Indie Bookstore Spotlight: Spoke & Word Books
- Karen Germain
- Dec 14, 2025
- 2 min read
Our December Literary Road Trip Box takes us to Oregon, where we’ve partnered with Spoke & Word Books. Located in Milwaukie, just over six miles from Portland, Spoke & Word Books opened its brick-and-mortar location in 2023. Before settling into its current spot, the store began as a pop-up.
The name "Spoke & Word" is a blend of two passions: store owner Cierra Cook’s love of books and their husband’s enthusiasm for mountain biking. Cierra’s husband owns a mountain bike repair shop and came up with the name, combining "spoke" (a part of a bicycle wheel) with "word" (representing books).
Supporting community, diversity, and inclusion is at the heart of Spoke & Word Books. The store is queer-owned and strives to create a welcoming space for everyone. They host events with the mission of bringing the community together. For example, as I’m writing this blog post, the store is hosting a storytime with Santa. They also offer monthly book clubs and even hold event-themed sleepovers in the store! To stay connected, the store has a Discord group where members can share book recommendations and participate in "ask me anything" sessions with authors. Much like our Books Inside Boxes book club, the Discord group is a great way for book lovers to connect and engage.
One of my favorite parts of any bookstore is the staff recommendations. I love seeing what fellow booksellers are reading and recommending, and it’s also a great way to discover new books from someone who might share your reading tastes. Be sure to check out the books Cierra, Bonnie, Gere, and Carolyn are recommending!
Spoke & Word sells both new and used books and offers a used book trade-in credit. They also have a variety of store membership options. A membership is a great way to support your local indie bookstore while earning benefits like discounts. Interested in a book box? Since you’re reading this, I’m sure you’re already a fan of book boxes and indie bookstores! Spoke & Word Books offers four themed monthly boxes: a romance box, a queer-themed box, a kids’ book box, and a bookseller’s choice box. Trust me, you need more books in your life, so reach out to Spoke & Word Books for their monthly picks!
The December 2025 box includes a store merch bookmark and sticker. The sticker was designed by local artist Toni—check out her designs on Instagram. Please show some love to Spoke & Word Books by visiting their store, shopping online, or liking their Instagram page.
I was soooooo surprised to get this box! When I first opened the box and saw the name 'Spoke and Word' I thought someone had taken the name of my favorite book store that I always visit when I go to spend time with my daughter who lives in Milwaukee, OR, then I noticed that it was indeed the real one! I was so tickled to see this indie book store being featured. I love going there, it is so cozy, the people are so helpful and offer great suggestions, it is just the ultimate cozy book store to be at. Thank you so much for picking this great book store.