Brookline Booksmith

It's easy to find what you're looking for at this cheery Coolidge Corner bookstore, with its friendly staff and fine selection of new books. There's a charming children's reading area in the back, near a gift section stocked with greeting cards, magnets, toys and novelties. In the used-book cellar downstairs, shelves are pushed aside for readings with local and emerging writers, and the shop sponsors big names like David Sedaris at the Coolidge Corner Theatre across the street.