Are you planning a literary trip to Asheville, NC? You picked the right (and gorgeous) mountain town. Asheville is for book lovers with plenty of unforgettable indie bookshops, a cemetery full of famous authors, and both waterfall hiking trails and an abandoned town that doubled as Hunger Games sets. See where Katniss nearly stepped on Peeta’s face, and toast to a day well spent with a champagne literary cocktail. We haven’t even gotten to Biltmore’s Library.
As an MLIS-degreed, rogue librarian and English and history major who moved here in 2019, I’ve done all of it. Below, I’m breaking down the best literary sites in and around Asheville, including day trips (get that audiobook ready!) and Shakespeare under the stars. Leave a penny for O. Henry, and meet a young boy dreaming of so much more. Keep an ear out for town gossip…
This post may contain affiliate links that earn us a commission at no extra cost to you. If you love these free guides, support Uncorked Asheville with a small tip.
As an Asheville local, all photos and experiences are my own. And afterward, be sure to see all that you can do in Asheville and beyond. 💜 Christine of Uncorked Asheville
📚 Read these before (or during) your trip:
The Best Bookstores (In & Near Asheville)
I have a full guide to Asheville’s bookstores, but here are my non-negotiables, including a few day trips that belong on any book lover’s WNC itinerary.
📚 Malaprop’s Bookstore/Cafe (Downtown Asheville)
A Downtown Asheville staple since 1982, this independent bookstore has the best new releases and staff-pick displays. I especially appreciate their translated literature section and fun book gear. I always need Little Prince socks.
Author events run year-round, so check their calendar before your trip. I also highly recommend signing up for Malaprop’s newsletter while grabbing a coffee at their cafe.
📚Battery Park Book Exchange & Champagne Bar (Downtown Asheville)
Used books, multiple floors, champagne, literary cocktails, AND charcuterie?! If that sentence doesn’t sell you, I don’t know what will. Battery Park Book Exchange is unambiguously a tourist magnet, so go on a weekday if you can. It’s always worth it, though.
🛍️ While here, stroll the historic Grove Arcade, which is filled with restaurants, coffee shops, Wake Foot Sanctuary (it’s heavenly, trust me), and boutique stores.
📚 Sassafras On Sutton (Black Mountain, ~25 min)
Black Mountain deserves at least half a day on its own (we even have a Black Mountain itinerary here). Sassafras On Sutton is the perfect excuse to hop in the car.
Part toy shop, part bookstore, part cafe, I cannot resist their LEGOs (you know my hobbies), new release section, and friendly vibes. While here, check to see if Peri Social House is hosting one of their many book and author events.
📚 As The Page Turns (Travelers Rest, SC, ~1 hour)
This beloved used bookstore near Greenville, SC has great energy and an equally stellar trade-in system. At As The Page Turns, you get 50% store credit per used book, which is the most dangerous math I’ve ever encountered.
Tom and I always donate a huge stack and leave with one just as large (I also own The Uncorked Librarian book review site; what can I say?!). Staff picks are always on point.
📚 M. Judson Booksellers (Greenville, SC, ~1 hr 20 min)
My favorite bookstore in the greater Asheville/Upstate area is technically in Greenville, South Carolina. M. Judson Booksellers is worth the drive. Imagine a gorgeous building, bestselling author events, a terrific collection, stationery I don’t need but always buy, and a cafe with coffee, wine, and delicious baked treats – vegan and gluten-free, too. They are also extremely friendly and kind, even with bustling crowds. If you’re heading to Greenville anyway (and you should be), this is your first stop.
🎭 And, know that Greenville’s Peace Center hosts amazing off-Broadway performances. We’ve been to shows like Hamilton and Back to the Future, along with concerts for Leslie Odom Jr. and Melissa Etheridge.
📚 FireLight Book & Candle (Blowing Rock ~1 hr 40 min)
If you love the Gilmore Girls, Blowing Rock will sing to you. Get your Rory on at FireLight Book & Candle. Blowing Rock had been without a bookstore for quite some time (what a crime!) when, in 2024, co-owner Lucy Strickland combined her love of making handcrafted soy candles with an independent bookstore. Here, shop for new and used books, local artisan goods, puzzles (I own two!), cute shirts, and all-natural soy candles.
✨ While in High Country, also head to Banner Elk for the Banner Elk Book Exchange in the Historic Banner Elk School. If you don’t have books to swap, they also take cash donations. It’s in the Historic Banner Elk School and run by the sweetest volunteers.
Literary Sites & Historic Residences
The Asheville area is filled with famous literary history. Here are the sites I’d prioritize:
📖 Thomas Wolfe Memorial (Downtown Asheville)
The Thomas Wolfe Memorial is my top recommendation for literary visitors, and I say that as someone who will admit Look Homeward, Angel is great but also a tad snoozy. The guided tour of his mother’s boarding house on Market Street is filled with excellent local gossip. His mother was a fascinating, nuanced woman.
Everyone I’ve brought here has loved it, including people who’ve never heard of Thomas Wolfe. Don’t skip the small museum and short film. Read more about our favorite Asheville museums and historic sites.
📖 Riverside Cemetery (Montford)
Bring pennies for O. Henry (buried under his real name, William Sydney Porter) and a pen for Thomas Wolfe. Riverside is a genuinely beautiful Victorian cemetery. Wandering the cemetery feels more meditative than dark.
Hurricane Helene heavily damaged the cemetery, and there are ongoing repairs through at least the winter of 2026.
📖 Carl Sandburg Home, Connemara (Flat Rock, ~45 min)
Carl Sandburg, three-time Pulitzer winner, “Poet of the People,” Lincoln biographer, and Civil Rights activist, spent the last 22 years of his life at Connemara in Flat Rock.
At the Carl Sandburg Home, take the guided house tour, hike the Glassy Mountain Trail, and say hello to the resident goats. Wear actual hiking shoes if you plan on walking the grounds, though. The NPS runs it, so it’s well-maintained. Of course, there’s a bookstore.
📖 Former Highland Hospital (Historic Montford)
A quiet, easy-to-miss memorial plaque on Zillicoa St. marks where Zelda Fitzgerald died in a 1948 fire. She’d been a patient at Highland Hospital. It’s bleak and worth a pause.
One of Asheville’s LaZoom ghost tours – not always tasteful but very fun – might stop here with the “ghost of Zelda” making a cameo. Tom and I also learned more unique Asheville history from Gray Line’s ghost tour.
If you want to go deeper, Lee Smith’s novel Guests on Earth beautifully imagines the story.
📖 The Omni Grove Park Inn (North Asheville)
F. Scott Fitzgerald spent two summers here in 1935 and 1936, drank a considerable amount, and allegedly shot the ceiling (that’s my gossip). Regardless of its literary history, The Omni Grove Park Inn is a stunning luxury hotel, and I highly recommend a sunset dinner at Edison. Book a stay here, or at minimum, walk through the lobby, sit by the floor-to-ceiling fireplaces, and fall in love with the Blue Ridge Mountains. Their annual winter Gingerbread competition is spectacular.
Book-To-Movie Filming Sites
The bookworm in me adores book-to-movie adaptations (sometimes the movie is better than the book. *Gasps.*) These are the North Carolina bookish filming sites I most recommend:
🎬 The Hunger Games Waterfalls (DuPont State Forest, ~45 min): Triple Falls is where Katniss found Peeta camouflaged in the riverbank. She nearly stepped on his face, remember? It’s along Dupont’s popular 3-waterfalls, 3-mile, round-trip hike. Further in, Bridal Veil Falls (4 miles out-and-back) is also a filming site for The Last of the Mohicans. The whole area is gorgeous – a Hendersonville itinerary “must” – even if you’ve never read the books.
🎬 Henry River Mill Village (Burke County, ~1 hr): Henry River Mill Village is where they filmed District 12. You can tour Katniss’s house and see Peeta’s bakery. Guides share interesting history about the village and the region. Fair warning: there is a Confederate flag at the highway exit, which is jarring.
🎬 Biltmore Estate Library (Asheville): Everyone was excited when Hallmark filmed A Biltmore Christmas here (and watched it 3 times over). George Vanderbilt started cataloguing his reading in a journal at age 12, essentially like the first Goodreads, accumulating over 22,000 volumes. The library at Biltmore is stunning – OK, and maybe a tad creepy. The Inn on Biltmore Estate also boasts a library bar. It’s fancy at night but more casual during the day. Tom and I are Biltmore annual passholders, and I’d visit for the library alone. See what to do at Biltmore, and of course, I recommend visiting at magical Christmastime.
Theater & Literary Dining
🎭 Shakespeare In The Park (Historic Montford, May to October): Montford Park Players perform weekends from May through October at the Hazel Robinson Amphitheatre. It’s free (leave a generous donation). Local beer and wine are sold on-site. This is not your average Shakespeare, either. Expect body glitter, anachronistic music, at times irreverent costumes, and genuine laughs. This is one of my favorite things about living here. Plan Shakespeare in the Park for a romantic Asheville date night with a picnic basket.
☕ The Book & Bee Cafe & Tea (Hendersonville, ~45 min) High tea, casual lunch, and enough book-themed decor to keep you gawking (or photographing) for an hour. The British phone booth and book spine stairs at the entrance are very Instagrammable. Think book page wallpaper, and tea sandwiches. While at The Book & Bee, say hi to Victoria and her family for us!
Start Your Asheville Literary Tour Today
Asheville is 100% for book lovers. Where else can you sip champagne in a used bookstore, hike where Katniss nearly stepped on Peeta’s face, and watch Shakespeare under the stars all in the same weekend?
Add a day trip like Blowing Rock or Greenville, and you’ve got a full literary itinerary that has you temporarily out of that armchair. Drop your favorite Asheville bookish spots in the comments. 💜 Christine of Uncorked Asheville (and The Uncorked Librarian – join our Uncorked Reading Challenge at any time!).