Books & Co, Ōtaki, the only independent dedicated bookstore on the Kāpiti Coast, celebrates its 4th birthday at the end of April! Having opened in 2021, we expanded to add a children’s annexe (Books & Co Kids) in December 2023, and in June 2024, took over the neighbouring homewares store, rebranding it as White Hare Home.
Our ethos has always been about community, and becoming a one-stop shop for beautiful books and affordable gifts. We love championing NZ authors and stock a huge range of quality books across all genres, including an excellent range of books in te reo and about te ao Māori.
We have a great team of booksellers who are passionate about the store, enjoy reading different genres and love handselling their favourite books. Getting to know our customers is key to everything, and the bookstore has become a hub of activity with author events and our four book clubs every month. We have a lovely bakery next door and great shops nearby so we are a popular destination for locals and visitors alike.
Books we have been enjoying and are recommending are: The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden; Nesting by Roisin O’Donnell; Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins; Landovel by Emily Rodda; Sleep by Honor Jones; Life Hacks for a Little Alien by Alice Franklin; Toitū Te Whenua by Lauren Keenan, and Mother Tongue by Naima Brown.
