WORD

Excellent bookstore, immense greeting card selection (which is a big plus for an avid letter-​writer and pen-​pal like myself) and the few times I’ve been in there the staff has been remarkable, completely friendly, not pushy, totally accessible– basically, the complete antithesis of stores like Barnes & Noble where, to be fair, the staff is most likely pressured to be as obnoxious as possible.
Haven’t experienced the café aspect yet but everything about WORD is great if you’re a book lover and want to support real bookstores. Cozy, great location, helpful staff– what more needs to be said?

I love this neighborhood bookstore. They have a nice selection of books, a small café, and tables both inside and outside. I come here to browse books, buy a cookie, and sit at a table to grade papers. Aside from books they sell cards, candles, a few toys and board games. Since they will gift wrap your purchases, it’s a nice place for last minute gifts! I am happy to live less than 5 minutes away from this Jersey City gem.

I love this bookstore. I buy more greeting cards and coffee here than books, but I do like their limited/​selective book selection because it makes it easy for me to pick out a new book when I need one. I’ve picked up some excellent books here that I probably would have overlooked otherwise.

Their coffee is awesome and they carry Stumptown Chocolate Cold Brew.
Which is awesome

Fantastic all across the board. They have a great rewards program for all your purchases, food, coffee/​tea, books, toys, frames, etc. I love coming here because the staff is consistently helpful and friendly. I can sit with a book or my laptop and get loads of work done and never feel rushed. They have a great selection. If there’s a book that you’re interested in purchasing but they don’t have in stock, they are more than happy to order it for you. And call when it’s ready to be picked up. The coffee is always good and the barista actually helped me figure out the name of this coffee I’ve been craving and thought I made up haha. (cortado btw) They have outdoor seating for warm weather, which I love, cause it looks out on the neighborhood. Happy I found this little gem.

I have passed this place daily for months and finally stopped in to look for a very specific book. It was nothing obscure so they had it in stock — 3 copies even.
Loved the vibe here — super cute and cozy. Very friendly staff. I didn’t really want to leave…
It’s a fairly small store so not sure how good the selection is. It does seem they stay current as far as bestsellers go. They also had some cute knick-​knacks.
Pleasant experience — definitely recommend giving this place a shot before going to a larger retailer.
There’s also a café in the back but I didn’t have a chance to check it out.

Always interesting to check out Word. I’ve found some good reads here and the staff is always friendly and helpful. I would love to start attending some of their book clubs. They also have the café I want to try. But I like the idea of buying local Word lives up to the reputation of a great little local spot.

Word is just the cutest, and it’s fun to say which is always an added bonus. I live across the street, and it’s nice to have a little neighborhood book shop where I can peruse the shelves when I’m feeling bored or pick up a last minute gift.
Yes, it’s not the largest but they’ve usually got plenty of current best-​sellers in stock. They also have a pretty large cookbook and business section which are two of my favorites. Apparently I’ve been doing it all wrong by getting my cards at Duane Reed because they’ve got some funny and adorable cards here. Next time I’ve got a birthday or another occasion that calls for a card I’ll definitely hit up Word first.
Even though it’s small there is also a café area with some tables and chairs. They’ve got prepackaged baked goods and sandwiches to nosh on while you skim through a book.
I miss the pre Barnes and Noble days when there were more small bookshops around and it’s nice to have Word in the neighborhood! Word. Word up. See, it’s fun to say right?

Love this place. The staff are all super friendly. I go at least once daily for some Stumptown cold brew.

Well-​curated selection of titles and unique gifts, knowledgeable and helpful staff, impressive list of events… and they brew a fine cup of joe to boot.

Jersey City is being gentrified without the aid of artistic, liberal arts types… that said, this bookstore is a bit of a disappointment after moving here from Seattle. The book selection is basically NY Times best sellers. The knick-​knack stuff (candles, etc.) are brands you can buy anywhere in the country. I mean FFS, you can buy Paddywax candles at American Eagle. The sandwiches at the café are pre-​made and sit in a window all day. They serve Stumptown coffee. You can buy Stumptown coffee in every grocery store in Seattle.
TL;DR: This is a derivative bookstore that sells trendy, popular brands. (But it’s the best JC has to offer at the moment.)

It was cozy, it was fun, it had a friendly staff and it smelled like books. Could you ask for more from a bookstore? I think not.
While visiting some friends up in Jersey City I ended up strolling around and bumping into this little jewel of a place and I remember being happy to see an independt book seller on a really popular strip. It has a great layout and the selection is a little bit dry but I can see how this is a great bookstore that has a lot for it’s community. It also has events and the place was really well organized.
Overall this bookstore makes you feel like a little kid and that at any moment your soon to be favorite novel is but just one

Word is smaller than I expected, but it appears to have a decent selection. I had called to see if they had a cookbook I wanted — which is why I went. At the register they had the coolest little matchbooks with covers brandishing all the classics. So cool! I definitely want to go back and really peruse through the store. Downtown JC was really hurting for a bookstore, so this is an awesome addition.

When I moved from Brooklyn to Jersey City six months ago, one of the JC superlatives I heard most frequently from folks in the know was «Jersey City has a Word!»
And what this means is, Jersey City is the type of place that supports small businesses, enjoys reading, and values learning and art.
Word’s selection includes all of the big fiction names and New York Times best sellers as well as lesser known gems from publishers like NYRB and Graywolf Press. In this way, Word feels perfectly curated.
Staff are friendly and helpful. Word is conveniently located next to the Grove Street PATH stop. Five stars.

A bookstore for book lovers… there is a lot to like about this place. Because Word is well curated with their selection of books, it is one of those shops where there are no «filler» books just to stock shelves. By just taking a few minutes to browse, you can see that the selection is there with good reason and care, and I appreciate that. I find the size of the store to be refreshing and intimate in comparison to a more common Barnes & Noble. At first it was a little surprising how small it is, but after visiting more and more it feels more like a boutique versus a big box store. Employees are knowledgable, available, and always happy to help. I appreciate their insight, and I also enjoy their handwritten recommendations in front of books on the shelves as well.
I particularly enjoy buying children’s books and toys here for my nephews for gifts. During the holidays I spent a great deal of time in the store going through books, games, and crafts for the little ones in my life, and most of them turned out to be some of their favorite gifts! (Score for Auntie Kris!) The books and toys selection is very well thought out, and definitely encourage imagination which I love.
I am also a sucker for stationery because I love sending snail mail. Word has a great selection of letterpressed cards and notes, mostly if not all are made in the USA, and some even printed with Jersey City on them!
I haven’t bought much at the café, but it’s pretty decent and a tad bit pricey. Looks like most of their baked goods are from Brooklyn. A positive is that your purchases from the café contribute to your overall «spending» at Word, therefore contributing to the $ 100 you spend to get a $ 5 coupon. I would hang out at the café more if it were more inviting to sit at. I understand that it is pretty modular to accommodate for various events that happen in the space back there, but for whatever reason, it doesn’t have the same «intimate» feeling that I feel the rest of the bookstore has.
My wish/​nice to have that would push this to a 5 star review: a small selection of magazines and newspapers. I am assuming they aren’t there because of space and constant turn around, but that’s one of my favorite sections in bookstores. I hope they will consider it someday.

Cute café spot in the heart of Grove Street. It is perfect for studying or coffee chats. The look is very old school: racks of books on display, and then a few light bulbs hanging from the open ceiling.
I would recommend sitting facing the back wall as the light was right in my eyes when I sat the other way around.
Iced coffee from the café was okay, but nothing to write home about. They had some sandwiches and cookies/​brownies as well for snacking.

Who doesn’t love a neighborhood bookstore? They’re rare nowadays as people own e-​book readers (myself included) and have slowly lost use of printed books. Nice to see WORD on Grove!
Though small, WORD offers a good selection of books and most importantly brews Stumptown coffee. :)
Everyone’s really friendly willing to answer any questions you may have– so grab a cold brew and actually buy a book! Only downside is that they don’t allow unpurchased books in café section. BLAH!
Still worth a trip!

Like
Brooklyn’s
But with a
Café. Great staff
And plenty of literature events.

I like this bookstore. Their selection of available books is definitely a little different than traditional stores but in a fun way. They have a very nice seating area in the back, though when it starts getting dark the lighting is not that good.
They also sell coffee and snacks which I think is necessary in a book store. I’ve had a couple of their coffee options and I’m not a fan, some of you may know me as a coffee connoisseur. Buuuuuut they have won me over with their delicious chai. Last time I was there I got iced chai and a hummus sandwich and I was in heaven! Fyi, the sammiches are a little $$-but they’re really good. The employees are also very friendly and that’s pretty much all you can ask for.

Well a bookstore is always needed and although she be small, she is fierce! They have a lot of great books, a great kids section and even some really great arty/​comic/​graphic novel options. Score. As you can see from the other reviews, they also boast quite a great greeting card variety.
What you may not know is that they also have a café in the back. I spent an afternoon there, taking advantage of the free wifi and enjoyed some coffee, a lox & cucumber sandwich (from Roman Nose) and a gluten free or maybe was it vegan? peanut butter chocolate chip cookie. Well this endeavor was not cheap. The coffee was close to $ 3, the sandwich close to $ 9 and the small cookie over $ 2. Everything was tasty, however for my own preference definitely a splurge. A bonus: they do have a frequent members club, you get some sort of a discount when you spend $ 100, food included.
With no windows and natural light in the back of the store, this place reminds me more of a back of a library with the communal tables than coffee shop, which is a nice change of pace.
Oh hey: They have lectures and speakers in all the time. Definitely get on their mailing list to learn more.
I definitely say head to Word if you need a book, a child’s gift, a card. Definitely enjoy some of that Stumptown Coffee while you are there!