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United
Kingdom...
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The
best U. K. bookstore I have visited is Barter
Books in Alnwick,
Northumberland, England. This
is one of the largest secondhand bookstores in
Britain. It is located in an old Victorian railway
station and boasts open fires in the winter and
a waiting room, with coffee and cookies, where
you can sit and read. There is a model railway
in the central room and a children's room equipped
with toys. It also has a mini cybercafe. Website:
http://www.barterbooks.co.uk
P.S. I took my daughter to Alnwick to visit the
castle - some of the scenes from Harry Potter
were filmed there. We spent a rainy afternoon
in Barter Books.
Diane, Toronto, Canada
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Nottinghill
Gate is one of London’s
funkiest, multi-cultural and sought after areas.
Pop stars, actors and designers live there and the
shopping is fantastic. If you’re lucky, you
might find a spare table at Books
for Cooks (4 Blenheim Crescent W11)
which, as well as being an incredibly well stocked
book shop, is also an eclectic and delicious restaurant
(only 5 tables and lunchtimes only). This is how
the owners describe their shop, 'Crammed with thousands
of tasty titles and equipped with a squashy sofa
for cookbook junkies in need of a long read. In
this shop we really do cook the books – cookbooks
are put to the test in our café at the back
of the shop, while cookery classes take place in
the demonstration kitchen upstairs.'
Leslie,
London, England
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In
London
I'd recommend John
Sandoe Books on Blacklands Terrace.
The shop is just a few steps north off the Kings
Road and a short walk west from the Peter Jones
store on Sloane Square. It's in a tiny building
but simply packed with books -- there are even piles
of them on the stairs leading between floors. Staff
are friendly and very well informed. Well worth
a visit.
Gloria, Toronto, Canada
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On
a recent trip to London
I took the tube to Hampstead Village (Hampstead
Station) which is always a treat to poke around
in. This time, not far from the tube station I found
the Keith Fawkes Bookshop
(on Flask Walk) selling used and antique books.
This narrow space is filled floor to ceiling with
a jumble of books that can keep you browsing for
hours. I found Keith, the owner a delight to chat
with. This shop is not far from Hampstead Heath,
a wonderful green space where you can find a quiet
spot and read the new (old) book that you just purchased.
Evelyn, Toronto, Canada
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My
favorite in London
is Foyles
on Charing Cross Road (113 - 119) in London - it
is five levels high and houses what seems like millions
of books. Charing Cross Road in London has several
used bookstores along it as well. Enjoy!
Shelly,
Halifax, Canada
EDITOR'S
NOTE: Silver
Moon Books that bills iself as 'Europe's
largest women's interest bookshop' is now housed
at Foyles, as well. Website: http://www.foyles.co.uk/foyles/sm/default.asp
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There
is a wonderful New Age/spiritually inclined bookshop
in London
called Watkins.
 It
has just about any self help/spiritual awareness
title imaginable. I always visit when I am in London
to find something new and inspiring. Don’t
have the exact address but it is in Cecil Court,
a stone’s throw from Trafalgar Square. If
you walk up Charing Cross Road past St Martin in
the Fields, Cecil court is a small side street on
the left full of all kinds of antiquarian bookshops
as well as Watkins. P.S. Love getting Journeywoman.
Annie, Reggio Calabria, Southern Italy
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I'd
like to tell you about Daunt
Books in Marylebone,
London, W1. This is absolute book
heaven! According to their website, 'The soul
of Daunt Books is the unique arrangement of books
by country - where guides, novels and non-fiction
of all kinds will interest traveller and browser
alike. Natural light further fills the children's
room full of books for all ages. Here you will
also find large sections devoted to gardening,
cookery, style and interior design. The galleries
hold second-hand travel literature, whilst the
front rooms are home to new titles of every category.
Here, and throughout the shop, displays suggest
the very best books we have read and loved'. Website:
http://www.dauntbooks.co.uk
Rebecca, London, England
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Hodges Figgis
on Dawson Street in Dublin,
Ireland stands four levels high. It carries all
of the standard titles, but also a large selection
of book titles I've never been able to find at home
in Canada.
Shelly, Halifax, Canada
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There
is an enormous second hand book shop in Inverness,
Scotland. The name eludes me but one would only
have to ask anyoneone in town or the tourist info
in Inverness. It is in the main part of the city
and absolutely jam packed from floor to cieling
with rare and second hand books. Worth just a visit
even if you're not intending to buy.
Helen,
Australia
EDITOR'S
NOTE: The shop is called, Leakey's
Second-hand Bookshop. It has Scotland's
largest collection of old, rare and second-hand
books and maps. Address: Greyfriars Hall, Church
Street, Inverness.
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Book
lovers should make a pilgrimage to Hay-on-Wye
in Wales
at least once in their life. A 19th century coal
mining town, it is just a 3 hour train ride from
London. Plan at least two full days browsing through
their 40 bookstores. The busiest/most crowded
times are during the Hay Literary Festival in
late May and the Music Festival in July. Most
other times you will have this town of books to
yourself. I am still wondering how I got the 50
books I purchased back to London on the train!
The town’s website is: http://www.hay-on-wye.co.uk.
Esther, Arlington Heights, USA
WANT TO KNOW MORE
ABOUT FEMALE-CENTERED TRAVEL IN LONDON?
Check
this link.
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Books
that crossed our desk...
Whether
you are at home or abroad and browsing through the many
bookshops that have been recommended, these are a few
choice titles women with wanderlust might be interested
in. Simply click on any of the book covers to find out
more, make a list of the ones that interest you and
keep those titles in your wallet for the next time you're
combing the shelves. Happy reading, everybody.
| Travelin'
Lady -- How to Travel Alone Without Being Lonely
Author: Barbara
Goldstein |
The Girl's Guide to
Travelling Solo
Author: Deanna G.
Wolff
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| stuff |
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| The Violet
Shyness of Their Eyes -- Notes from Nepal
Author: Barbara
J. Scot |
Outside of Ordinary
--Women's Travel Stories
Edited by Lynn Cecil
and Catherine Bancroft |
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| stuff |
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| Italy,
A Love Story -- Women Write About the Italian
Experience
Edited by Camille
Cusumano |
The Virago Book of
Women Travellers
Edited by Mary Morris
and Larry O'Conner |
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| stuff |
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| The Thong
Also Rises -- further misadventures from women
on the road
Edited by Jennifer
L. Leo |
Making it In the City
-- A Girl's Guide to Starting Life on Your Own
in a Ridiculously Expensive City You Can't Afford
Author: Adina Kalish
Neufeld |
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Look for other bookshops:
Page 1: Australia, Bali, Bulgaria,
Canada, China
Page 2: Ecuador, France, Germany,
Greece, Hawaii, Holland
Page 3: India, Israel, Italy,
Japan
Page 4: Laos, Mexico, Nepal, New
Zealand, Nicaragua, Singapore, Spain, Taiwan, Thailand
Page 5: United States
Page 6: United Kingdom
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