Harriett's Bookshop

Welcome to Harriett's Bookshop, an independent bookstore in the heart of Philadelphia's Fishtown neighborhood, at 258 E. Girard Avenue. We are named for Harriet Tubman, and like our namesake, we believe in leading people toward freedom, one story at a time. Founded by Jeannine Cook and opened just before the pandemic reshaped the world, Harriett's exists to celebrate women authors, women artists, and women activists. Every shelf is an invitation to discover voices that have too often been left out of the room. As a Black woman-owned business, we carry books that reflect the fullness of our histories and our futures, curated with intention rather than by algorithm. But Harriett's has never been only a place to buy books. From the beginning we imagined a gathering place, a living room for the community where ideas, art, and activism could meet. On any given day you might find a cellist filling the shop with music, a procession moving down Girard Avenue in honor of the women who came before us, or neighbors carrying home free books meant to reach anyone who needs them. We host readings, conversations, and celebrations that turn the simple act of reading into something communal and alive. Harriet Tubman once said, "When I found I had crossed that line, I looked at my hands to see if I was the same person. There was such a glory over everything." That sense of glory, of crossing into something new, is what we hope you feel when you walk through our doors. We want the shop to be a threshold, a place where you arrive as one version of yourself and leave carrying something that changes you. Whether you are a lifelong reader, a first-time visitor to Fishtown, or someone searching for a story that finally sounds like your own, there is a seat for you here. Come browse the shelves, sit a while, and let the women authors, artists, and activists who fill this space keep you company. At Harriett's, we are still writing the next chapter, and we would love for you to be part of it.