Here’s What to Read and Do This Fall at Two Downtown Bookstores 

It may be cliched to say, but we’ll say it anyway: Fall really is the perfect time to cozy up with a good book. Lower Manhattan is home to two top-tier bookstores where you can not only grab your next read, but hear from your favorite authors and enjoy spirited discussions with fellow bookworms. We’re talking, of course, about McNally Jackson’s Seaport location (4 Fulton St.) and the Mysterious Bookshop (58 Warren St.).

McNally Jackson has plenty of upcoming events worthy of marking your calendars. For the politicos among us, the Engaged Electorate series is happening every Monday leading up to the election. Journalists and writers will help break down the events of the week as it relates to their area of expertise. Upcoming events include a conversation with David Noll and Melissa Gira Grant on Defeating MAGA and Christian Nationalism happening October 14 at 6:30 p.m. and a conversation with Amy Littlefield, Sarah Leonard, Regina Mahone and Renee Bracey Sherman on reproductive rights happening October 21 at 6:30 p.m. If you want to channel your election anxiety into productivity, different organizations will be joining the series and providing ways for attendees to get involved with local and national causes. RSVPs are required and can be made through the website. 

If you’d rather not spend one more second of your free time talking about the election, McNally Jackson has plenty of events for you. There’s the Authors Guild Foundation and McNally Jackson present: Chukwudi Iwuji on James Baldwin at 100 happening October 17 at 6:30 p.m. and André Aciman presents Roman Year, in conversation with John Turturro happening October 24 at 7 p.m. (doors at 6 p.m.). 

The bookstore also hosts book clubs, such as Enzo & Morgan’s Batshit Book Club. It’s hosted by “two booksellers at McNally Jackson Seaport who delight in the decadent, the debased, and the degenerate.” The next meeting happens October 11 at 7 p.m.; the group will be discussing Heather Lewis’s classic queer text of trauma, “Notice.” 

McNally Jackson’s Seaport location has an in-store coffee and wine bar where you can grab a warm latte or glass of red to enjoy with your new read. 

In the mood for a spooky autumnal read? Head to the Mysterious Bookshop, the oldest mystery specialist book store in America. It’s been in operation since 1979 and has everything a mystery lover could want, whether you’re searching for a frothy whodunit or a bizarre supernatural story. 

You can connect with fellow would-be detectives at the bookstore’s upcoming events. There’s a reading by Richard Esposito from his book, “Jimmy Breslin: The Man Who Told the Truth” on October 15 at 6 p.m. Later in the month, you’ll want to mark your calendars for Jeffery Deaver and Isabella Maldonado sharing their new novel, “Fatal Intrusion” on October 23 at 6 p.m. You can preorder signed copies of both books (as well as other books that will be featured at upcoming readings) through the store’s website. 

If you want to make sure you’ve always got a new read on hand, the bookstore also has an array of crime book subscriptions. Some of the options include the Psychological Suspense Club, the Traditional and Historical Club, and the First Mystery Club, which highlights books from new voices in the genre. Each month, you’ll get a signed first edition hardcover. Just saying, if you’re looking to get your holiday shopping done early, this would make a great gift for the mystery lover on your list. While you’re shopping, be sure to peruse the shop’s collection of rare books, which also make for great gifts.