In Northwest Philly’s Chestnut Hill, where I’ve lived since 1987, we have an embarrassment of riches: four (count ‘em!) independent bookstores on our 1.5-mile main drag, each store complementing the others with its own distinct flavor and mission. Here’s my weekend walking tour:

Multiverse: The first thing you notice when you enter the Multiverse is its gorgeous, inviting space, designed by co-owner Gralin Hughes, Jr. The shelves to the left are stocked with the best collection of speculative literary fiction I’ve seen under one roof, as well as hardcore science fiction, graphic narrative, fantasy, and horror. The children’s collection ranges from picture books and early readers through young adult, and includes middle years and YA graphic narrative. And then there’s the comics section (I’m not a comics fan, but I take others’ words for it, that it’s top-notch. There’s also a selection of board games, RPGs, and artisan-created greeting cards and bookmarks, including this Cleaver bookmark, which is now out of stock because I bought all of them. Multiverse is Black, Brown, and women-co-owned. 8026 Germantown Ave, just above Willow Grove. Opening early, offering discounts and a Booklovers Breakfast with Baker Street Bread & Cafe.

Booked: A few blocks up the hill, you’ll find Booked, Chestnut’s Hill’s all-around upscale bookstore, offering a curated selection of the latest literary fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and genre publications, along with literary magazines (get your Paris Review here), local authors, a delightful kids’ nook, and writerly-readerly gifts like fancy pencils and notebooks. Their greeting card selection is one of the wittiest around—whenever I visit, I stock up for future birthdays. Booked is woman-owned. 8511 Germantown Avenue, between Highland and Evergreen. Hosting Quinn Jamison, author of The Art of Time at 10 am.

50 Watt Books: I buried the lede with this one. 50 Watt is my favorite bookstore, ever. I could spend my life in this store. I’ve walked in and found pristine copies of out-of-print gems I’ve been hunting for years, but the best experience here is the frisson of serendipity when you find a heretofore unknown-to-you book that you know you will not be able to live without. The store is tucked away on a side street, half a block from Booked. Maybe it’s me, but 50 Watt is chockablock with everything I’m obsessed with and all the new obsessions I’ll pick up there as I’m browsing. If you love design, typography, literary culture, cultural literacy, fabulism, lit wit, Japanese art and culture, music, color theory, cats, and the best of children’s books across the ages and multiple languages, then enter at your own risk: you may leave. 50 Watt’s shy owners seem to curate their collection as if they live inside my own head, and I’m not the only one who feels this way. Everyone I’ve brought here emerges thinking the same. The name is difficult to remember because there are no 50-watt bulbs. But that’s the point. If you work to find it, you’ll remember how to get there. 15 W. Highland Avenue, half a block west of Germantown Avenue. Opens early at 9 am with discounted books. $10 gift cards to the first 50 customers for use after the Crawl.

Hilltop Books: Just past the top of the hill, a block east on Bethlehem Pike, you’ll find Hilltop, the bookstore of the Friends of the Chestnut Hill Library. Hilltop sells gently read and new books in multiple genres at well-below-market rates, and they restock daily, so you never know what surprises await you. All proceeds benefit the library. 84 Bethlehem Pike. Open 9 to 5 for the crawl.