Top 5: Impressive Appearance
2008-03-07 09:07:00
Livraria Lello, PortoIf you were wondering why Livraria Lello came to be our undisputed numero uno, then look no further than this article which should explain it all, and if you're still not impressed, why not visit it yourself and report back to us with your pros and cons.Located near Praca dos Leoes, Livraria Lello & Irmao was established in 1906 after being designed by a Portugese engeneer Xavier Esteves. This fine example of art nouveau, with its stunning facade in a late neo gothic style is also decorated with two painted figures, one representing Art and the other representing Science. The bookstore's interior is nothing less impressive than its exterior which spreads on two levels and is connected by an amazing stairway inspired by the Parisian Galleries Lafayette. Furthermore,
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Pasajes Libreria Internacional, Madrid
2008-03-04 06:27:00
Where? Madrid
Recommended by Miguel MarcosMiguel said: "Pasajes sells books in Spanish and other languages, including English. They have a good fiction section."This bookstore is known all over Madrid for its international character, since it offers books in English, French, Italian, German, Portuguese, Catalonian and even Russian. It's very popular among students of foreign languages as well, since they stock all sorts of dictionaries, language resources and study books. Besides the teaching materials, the English section contains several other fictional and non-fictional categories. The fiction section consists mainly of a fine choice of classic and modern authors, you can also find science fiction and fantasy, or a separate corner dedicated to children's books. Pasajes can also pride
Read more: Internacional
Hatchard's, London
2008-02-26 07:24:00
Where? London, UKRecommended by Sean DodsonThe courtesy of the Guardian UnlimitedSean said: "Although the bookshop of Cambridge University is technically the oldest bookshop in Britain, Hatchards of Piccadilly, which has been trading since 1797, is definitely the most aristocratic. Not only does it boast three royal warrants, meaning it supplies books to Her Majesty, it has counted Disraeli, Wilde and Byron among its regulars. Today it retains the spirit of days past, with an interior described by one follower as "reminiscent of being inside a rambling old house, with six floors of small rooms all linked together curling around a central staircase."Located opposite the Royal Academy, Hatchard's seems lika a bibliophiles dream. It's easy to get lost in this shop for hours, strolling from se
Anthony Frost, Bucharest
2008-02-24 14:43:00
Where? Bucharest
, RomaniaRecommended by Kelly AmabileTaken from The Diplomat Bucharest"Since opening in December, the bookshop has become popular among students, academics and expats, especially for its fair pricing system – which sees English language books on sale for the same cost as in the west. Set up by three friends with a fascination for the English language, Nicolae Ion, Dan Nicolaescu and Vlad Niculescu, the shop is located in an arcade opposite the Kretzulescu Church on Calea Victoriei, around the corner from the Orange Concept Store.One of the store’s unique selling points is helpful staff who know what they are talking about. For browsers, this makes the experience of speaking to shop assistants a pleasure rather than an act of public humiliation."About the bookstoreNamed
Read more: Frost
, Anthony
La Mar de Letras, Madrid
2008-02-21 07:46:00
Where? Madrid
, SpainRecommended by Miguel MarcosMiguel said: "La Mar de Letras is a small but nice children's bookstore."The name of this bookstore can be loosely translated as "The Sea of Letters" and to stick with this metaphor, this bookstore is definitely a ship which will ensure a safe and entertaining journey for all the kids on board.The offer of this bookstore is aimed primarily at kids and juveniles, but parents will also find some interesting reading material. The stock holds more than 15 thousand books for kids and juveniles and over 3 thousand books about parenting. You can find a wide selection of books ordered into several categories with the age target group ranging from just several months to teenagers. The offer of books for adults mainly consists of books which focus on p
Booksellers, Madrid
2008-02-21 04:20:00
Where? Madrid
, SpainRecommended by Miguel MarcosMiguel said: "Booksellers is a medium sized bookstore. It virtually has all English books."Located near the Metro Iglesia, Booksellers offers a wide selection of English language books and publications. The bookstore itself has two areas: one where teaching materials and various other teaching aids can be found (from books on linguistics and methodology via dictionaries and audio books to books on business and medicine) and the other where fiction books (general fiction, SF, crime, romance, historical novels, etc) and non-fiction books reside (biographies, literary criticism, current affairs, history).The bookstore also has a section dedicated to Spanish literature and history as well as a section with newspapers and magazines imported from t
A Report from Budapest
2008-02-11 08:06:00
The long awaited report from Budapest
, Hungary is finally here. In the past few days we've been adding the recently visited bookstores in Budapest, but we figure all of them deserve another mention as a part of this report - sort of a way to circle Budapest as a bookstore rich city which deserves a special mention in our Guide.We should thus start chronologically, with Red Bus Bookstore which we've found a long time (ok, prehaps not AS long) before Bookstore Guide had been conceived. It all happened somewhere in June last year while we were wandering about Budapest. Unfortunately, the bookstore was closed at the time of our discovery (either it was Sunday or past 6pm, or perhaps both) but we made sure we came back a couple of months later and we were left breathless both by the prices and
Hugendubel Bookshop, Munich
2008-02-10 16:53:00
Where? Munich
, GermanyRecommended by: Emily RashEmily said: "English-language bookshop on Salvatorstrasse. This shop is the most comprehensive English book store in Munich. It has new releases and an interesting mix of both British and American books. There is also a branch of this shop in Frankfurt."Hugendubel is a chain bookstore operating all over Germany. However, this specific Hugendubel bookstore at Salvatorplatz in Munich is their only bookstores selling exclusively English books (there's another bookstore in Frankfurt with a considerable English section, but that one offers books in German as well). Its great advantage is the favorable location in the very center of the city, between the Marienplatz and Odeonsplatz. Hugendubel bookshop is definitely a great source of English litera
Robinson Crusoe, Istanbul
2008-02-10 04:35:00
Where? Istanbul, TurkeyRecommended by Jan BakerJan said: "Robinson
Crusoe stocks a good range of English language titles alongside its Turkish stock. It's a good place for fiction, philosophy, biography and art and design. It's also really easy to find: look for the stylish wood and glass facade, on the left as you are walking down the Istiklal from Taksim Square (a leisurely twenty-minute walk from Taksim Square, past Galatasaray High School), or on the right if you are walking up the Istiklal from Tunel and Asmalimescit."Robinson Crusoe has been selling English-language books for almost fiftteen years and has always had an up-to-date and relevant collection of fiction and non-fiction items. It has one of the best selections of Turkish writing and Turkish literature translated into Englis
Bestsellers, Budapest
2008-02-08 09:52:00
Where? Budapest
, HungaryVisited: February 2008This is the last bookstore we visited during our stay in Budapest. Bestsellers is an exclusively foreign language bookstore and it only stocks new books.The stock of Bestsellers amounts to more than 10 thousand titles. One part of the store is reserved for a wide offer of magazines and newspapers in English and partly in French. We also appreciated the selection of books in the humanities section, which contains titles on psychology, cultural studies, philosophy, politics, international relations, religion or sociology. There also is a history section, with a special focus on Hungarian history, but also on the Central European region in general and the Balkans. The bookstore stocks numerous books by Hungarian authors, which were translated into
D2K, Budapest
2008-02-07 14:38:00
Where? Budapest
, HungaryVisited: February 2008This is another bookstore we stumbled upon during our visit to Budapest. Unlike all the other bookstores in the city, the D2K bookstore has a very narrowly defined field of interest. It focuses uniquely on books related to design.First of all, the owners of this bookstore deserve praise for being brave enough and starting a project like this. Since no other people entered the bookstore during our visit, we assume that D2K probably serves the needs of a smaller number of specific customers. However, this is not due to a lack of interesting titles on the shelves, but probably also to the other negative factor in play - the location of the store.Their growing collection currently comprises of several hundred titles and each one of them is a visual
Pendragon Books, Budapest
2008-02-07 12:48:00
Where? Budapest
, HungaryVisited: February, 2008This bookstore specializes in English books only and the books themselves are very neatly organized by sections in two large rooms of the bookstore. It seemed to us that their focus were books on art and architecture but these are accompanied by a great number of fiction books (for example, there was a huge choice on particular writers such as Rushdie), children's books and travel guides. We tried finding more information on the bookstore itself but since it is probably a recently opened bookstore, their website is still under construction. The best way to find out more about the bookstore is to visit it by yourselves. We're sure you won't be disappointed, especially if you are looking for a particular book because, just judging by the number
Read more: Books
Bookstation, Budapest
2008-02-07 09:36:00
Where? Budapest
, HungaryVisited: February 2008This bookstore turned out to be a very positive surprise of our Budapest trip. Although it is mostly referred to as a primarily internet based bookstore, this is a huge understatement. Bookstation is a bookstore offering a mixture of carefully selected new books (mostly remainder) and loads of second hand books. It focuses uniquely on books in foreign languages, with the English section being the most prominent, but it also has a considerable German, French and Spanish section. Especially the French section deserves to be mentioned, since such a selection of second hand French books at such prices is very rare in non-francophone parts of Europe.All in all, the Bookstation is the home of more than 30 thousand titles. The prices of the second han
Petra's International Bookshop, Madrid
2008-02-01 10:59:00
Where? Madrid
, SpainRecommended by Miguel MarcosMiguel said: "Petra
's International
Book Shop sells used books in many languages including English, you can sell books for store credit"Petra's International Bookstore is a bookworm's jewel box loaded with books from floor to ceiling, packed with a brilliant selection of books in various languages from English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portugese, Russian, Dutch, Japanese and many more. From subjects ranging from gardening to ESL texts, from travel guides to bestsellers, one can certainly find something of interest here. In addition, Petra's Bookshop offers delicious coffee. How to get there? When you arrive at metro Opera, the street on the left-hand side of Burger king is Campomanes and Petra's is up the street on the left side.Abou
Nerja Book Centre, Nerja
2008-01-28 04:19:00
Where? Nerja, SpainRecommended by Jeanne from CaliforniaJeanne said: "There is a decent second hand English bookstore in Nerja in Andalucia, Spain. Actually, there are a lot of English book stores in Andalucia but most are very expensive like the ones in the malls, but the Brits do not mind the price ( just Americans do)"The Nerja Book Centre
sells second hand English language books, DVDs, videos (available to rent as well). In the bookshop you can also get free periodicals on Nerja happenings, events, etc so one may as well call them a tourist gathering point of Nerja, a comfortable place where people can get information on the town while browsing through the vast selection of books. To get to Nerja Book Center one has to go past church from Balcon de Europe and take first right - really
The Munich Readery, Munich
2008-01-24 15:31:00
Where? Munich
, GermanyRecommended by: Emily RashEmily said: "This is Germany's largest second hand English bookstore (despite that it's still quite small). The owner takes used books, however he is quite picky... you must schedule an appointment and the books are given for credit, not cash. The selection is ok... a lot of fiction and the prices are just ok. Since the books are used, there is quite a random assortment."This bookstore declares itself the "Largest English-Language Secondhand-Book Shop In Germany" and although some people call this statement into question (mostly arguing in favor of one of the booktores in Berlin), there is no denying that The Munich Readery is a fantastic source of books in English and a store that definitely deserves to be mentioned in our guide.Almost 40 th
BM Bookshop, Florence
2008-01-24 03:48:00
Where? Florence, ItalyRecommended by WT from CaliforniaWT said: "We love book stores and have been traveling Europe for 16 months with a 7 year-old voracious reader who never met a book store that she did not love. Here is a great one in Florence."BM Bookshop is probably the oldest English language bookshop in Florence, Italy. It was opened some fifty years ago by Libby, an American, and her husband Francesco, an Italian from Florence. The main boast of this bookshop is the enormous range of Italian cookery books, tourist guides and books on art, architecture, design and fashion in English. Recently they have added a French, German and a Spanish language section to their existing English one. If, after shopping, you find your purchases too heavy to carry home, it is possible to arrange the
BSG receives Amazing Blogger Award
2008-01-23 16:43:00
This is a very unusual post on this blog, but we have received a compliment, which we appreciate very much and which we would like to share with you, since any praise for Bookstore Guide is only possible because of our readers (and one should always respect the 'tag policy')... The author of one of our favorite blogs (Kimbooktu) Kim passed the imaginary torch of Amazing
Blogger
Award
to us and it's an honor for us to be the next in the line after her amazing blog. To keep da faia burnin', we would like to pass it on to the author of another blog we like very much, Kelly, for her great blog about traveling called Lost in Place.This award comes with the duty to "confess" seven weird or random facts about ourselves, so here goes:1. We simply adore traveling together.2. We met on a bridge in B
Artazart Design Bookstore, Paris
2008-01-18 08:55:00
Where? Paris
, FranceCourtesy of GridskipperGridskipper said: "This design lover's paradise of a bookshop in Paris is an irreverent splash of orange on the verdant Canal St-Martin..."If you're searching for visual inspiration, there aren't many better options than the Artazart Bookstore
. The word "hip" isn't often associated with bookstores, but Artazart is a rare exception. This bookstore proudly declares itself the number one design bookstore in Europe. It offers a great selection of books on any topic related to visual art in all its imaginable forms. You can find books on graphic design, illustrations, architecture, photography, colors, fashion, graffiti and urban art in general, and many obscure but fascinating art related topics you didn't even know existed. Most of the books they off
Posada Art Books, Brussels
2008-01-17 15:43:00
Where? Brussels
, BelgiumRecommended by Sean DodsonThe courtesy of the Guardian UnlimitedSean said: "Located in a dear old house near St Magdalen's church in Brussels, Posada
Books
is as famous for its pretty interior as it is for its collection of new and second-hand art books. Has a remarkable collection of exhibition catalogues, which goes back to the beginning of the last century, and holds occasional exhibitions too."Posada Books is said to be the best Belgian art bookstore - they have almost anything on any art subject. It is also famed for its stunning interior - every inch from the floor to the ceiling is stacked with books - an best of all, it is a second hand bookstore, although some new books can be found here as well. Of course, art is the focus of this business, and in that dom
Livraria Lello, Porto
2008-01-17 09:32:00
Where? Porto
, PortugalRecommended by Sean DodsonThe courtesy of the Guardian UnlimitedSean said: "Proving that purpose-built bookshops can be every bit as beautiful as converted buildings, the divine Livraria Lello in Porto has been selling books in the most salubrious of settings since 1881. Featuring a staircase to heaven and beautifully intricate wooden panels and columns (see for yourself with these gorgeous 360-degree views), stained glass ceilings and books - lots of lovely books."Livraria Lello is definitely a must-see in Porto. Located near Praça dos Leões, it is an old Bookshop, with an amazing interior - stained glass, carved wood, an amazing stairway, pressed copper, glass-enclosed bookshelves arched at the top, and Art Deco facade and interior on two levels. The bookstore is
Treehugger Dan's Bookstore and Cafe, Budapest
2008-01-16 16:54:00
Where? Budapest
, HungaryRecommended by: Tünde HusanyicaTünde said: "Last week I visited Budapest, and I found a very nice, little secondhand bookstore. It's Treehugger
Dan's Bookstore
and Cafe."The motto of this bookstore is: "The local bookstore with a global conscience." And yes indeed, this place seems to be a lot more than a regular bookstore. Treehugger Dan's Bookstore and Cafe reflects two passions of its founder and owner Daniel Swartz - environment and books. The combination of these two lead to the creation of this unique bookstore in Budapest. The bookstore offers a wide selection of well over 4000 second-hand English paperbacks. Besides fiction books, you can find non-fiction titles from many different fields such as environment, gender studies, politics, history, sociology, p
A Report from Poland
2008-01-10 15:18:00
During our recent visit to Poland
, we made several stops at several bookstores - some of them we already had a knowledge of, some of them were the new ones which are yet to be added to the Guide. We were unfortunate enough ('unfortunate' strictly from the Bookstore Guide point of view that is...) to be in Warsaw during the New Year Eve's holidays so none of the bookstores' doors were open to either us or anyone else. However, we peeked through the windows of one of the American Bookstore shops and a couple of days later, we actually visited one in a mall in Krakow - an were pleasantly surprised by the selection of books and their prices, having expected them to be higher (most of the books that we held in our hands were in the 'around the acceptable 10 euros' category). Perhaps one of our
The Bookàbar Bookshop, Rome
2008-01-09 15:21:00
Where? Rome, ItalyRecommended by Kelly AmabileKelly said: "Not sure if this one sells English language books, but it looks fantastic."Indeed it does look amazing! And plus, it contains publications in the English language - mostly on art but no wonder since it is an integral part of one of Rome's leading exhibition centers. The Bookàbar Bookshop is located in the Palazzo delle Esposizioni, the largest inter-disciplinary exhibition area in central Rome: over 10,000 square metres on three floors. The Palazzo also includes a cinema, an auditorium (a multi-media hall with seating for 90 people) and a Forum. Other services include a restaurant and Bookàbar - a bookshop and a café - located in an amazing space definitely worth a visit.About the bookstoreThe large Bookàbar bookshop, designed
Le Hall du Livre, Nancy
2008-01-09 13:33:00
Where? Nancy
, FranceRecommended by: Cécile BenedicCécile said: "In Nancy, we have one bookstore "Le Hall du livre" (rue Saint Dizier, on the opposite of the McDonald's, downtown) which has ranges of books in English, Spanish & other languages. "Le Hall du Livre is also known as “La librairie promenade” and it really offers a pleasant promenade to all its visitors. While strolling through its three floors, you can find many other interesting things besides books – CDs, DVDs, classy postcards, a selection of international newspapers and lots of other stuff you wouldn’t expect to find in a bookstore. Nonetheless, Le Hall du livre is a bookstore above all, and books are its primary focus. The bookstore mainly focuses on fiction books, but it also has sections dedicated to art, hi
Big Ben Bookshop, Prague
2008-03-29 05:20:00
Where? Prague
, The Czech RepublicVisited: March, 2008A cozy bookstore by the name of Big Ben
is a common meeting point for expats in Prague. Unlike its name suggests, it's neither big, nor Ben. No, seriously, it is a rather small place with a pleasant, almost family-like atmosphere. For people spoiled by second hand bookstores in other parts of Central Europe (yes, we mean Budapest), the prices may seem a bit high. However, for those accustomed to regular priced bookstores with new English stock, Big Ben may not appear expensive at all.The selection of books offered in Big Ben is actually very good, taking the limited available space into consideration. The books are arranged in several categories, we really appreciated the fiction and the children's section. Besides the usual paperbacks o
A Report from Prague
2008-04-05 05:25:00
Our trip to the capital of the Czech Republic Prague
took place during the last week of March, however, judging by the weather, it could have been December just as well. During those three days in Prague, we've seen more snow than through the whole winter. Sudden changes of weather conditions didn't prevent us from completing our task and we've divided our bookstore checklist into two days. (Yes, in order to use our time efficiently we actually prepare a list of the bookstores we wish to visit before we arrive to our destination... There's still some space for spontaneous discoveries tho...) We already had three bookstores in our Guide listed under Prague, so we decided to check those out first.Our first stop was at the bookstore bearing the famous name of William Shakespeare - Shakespeare
Librairie Filigranes, Brussels
2008-04-19 06:06:00
Where? Brussels
, BelgiumRecommended by: Christel VandenboschChristel said:"If there's one bookstore I should have to pick in Brussels, it's 'Filigranes'. It's open 365 days a year, you'll find books, magazines, music, a cup of tea or coffee, wine and book lovers all at the same spot. Of course, it's not as 'special' as Selexyz but you'll find 'a place to be' in multicultural Brussels."The first thing you should know about Filigranes is that the subtitle of their logo 365->365 actually has a meaning (probably not that hard to guess). Yes, this bookstore (considered by many to be the best bookstore in Brussels) is never closed.Filigranes is a primarily French language bookstore, but it also has a smaller English language section. Upon entering, turn to the right and take the stairs down. And
Blackbird Books, Mitrovicë
2008-04-22 03:37:00
Where? Mitrovicë/a, KosovoRecommended by Anthony BarillaAnthony said: "The bookstore is located in Mitrovicë/a Kosovo, and it operates a free public reading room, a cafe and a bookstore, and it occasionally holds gallery shows as well."Blackbird Books
operates mainly as a cafe and a reading room where many students and other people living in Mitrovicë/a come to relax and read with a cup of coffee in a nice and quiet atmosphere. Blackbird Book's mission is to provide literature to the people of Mitrovicë/a in, as they say, "an environment designed to foster dialog and combat the emigration of artistically-inclined young adults from their community". Their motto is 'Diverse and adventurous literature for a diverse citizenry'. The idea for the bookstore came from its owner, Tony Barilla
Atlantis Books, Oia
2008-05-10 05:07:00
Where? Oia, Santorini, GreeceRecommended by: IngelaIngela said:"Atlantis
books - a GREAT bookshop. As their web site is explaining, it was opened in 2004 by 4 English guys and Maria from Cyprus. The shop has a very cozy, homey atmosphere: they live there, they cook there and sometimes one can even get a meal there. They have a big material hanging on the roof having all the names of people who have worked there during the years. They have a great selection of books and editions that one can't find anywhere in Greece (not that I know of anyway). All of us living here are very happy to have a such a bookstore close by."Atlantis Books
resides in the basement of one of the white houses that create the typical scenery of the beautiful island of Santorini. Although Santorini is one of top Greek
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