I really do love exploring and browsing book stores, even though I pretty much have everything I…read morewant (though I do end up finding stuff that I want). Anyway, yeah, this was a pretty cool bookshop, and there were a lot of interesting books here. Honestly, I could spend hours here.

Not that I consider myself a bookshop connoisseur as such, but I always love to check out…read moresecond-hand bookshops when I travel. This is in my top 3 bookshops I've ever visited (the other two, in case you were wondering: Shakespeare & Sons, Prague, and The Last Bookstore, Los Angeles). This place had thousands of books, with that old book smell that I love. The store seems to go on forever, and there are so many nooks and crannies filled with more books! I particularly loved the old books section; we got some classics (Jane Austen, DH Lawrence, Charles Dickens and Victor Hugo) that were editions published in the early 1900s for £3-£5. My husband raided the sci-fi section while I raided the general fiction and we came up with another 9 books between us, all between 99p and £3, and all good quality. We were only able to spend 1 hour in there. It wasn't enough. I felt rushed. I needed more time! Living in London, Rochester is only 45 minutes away. I'll be back. The guy who I believe is the owner, was friendly and sweet. This is such a great find. FYI a lot of Rochester high street is filled with little independent stores, it's a really lovely place to visit!

hooked on books is a great shop offering second hand books. They only sell books that are in very…read moregood condition so although they are cheaper than buying new the prices can be half the original cost. The shop is well laid out with ample space for wheel chair access. They sell both paper back and hard back books. They will also offer to buy your used books off you but you need to check with them before taking them in as they do some times have too many books and will not purchase anymore at that time. The owner is usually manning the shop himself and is friendly and helpful. The shop always has large selection of well known authors books on their shelves

Black Gull is an alternative book store in the old fashioned sense…read more Books are piled up on top of each other and prices are written in pencil on the inside cover. There are mostly used books in this shop. I think the prices are pretty good. I found one of one Erica Jong's books( old favourite is Fear of Flying , high end smut :) called Fear of Fifty for 3 pounds. Also of interest, was a book of transvestite fetish photos. Cool. This is a good place to browse books, if you are unsure what you are after. I think this is the best way to find something new to read. The only thing is there is no seating. Still, you'll have fun browsing in this store.

A super place to browse and find the odd treasure. I bought great Christmas presents here,…read moreincluding a gorgeously illustrated 1972 book on Bakst, and a vintage Giles cartoon annual. Also a couple of immaculate Nadine Gordimers for my husband. There's a delightful children's section, and comfortable seating.

How can a visit to Canterbury be complete without a visit to a bookshop called Chaucer's? I spotted…read morethis bookshop while trying to find a parking place and went back after lunch. I didn't buy anything but had a good browse around and took the shop's permission to take photos of their premises and books. So the bookshop space has been converted from two houses and its massively more spacious than it looks like from outside. The books are also spread out over two floors and at least 8 rooms and the shop seems to have a good variety of something for everybody. Everything is very neatly labelled and their collection of older children's books is amazing - I coveted, oh how I covered some of the stuff I saw on the shelves! I also came close to buying these gorgeous cards that converted into bird mobiles (see pics) but in the end decided I have so much stuff already, didn't want to add to the clutter already existing in my house. So if you are a bibliophile like me and visiting Canterbury and have some time to spare, would totally recommend checking this bookstore out - it's awesome!

This book shop really fits into the Canterbury culture. It's a little off the beaten track but it…read moresells old and antique books. It's window display is interesting and they try and update it with the seasons. A book lovers dream. Staff are helpful and knowledgeable. A good place to go for advice.

What a gem! This place will have the rare secondhand book that is elusive elsewhere. The shop has…read moretwo floors with helpfull staff. It even smells like a big friendly bookshop. Its a cosy little venue to mill about for hours. Its not as cheap as some places but it gives value by having That book!

If you like books you will love this bookshop - although you may find yourself spending more time…read morein there than you'd bargain for. As soon as you step in through the door it's just books upon books upon books. The outside world disappears and time goes with it. If you know what book you want then the helpful and friendly staff should be able to find it for you and you may escape while there is still daylight, but if not you can happily trawl through more books than you could read in a lifetime to find that perfect match and after paying what others may think is too much, you exit the shop clutching your book in two hands and squint at everything around you as your eyes reaccustom themselves to the daylight.

This book shop is like the Tardis it doesn't look that big from the outside but once you're in…read moreyou're almost in a different world one that is crammed with any book you could want. Everything is laid out in a logical order by genre and the staff are very knowledgeable and happy to help you find what you're looking for. They can even tell you release dates and preorder books for you. The kids section is great, they are happy for kids to have a look at a book before you buy it and I've never had any trouble returning unwanted presents. Prices aren't cheap, but you can't compare specialist book shops to supermarkets really.

This bookstore has a good selection of fiction and non fiction books. It offers a wide range of…read morebooks for adults and children. I have found it to stock whatever I've been after. There are sometimes good promotions on. This store is bright, clean and tidy, with knowledgable, helpful staff. Sometimes they have an author in for a book signing. Details of these events are advertised at the entrance to the store.

**Newly opened and currently open til 6pm but they are looking to expand their hours shortly. If…read moreyou're unsure about opening hours and you want to visit, I recommend firing off a tweet to @SECONDHOMELDN ** Popped in to Libreria last night for a quick reconnaissance mission. New independent bookshops aren't exactly ten a penny. It also happened to be World Book Day, I have just realised. It was meant to be. I love how it looks from the outside. Like a portal to another world. You go down Hanbury Street, think you must've missed it and then...suddenly it's there. Stylish black shopfront with a nice inviting glow. This was only a very quick visit but I like how they do things in Libreria. First, I have to note that there was a Riga RP-1 record player with Velvet Underground & Nico on the turntable so...good start. No espresso bar here. No mobiles allowed. Comfy seating and little nooks to sit down and check out a book. Tick tick tick. Sally, Libreria's director, introduced herself to me and explained how things were laid out. Very friendly and helpful. Books are largely organised alphabetically, fiction on the left and nonfic on the right. However, within that, books are clustered into themes or ideas, in order to promote interesting combinations of books nestling next to each other. Great idea. Pure A-Z is so 2015. Also, they have asked celebs to do a mini-curation of their favourite books. Shami Chakrabarti's faves are currently on display. I think the idea is to change everything round every quarter. Events are also gonna happen here. I dutifully added my email to the mailing list on the front desk. Waterstones can do one.

A quaint independent bookstore in the eastern part of London…read more https://prashantmudgal.wordpress.com/2019/08/07/the-cost-of-living/