

Don really needs a book. That’d cheer him right up.

There is almost nowhere I like better to read than in a bar. Perched on a stool, book in hand, glass of wine or bourbon on the rocks or gin and tonic or pint glass just within reach—it’s the perfect way to while away an afternoon. While reading is generally a solitary pursuit, reading at a bar serves the purpose of getting me out of my apartment, affording me the possibility of striking of a literary conversation with the bartender or one of my fellow bar-goers (but only if I feel like it, I’ve found burying my head in a book to be the world’s best pre-emptive conversation killer), and just feeling like a part of a larger community instead of like a hermit (which is what I usually feel like). But, as easy as it might seem to just grab any old novel and hit any old bar, you actually want to be reading exactly the right book at exactly the right bar in order to enjoy your literary/drinking endeavor to the fullest degree. And so, after much consideration, I’ve come up with a list of the ten perfect books to read at ten Brooklyn bars. Happy reading, and happy drinking!