieleuguelionne.com/
- Entry: https://artist.fyi/places/montreal/#l-eugu-lionne
- Illustration: https://artist.fyi/places/assets/l-eugu-lionne-montreal-the-corporate-artist__marker-study__2026-09-12__v05.webp
- Worth a special trip for: Feminist and queer writing in French and English, with a dedicated online bookshop for each language.

L’Euguélionne specialises in feminist and queer writing on Beaudry Street. Its selection spans French and English, with dedicated online bookshops for each language.

Two languages, one point of view, no apology for either.

### Librairie Saint-Henri Books
- Neighborhood: Saint-Henri
- Address: 4622 rue Notre-Dame Ouest, Montréal QC H4C 1S4
- Official site: https://sainthenribooks.com/
- Entry: https://artist.fyi/places/montreal/#librairie-saint-henri-books
- Illustration: https://artist.fyi/places/assets/librairie-saint-henri-books-montreal-the-corporate-artist__marker__2026-09-12__v11.webp
- Worth a special trip for: Locally made zines shelved beside literary classics, with author gatherings.

Locally made zines share the shelves with literary classics at Saint-Henri Books. Author gatherings extend that interest in local work beyond the printed page.

A zine made nearby, next to a classic. Local pages on the same footing as the canon.

### Encore Books & Records

Opened in January 2004 by a father and son, books and records upstairs and a print studio in the basement.

- Neighborhood: Notre-Dame-de-Grâce
- Type: Used
- Address: 5670 rue Sherbrooke Ouest, Montréal QC H4A 1W7
- Official site: https://www.encorebooks.ca/
- Entry: https://artist.fyi/places/montreal/#encore-books-records
- Illustration: https://artist.fyi/places/assets/encore-books-records-montreal-the-corporate-artist__marker-study__2026-09-12__v05.webp
- Founded: 2004

Used books and vinyl records share Encore’s shop on Sherbrooke West. The pairing makes room for two kinds of browsing: along the shelves and through the record bins.

## Also selected, entry pending

- Librairie Drawn & Quarterly · Mile End · https://mtl.drawnandquarterly.com/
- Argo Bookshop · Downtown · https://argobookshop.ca/
- Librairie Le Port de tête · Plateau · https://www.leportdetete.com/

## Questions readers ask

### What are some of the best independent bookstores in Montréal?
Places to Wander's edited selection includes The Word, L'Euguélionne, Librairie Saint-Henri Books and Encore Books & Records. The guide is not numerically ranked. Each entry explains why the shop is included and links to the shop's own website.

### What is The Detour in the Montréal issue?
The Word in Milton-Parc. Open since 1975 in a building that spent seventy years as a Chinese laundry, begun from a VW van, with no computers, a rotary phone and no sign on the door. The Detour is an editorial designation, not a ranking.

### Does the guide include used or rare bookstores?
Yes. The Word (used and rare) and Encore Books & Records (used). Used, antiquarian and rare books are not interchangeable labels; this guide uses each description only where the shop's entry supports it.

### Where can I find zines and small-press publishing in Montréal?
Librairie Saint-Henri Books in Saint-Henri. These are selections from the issue, not a complete directory.

### Is there a map of the featured bookstores?
Yes. The Montréal issue includes a map and shop index. Select a shop to open its entry, then use the shop's official link for visiting details. The illustrated map is an orientation aid, not a turn-by-turn route.

## About this guide

Places to Wander is an editorial field guide from The Corporate Artist to independent bookstores and bookshops worth finding in person.

We look for independent shops with a point of view: exceptional selection, a meaningful specialty, a room worth experiencing, a role in its neighborhood, or the possibility of finding something you did not arrive looking for. The guides are edited, not numerically ranked. A bookstore does not have to stock The Corporate Artist to be included.

A field guide from Morgan Sage Norman, author of The Corporate Artist, a book about creativity at work.

Method and FAQ: https://artist.fyi/places/about.md · All cities: https://artist.fyi/places/index.md · Reading Room: https://artist.fyi/reading-room