Bridgton Books — Attraction in Bridgton

The Bridgton Book store is owned by two local residents, Pam and Jeff Ward. They are both lovely people and are active in the Bridgton Community. I like the warm feeling I receive when I go into the store or when I have a special book order. Pam and Jeff are always happy to help me by looking up books by the author when I don't know the title. They also always try to get me the best price finding out if the book is available used. The community is so fortunate to have such intelligent owners who have great customer skills. Bridgton Books is one of the "hubs" of Bridgton. I can always find great books and great friends. We all need to remember to shop local, when we can, to support the endeavors of entrepreneurialship...

While I live in Virginia, Bridgton Books is my favorite independent bookstore! My parents retired to Bridgton in 1982, and I would visit them often (I lived in Maine for over 10 years, until my work took me to Virginia). Those visits nearly always included a trip (or two) to Bridgton Books. Part of the allure is that this was my Dad's bookstore for 26 years. My Dad was a reader and so am I, and we like to read books (and newspapers) to learn about this world we live in, or, in my case, escape to another world a novelist has created. Justin and his wife run a wonderful little bookstore that, to me, is all you need or want in a bookstore. I'm coming to Bridgton for two weeks in July, so expect...

NOT child friendly! What a terrible first experience in this store. A woman (who doesn't even bother to greet us) bends down and tells my child to put his snack away because "sticky hands and books don't mix" and makes my one year old cry. She doesn't apologize, but instead continues to talk about the books, as I'm trying to console him. I've never encountered such rudeness from a small business before. Why not tell the parent who is standing right next to you, to please put the snack away, rather than scare a toddler?

You're better off going to a Sherman's where they couldn't care less if you're drinking a coffee or eating an ice cream...