Welcome to Redbud Books

Redbud Books is a bookstore and community space dedicated to shared thought in Bloomington. Through thoughtfully curated collections, engaging programming, and a welcoming space, we hope to bring people and books together and into dialogue with contemporary debates and struggles over the future of our city and our world.


About Us

We’re Bloomington’s community bookstore, a collective of local book lovers who believe in the world-making magic of the written word. Our collections are hand-picked and thoughtfully curated to make browsing a joyful experience. Come visit our storefront at 408 W. Kirkwood Ave to discover unexpected gems — new and used works of fiction, poetry, and theory that are beautiful, inspiring, and maybe even a little dangerous.

As a community-led non-profit, we’re also a hub for exchanging ideas and building connections: we host themed reading groups, a speaker series, and international film screenings. We recognize that thought itself can be a radical proposition and that books enable other worlds to bloom by inspiring us to think and act otherwise. Redbud isn’t just a bookstore – it’s a portal between local and global, between the known and the unknowable, between the present and what could be.

We are a project of the Center for Sustainable Living (CSL). If you are interested in volunteering with us, please fill out an interest form.

If you’d like to order materials for classes, gifts for others (for any occasion), or books for your own reading pleasure, please consider using either our online Bookshop storefront (an online retailer that supports independent bookstores; books will be delivered directly to you and we earn a small commission) or special order form (we’ll order the book and you can pick up at our store).

Want to buy an gift card for the upcoming holiday season (or any other reason)? You can purchase them in-store or online! We also have physical gift cards available in-store.


Recent Press

Into the Arts: Redbud Books (IU Office of the Provost)

More than books: Redbud Books on Kirkwood (The Herald Times)

Redbud Books to open on Kirkwood Ave (WFIU/WTIU, also via Indiana Public Media)

Redbud Books Coming to Bloomington, Ind. (Shelf Awareness)