Our Mission
JOY | CELEBRATION | REST | CONNECTION
Belonging Books is a community bookstore that centers the voices and stories of people of color and other underrepresented people. We create and hold space for joy, celebration, rest and connection.
Our Story
A GATHERING PLACE
We opened our "doors" in the Spring of 2022 with a creative writing workshop for BIPOC high school students and a pop-up event at A-Way with Words, a spoken word event honoring those lost to police brutality.
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At the end of 2022, Belonging Books, along with three other organizations focused on art, culture and equity, formed The Arts & Justice Collective. Through this collaboration, Belonging Books has been able to reach more people, organize joyful community gatherings, and empower and uplift our historically-excluded communities.
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We continue to partner with value-aligned community organizations all across Cape Cod and offer thoughtfully-curated books all year long. Recently, we found a home - a gathering place - at 438 Main Street, Hyannis.
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Whether it’s a book club, writing circle, open mic night, school program or author event, we are most proud of being able to create and hold space for people of color on the Cape — to carve out a small sanctuary.
About Me
ERICA TSO HAIDAS - Founder & Owner
I’m Erica Tso Haidas, a first-generation Chinese-Canadian who grew up in Vancouver, BC. Throughout my life, I’ve always been drawn to diverse cities—Montreal, Toronto, NYC—vibrant places where cultures and stories thrive. My career started in law in NYC, and in 2015, I moved to Cape Cod with my young family to be closer to my husband's family.
It was here that I experienced a profound sense of isolation and the feeling of being a perpetual outsider—something that felt all too familiar, yet amplified in this setting. I realized there was a need for a place where people who feel like they live in the grey spaces could gather, connect and find community.
That’s when I decided to start Belonging Books—a bookstore with the mission to center the experiences of people of color, LGBTQIA+ and other underrepresented communities. A place where Cape Codders can share their stories and feel seen and heard.
