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Monday, Wednesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Closed Tuesday

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ABOUT US

Black Sheep Books, a community space and bookstore in Montpelier, Vermont, offers affordable radical and scholarly books, and hosts educational events on cultural and political topics. As an all-volunteer project, we are operated by a five-member collective hand in hand with a group of dedicated volunteers. Our principle focus is to provide access to anti-authoritarian Left ideas in a way that promotes intellectual debate and challenges today’s hegemonic culture.

We see print media and public talks as necessary for the development of critical consciousness and ultimately social change. Such engagement with the transformative power of ideas connects us to each other, helps us to understand our historical context, and guides us in action. This linking of past to present, theory to practice, is a crucial precondition for the emergence of a free and directly democratic society.

By creating this space in public, we strive to contest the depoliticization and alienation rampant under statist and capitalist social relations. We also aim to generate visibility for identities marginalized by normative values and systems of domination through providing community resources and a welcoming space in the context of our rural location.

Together with horizontalist social movements and political projects, bookstores, infoshops, and publishers, Black Sheep Books works toward an egalitarian, ecological, and nonhierarchical society.

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Black Sheep Books is an all-volunteer
workers' collective specializing in radical
and scholarly used books.
5 State Street, Montpelier, VT | (802) 225-8906

Donate to support this all-volunteer community space!

Black Sheep Books has, at long last, found a perfect new location! And we’re hoping we can count on your continued financial support to maintain our 5 State Street location.

Since our opening in October 2004, we have created an increasingly public presence for radical and scholarly ideas in central Vermont and beyond, as well as a queer-friendly and sex-positive space. In addition to making thousands of affordable books available that normally can’t be found in chain or even independent bookstores, we’ve hosted over 100 well-attended talks, book tours, panels, and films, and have gained a loyal community following. We have continued to self-manage Black Sheep with a core collective and an enthusiastic group of over twenty people, all on a volunteer and democratic basis.

Our new storefront space provides us greatly expanded square footage, ground-level accessibility, the ability to host events for 30 people or more, a large window facing on to the street with room outside for a café table or two, and wall space for local art exhibits, among other things. Indeed, with its highly visible location the bookstore will move from being an out-of-the-way space to increasingly being at the heart of the community and helping to define the character of our downtown and something that will help us, more than ever, fulfill our mission statement.

Moving to a location more than twice the size necessitated a second round of start-up expenses, from renovation costs to more bookshelves, from acquiring chairs for events to adding to our current stock of about 5,000 titles, to improving the space's accessibility. Fortunately, Black Sheep Books has become a self-sustaining project in the last four years, and as we did when we first opened, the core collective donated and lent, at no interest, a substantial portion of the moving funds as well. We need to repay these loans, and given the economy, keeping our doors open will be a constant balancing act. So in order to make our vision of a welcoming, well-designed, and inclusive public space possible—thereby allowing us to more fully achieve our project’s aspirations—we also need the continuing help of generous donors, such as you.

Any donation is greatly appreciated to support this ongoing radical project. Please contribute today!


Contact | (802) 225-8906 | 5 State Street, Montpelier, VT, 05602