The Bookshop Book

My abiding love affair with books began some thirty-five years ago when as a young child, I accompanied my mom to a used bookstore. We lived on a tight budget and books were considered a luxury, but my mother, bless her heart, would save up to take me book shopping (we didn't have a public library close by) at the local used bookstore, which was really more a room that had been let to the bookstore owner. I remember being in raptures when I was able to find Nancy Drew hardcovers for bargain prices like 50 cents. Those bookstore visits inspired a lifelong affinity for books, especially old books, found in dusty nooks and crannies in used bookstores, and I have never stopped acquiring and collecting books since, and THE BOOKSHOP BOOK is one that all bibliophiles like me can easily relate to. THE BOOKSHOP BOOK by Jen Campbell captures the love of books by focusing on bookshops around the world and among the famous and easily recognizable names such as The Tattered Cover in Denver, CO and Shakespeare and Company in Paris, there are lesser known, yet no less beloved bookstores in various regions around the world. The author also includes impressions of authors and their opinions of their favorite bookstores, as well as interesting "Bookish Facts" that make this an engaging read. I read this book in one sitting, no mean feat considering my busy schedule, but I was that engrossed. I plan to re-read it too and make notes. There are treasures to be unearthed within such as titles of books that had escaped my attention previously, names of bookstores that I would definitely like to look up such as the Alabama Booksmith and more. If you love books, the tangible and intangible pleasures of book selling and book buying, then this book is definitely a must-read.

Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic I found myself wishing that I could pop into some of my favorite bookstores, and so I did the next best thing. I read a book about bookstores all over the world. While it centers primarily on the UK, I found it a delightful read for all of the wonderful quirkiness found all over the world. The booksellers and their stories were fascinating as well. If only we could get a while book about George. Personally, it did hurt that the Africa, South America, and Asia sections were so brief. I can confirm that after the pandemic is over I will definitely be able to add some great book destinations to any trip that I go on. I can only hope most of these independent stores will still be there for all of us.

Okay, now I want to grab a bucket or five of cash, my passport and visit as many of the bookshops mentioned in this book as I possibly can and buy books! And spend at least one of those buckets shipping them home *grin* Of course, since the book was published in 2014, some may have closed their doors. But there are some gorgeous as well as ingenious bookshops out there. From biblioburro and barge/boat to a van and bicycle. Re-purposed warehouses and theaters and banks. Even former mines. Lots of little bookstore facts, some wonderful things and bookish facts. Like the only Biblio-Mat, a book vending machine is in The Monkey's Paw in Toronto. The word abibliophobia (noun) is the fear of running out of things to read - so apropos on GoodReads. Some so-called 'Booktowns' across the world. Interviews with owners and authors. And lots more. Campbell mentions over 300 different bookshops across the world - only place not mentioned was Antarctica. No bookstore on that continent. We'll see how long before there is one. It was a fun and interesting read that didn't take long. Since it's unlikely that I'll get the opportunity to visit some of these bookshops, I guess, I'll just have to go to the independent bookstores in the area and maybe give a book or two a new home. Note: This review is identical to that posted on GoodReads.com

I live in the UK - I ordered The Bookshop Book for my son and it was sent to him directly to Virginia: It was a present and he was pleased with it. It arrived in good time for his birthday, thank you.

As an online bookseller, I basked for days in the light of this book, following Jen Campbell around the world as she visited a seeming unending number of "brick and mortar" independent book stores. A few of the stores that she shares about are now closed (I was sad but hardly surprised.) However, the vast majority of the stores she "visits" are open and dare I say thriving?! (I was thrilled and very surprised by this fact.) In fact, I had to revisit the publication page to confirm that yes, indeed, this book was published in 2014 and that many of these stores have opened since 2000. I smiled every night as I read, remembering my life long dream to have a "brick and mortar" bookstore, coffee shop, gathering place for booksellers and lefty political activists. My husband was scared witless by my nighttime smiling episodes, afraid that one morning I would wake and up and declare that "Yes! There was room in our smallish town for another struggling bookshop." We have two at present and he thanks his lucky stars that I have been content to sell online for, lo, these many years. Still, Jen Campbell's book gave me that sense of warm, long ago hope in my gut and allowed me to hear whispers of "maybe....maybe" once again. Read this book if you love books, bookstores and, especially, if you've ever bought books rather than food. You are the person who will love this book as much as I do.....

Charming.

Jen Campbell's writing is perfect. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves reading. A perfect way to spend your afternoon is looking though the interesting stories that can be found in here. The book is a beautiful blue/green hardcover which I can display proudly in the center of my bookshelf. I am a big fan of Jen's and watch her on you tube all the time because she has fantastic book recommendations. I would also recommend picking up her other books because they are very good too!

Me gusta el libro mucho! Yo quiero ir a todos los sitios que se refiere. Me encanta y creo que las personas que le gustan libros deberían leerlo.

1. Bookish! Through all of the anecdotes and facts which must have been so intriguing to research, it was so fascinating to discover so much about a variety of bookshops worldwide. There was so much diversity in the bookshops that Jen Campbell described. It’s a book that has really persuaded me to travel to so many new places I’d never thought of before. I've visited a few of the bookshops mentioned, such as Blackwell’s in Oxford, but I need to visit more!! 2. We can see the magic of bookshops, particularly independent ones, and we can see how they thrive even in the darkest of times as the digital age threatens booksellers and people turn to reading e-books. I feel like this book really encourages people to support physical bookshops because of the incredibly unique and important things they have to offer. Every physical bookshop has character and stories which allow people to fall in love with them. 3. I loved the bookish facts and the beautiful pictures that appeared throughout the book! It was nice to see what some of the bookshops actually looked at and how bookshops in different countries compare. 4. A lot of famous writers and booksellers/bookshop owners contributed to this book and I found it mesmerising to read about their views on the importance of reading and the importance of physical bookshops. Of course they all have very bookish views, and I loved the way they expressed their opinions and how they discussed how books changed their lives for the better. 5. I think I probably prefer fictional books about books as opposed to non-fiction just because the stories tend to have great mystery and excitement, and I prefer the way that the messages are revealed. However, this was still incredibly intriguing and I absolutely loved learning so many bookish facts despite the slightly different approach to what I've read before.

Bought this after seeing it on Pinterest. I was hoping it would be a nice interesting read but was rather disappointed that the first 156 pages out of 260 are all about Europe, there’s three bookstores listed for all of Canada. Struggled to read it because it felt very repetitive. I did like the photo pages and googled a few of the places, some are now closed. Definitely should have borrowed from the library or found a copy in a used bookstore.