The Spiral Bookcase began in 2010, just as summer sank its hot teeth into Philadelphia. From the beginning, The Spiral Bookcase has been more of an idea, a tiny slip in reality, than anything else. Inspired by the deep and connecting spirals of all things folkloric, ancient, modern and true, The Spiral Bookcase blinked into existence one July afternoon.
Here at Spiral, form and shape of literary works matter less than intent and voice. We pride ourselves on strong offerings of contemporary fiction, lesser-heard voices and all the occult & fairytale tomes your heart could crave. We are all part of a swirling vortex of energy, thought and stories, and within our confines -- whether that of our retail shop or the collection of our online storefront -- we invite you to join the spiral.
With this website, we hope to offer a curated selection of occult, folklore and small press books, alongside crystals, paper goods and other magickal gifts. We hope it creates an extension of our physical space -- a manifestation out into the world of shining screens and social media and all the new and strange things of this timeline we share -- that anyone can step into when they need it.
Spiral is, in many ways, a sanctuary. It is your favorite tree from your childhood backyard. It is the coziest seat in the little tea room. It is a bonfire beneath a star-swept velvet sky. It's the place where all your stories come together, where your folklore finds its roots and all things strange and wonderful can happen at any given time.
By taking this step into the internet ether, we also hope to take a step outside of our neighborhood to form connections with those of you who may not live up the street from us. We understand that Spiral is a community: of kindred spirits, of fairytale believers, of magic-finders and wonder-searchers. We want that community to be available whenever you need it, in whatever form you can digest. We want to feast on wild stories with you, dig our teeth into parchment, let our hands sink deep into the ink and see what we become once we turn the page. We're never quite sure what will manifest next in this spiral we share, but we know one thing: it will always be magickal.