Sure, it's just a chain store like any other. But this has become my home base for books…read more See, I'm re-reading one of my favourite book series. Dymocks happened to have the series in a nice little hardcover set so I thought i'd go about collecting them as I read through the books. I had gone to random Dymocks to find the next in the series, but this store already seemed to have more stock than the others, and it seems to have expanded to include even more of them (there's 30something in the series) as I've shopped here. Do they have an automated system to stock a series that's selling? Did they take note of me coming in a lot to buy it? Is the manager a fan? I don't know the answer, but I do know that the staff are always super friendly and helpful, and it's a pleasure to shop here.

Here for the Tim Cahill signing. They have opened early so people can buy their books in advanceread more

I'm sick of all the endless debates over the death of the bookshop. While technology has certainly…read morechanged the way readers interact with books, the need to tell and listen to stories will never die. Though its demographic may change, there will always be a place for a physical bookshop. I like to think that QBD, which has been in Garden City for about twenty years, is an excellent example of this. It has survived the rise and fall of Bookworld, Borders and Angus and Robertson, and has consistently maintained a loyal customer following. It's true they don't have the largest range of books at your fingertips but they will at least stock the bestsellers and the top twenty fiction novels. Plus, they're extremely helpful when it comes to getting books in. They can usually do it within three days and at a reasonable price. Of course, their prices are a little higher than Amazons or The Book Depository but I think there are enough book lovers out there who appreciate the benefits of a physical bookshop to keep this shop going. Parents of young children take note. They also have an excellent range of kids' hard cover books. For under $10, I can usually pick up a pop-up book with magnets, puzzles, stickers, audio and colour in pages.

The thing that really grabbed me about this place is that they actually have a section where there…read moreare market stalls. Look, honestly, shopping centres really don't come anywhere close to the charm of the main street, but they do have a purpose. Like many of the Westfields, you pretty much know what you are going to get here, though the issue that I had was that sometimes getting out in certain directions (such as a direction that doesn't involve the bus stop) requires you to maneuver your way through a car park, so yes, this place really isn't all that pedestrian friendly.

Garden City's not my local, but every now and then we drive there for a change of scenery. It's big…read moreand busy and has a different feel to some of the other Westfield's in Brisbane. Take the piazza area, for example; Dicey Riley's in the afternoons and evenings is always buzzing with loud and happy people taking in the afternoon sun in the beer garden; Toscani's al fresco dining is doing a roaring trade and the cinema is attracting a crowd. Inside, there are some places we don't see in the other centres, small one-off clothing boutiques and jewellery stores, and big box retailers like Toys R Us, so yep, Garden City's worth a visit every now and then just to keep up and make sure we're not missing out on anything.