Books and stories play a critical part in The Cinnamon Bun Book Store and often symbolize the things that are most important to Hazel and Noah. Hazel’s life is made up of books, from her job at the bookstore to her passion for reading. The opening lines of the novel make clear that sees an underlying irony in her relationship with books: “Hazel Kelly loved a good story. She just didn’t have any of her own” (9). Though she loves the adventure and excitement found in books, she sees her own life as lacking these qualities. Hazel isn’t convinced she needs to have some fun with her life and go on an adventure until she reads about it in a book. The fact that all the clues that lead her on adventures are found in quotes from books highlights just how important books are to Hazel. When comparing herself to the stories she reads, Hazel understands that she needs to make a change.

Noah enjoys books too, though he is not a lifelong, passionate reader like Hazel. In the months leading up to the start of the novel, Noah has been going to the bookstore to get recommendations from Hazel at first for the sole purpose of seeing her.