I have spent too long now in thrall of the mighty conglomerate that is Borders Books and Music. I…read moreadmit, when I first discovered it in California about 10 years ago, I thought that we would be so lucky if we ever get a book store of this size in England. Now that they are popping up everywhere I find myself increasingly drawn back to the smaller, individual book sellers. Visiting Richmond recently, where I spent my university years, I popped into the Open Book, and was pleased to say that it was quite busy, and still a great place to while away an afternoon. Although the outside of the shop gives you the impression that it is a small book store, it is deceptively big. It rambles back deep into a larger room. There were many books on offer; an indication that all booksellers are all to aware of the cut price competition they face from Borders, and Amazon. Open Book is a long standing resident of Richmond, and has a section devoted to Richmond life, and history. There are also postcards for sale by the front of the shop which are to do with the area, including Richmond Park, and the River Thames. Do stop by when you are next on a search for a good read, you will be glad that you did.

This is long, narrow train carriage of a bookshop on a good little street in Richmond. They pack…read morebooks in like Victoria Beckham packs and David Beckham packs. It's crowded at Open Book, not just on the shelves but on the floor and in piles everywhere. It actually brings quite a bit of charm to the place though, it feels fertile and a land of literature plenty. The selection is really impressive and they do the more mainstream thing of grouping books around few topics. Slightly formulaic perhaps but it's good for present buying and the like. I've always found everyone in here to be quite helpful and the tables with suggestions always feature something that takes my interest. One of the best to go to if you're in the area.

A great place to eavesdrop on intellectual conversations between the shopkeeper and the oldies…read morewho've been coming here for years. Minus one star 'cause it's so dusty you can barely breathe. Guess that's what happens when you're all historical and whatnot.

This quaint second hand book shop has an admirable range of books (19, 000!) from first editions,…read morerare finds to the academic sort. Conveniently located only a short walk from Soho as well as Leicester Square tube, Any Amount of Books is a safe haven to escape to from the busy streets of central London. They sell books as cheap as a pound to thousands. The choice is immense. If you go to their website you can see the books they sell and see if anything catches your fancy.

Well I've been by this place quite a few times when I used to visit my girlfriend when she was…read moreliving in East Putney so I'll get off at Putney Bridge and always noticed this place that was absolutely chock full of books. I suppose it is a bookshop but this place takes the biscuit. There is an insane amount of books here and their warehouse apparently has over 1 million books. You can go and view but with prior arrangement with the owners. However, that said this place is amazing next to us to the Osterley bookshop, which I've also written a review about. It's one of the best book shops in London, no doubt at all, the prices are incredibly reasonable. The selection is insane, finding the book you want. May be a bit difficult because it is absolutely rammed. I think only three or four people at a time to get in there and brows, but the guys who run it are really nice chaps. Imalso have the unusual habit of leaving Brookshill overnight and letting people put money through the letterbox when they pay for them all in the hotel out of 10 or should I say five outside if you're looking for something a bit rare trying here I'm sure you'll find it but it might take some time

It's just by Putney Bridge tube this one and it's got a really lovely old fashioned exterior. This…read morewindow display is the rows of books cramped together on the inside and it's pretty obvious this is one of those buying and selling second hand book shops that require patience and a little bit of time dedicate to the search. I love these kind of places anyway and I especially like them as an antidote to Waterstones, WH Smith and all those. The stories have stories somewhere like this and they've got the coffee and tear stains to show for it. And for all that compromise there is a significantly reduced price, especially if you have a look on the shelves outside you can get some really good bargains. Especially, worthwhile considering how many books you just read once and never really look at again.

Just a pity they withdrew from Epsom, did a stint of Temp work for their predecessors Dillon ,for a…read moreshort while ,but went on to another , situation before Waterstones took over.

yes it really is as good as it gets visiting the sutton ((greater london in surrey) branch of…read morewaterstones. call me an old bookworm, but why be anywhere else when you can be here !! this sutton branch is pretty huge and takes up two storeys, both of them expansive (note that is an "a" in the middle - it is not expensive!). there is a lift for those whose bodies are less robust than their brains. the staff here are incredibly polite and helpful and patient. there is cafe w on the upper level so that you start reading over a coffee and snack before you head home. don't even get me started on how much better it is buying here rather than online. there are some experiences you cannot put a price on and a visit here is one of them.

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!

Lovely little bookshop with an amazing,y well curated collection. We didn't plan to buy anything…read morebut browsed our way into a bag full, having found interesting titles we'd not seen elsewhere. While there, stop next door to Daquise for a fantastic lunch.

This bookstore was a fantastic find! It's located right next to the South Kensington tube station,…read moreand while it isn't too big, it boasts an impressive selection of books in various categories. Psychology, science, philosophy, politics, history, art, etc, and, of course, fiction. The books are all new, and extremely well-priced. I walked out of the store with 5 brand new books for only £22! If you are in the area and a book lover, this shop is a must-visit. The prices and selection are dangerous! I had to be careful not to buy out the whole store.

Good bookshops are dangerous places, and Daunt Books is one of the most dangerous of all. You can…read morelose yourself for hours, browsing through the recommendations temptingly laid out on tables. And while you're queuing to pay, there are more temptations on your way to the till - for book junkies this is worse than the sweet counters in supermarkets! Daunt Books is a small chain of independent booksellers with an emphasis on travel and literature. I like the way they curate their shops and always succeed to find a gift here - but not without buying one or two books to keep myself.

A trip to Holland Park is in order when I feel like I want to treat myself to a view of upscale…read morehomes, eat fancy deli foods, and, a recent discovery, peruse the Daunt bookshop outpost tucked into the main drag there. Compared to the Marylebone locale--the only other Daunt that I've visited--this shop is smaller, quainter, and, on my trip, super quiet. Ahh. I found an interesting-looking book, 'Mendelssohn Is on the Roof', quickly bought it and went on my merry way. http://www.nytimes.com/1991/05/05/books/trying-to-murder-a-statue.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm

**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/

Beautiful and charming old bookstore! Three floors with lots of books! Friendly staff! Love…read morevisiting this bookstore!

Cute bookstore. We were walking around in the neighborhood and came across this bookstore. The kids…read moreloved looking at the the children's books. They also had a great selection of fiction and nonfiction books. I would definitely come back here if I'm ever visiting Marylebone again!

Stephen's replies to my grumpy review are pretty fair, I guess…read more Power to him for replying!

If any of you know that show 'Black Books', then this shop will be reminiscent of the one in the…read moreshow. It is a lovely shop which reminds you of a simpler time. They have lots of books, antiquarian and rare books, fine bindings, children's illustrated and first editions, prints, postcards and ephemera. It feels crammed but I don't mind this when it comes to books because it adds character and uniqueness to the shop. You can also take any old books and exchange them, or even sell them. It's like adding to a library were the smells of moist paper and wood are enticing and overwhelmingly delicious. (No, is not food but it really is special) It also helps that this shop is one of the oldest in the high road, dates back to 1800s. Being what the books are can make them expensive, for instance a 1930s alphabet and image book in french can cost £48, but you can find cheaper books like Joan Miro's Sculptures for £17. Even if you don't want to buy anything the sense of history and longevity is palpable.