Yes, I walked around in circles for a while trying to find Foyles in Bristol, but it is a truth universally acknowledge that if a booknerd only walks in circles long enough, she will eventually find herself in front of a bookshop.
As usual, I explained the one-book-rule, but Foyles were too sneaky for me. “We’ll just recommend one each, and then you can choose between them.”
Likely.
I also managed to find my way to Stanfords, a beautiful bookshop selling quite a lot of maps and travel books, which they also recommended to me. And they remembered to thank their mom for Mother’s Day.
And then I ended the evening at The Old Bookshop, which was not a bookshop but a café/bar. Editing is much more fun if you have type writers over the window in front of you.
Naturally, I couldn’t come to Bath and not visit the Jane Austen Centre.
Although to be perfectly honest I’m not really sure what I thought about it. In a way, it’s like a (very small) Disney World for Jane Austen lovers: all the employees and guides walking around in costumes (there’s even a dressing station where you can try out the clothes of the time yourself, including the bonnets, of course. I chose not to). And there’s a gift shop, of course, filled with the things one needed at the time: old faschioned pens, old letter paper, refrigerator magnets and phone covers…
I couldn’t resist, including a Pride and Prejudice phone cover, but afterwards I felt slightly … dirty.
And that was before I even visted the bathroom. Heaven and earth! Are the shades of Pemberley to be thus polluted?
Have there ever been a bookshop more happily named?
And accurately. The moment I see the bookshop I am definitely filled with reading delight.
“Hello, my name is Katarina Bivald. I am currently traveling across the UK visiting some of the best bookshops, and naturally I’ve come to you. But I am only allowed to buy one book in each bookshop.”
The guy behind the counter looks down at my three Toppings & Co bags. “How’s that working out for you?”
“Err, yes.”
“You know, you’ll have to buy as many here. It’s only fair.”
And he had a point. I wouldn’t want to be unfair. Luckily for Louise’s faith in my self discipline (non-exitent I’m afrain, both the faith and the discipline) I managed to restrict myself to two books and a bag. But it was not easy.
Mr B:s is one of those bookshop (and my god, UK has a lot of them) where you can stroll around for hours, discovering new small, enchanting details wherever you look.
Their recommendation? The Break.
And then I had to buy The Next Step in the Dance as well, since they are so impressed by the author that they”re publishing his book themselves.
“This author is our bestseller at the moment, only by word of mouth.”
