Category: Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels

Five Leaves Bookshop, Nottingham – An accessible Bookshop in the centre of the city!

January 22, 2023

Five Leaves Bookshop – An accessible, radical and independent bookshop in central Nottingham

It’s been some time since I did a Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels post – major health problems in the family sadly. This bookshop was a happy discovery or rediscovery on a cold January day. It is very central in a side street, and very near a tram stop – Old Market Square (a system which is also accessible to wheelchair users in this city). Its roots are in publishing, but this bookshop is also the centre of many events in the area.

As you can see from the pictures it is accessible for wheelchair users as ably demonstrated by myself and daughter. While not huge inside it has a big stock of books, especially poetry, radical and independently published. It also sells books which you may be lucky enough to discover that are of more general appeal. It is well designed so that I could get around easily and see the magazines and other items available. Referring to access on the website it states

Access:

The approach and doorway to our shop is level access. Wheelchairs and motorised wheelchairs can reach most parts of the shop. Staff are always happy to pull down items from high shelves. Our toilet is also accessible (note – because of COVID we do not currently allow customer access, but there are Council public toilets in the next alleyway.) Mail order is postfree to those who are housebound or shielding.

We received a friendly and helpful welcome, and I thoroughly recommend a visit.

Website: https://fiveleavesbookshop.co.uk/

Opening Hours: 10am to 5.30pm  Mon-Sat, 12noon-4pm Sundays

Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels -Book Corner, Saltburn

April 20, 2022

Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels – Book Corner, Saltburn

I found another accessible bookshop to investigate with Morgan, my trusty powerchair. Book Corner is a small bookshop in the coastal town of Saltburn in the north east, but packs a mighty punch! It points out on its website https://bookcornershop.co.uk/about-us/ that it specialises in contemporary fiction for adults and children, and I can certainly agree that it had an impressive range of very new releases, as well as some older books at reduced prices. There was a tiny step which I could easily negotiate on Morgan, and I received a very friendly welcome as I happily admired the array of books. I loaded up a couple of bags with my discoveries! It is a lovely little town to visit and the bookshop was a real find!

24 Milton Street,

Saltburn-by-the-Sea,

TS12 1DG

Call us on 01287 348010. Or if you prefer, you can email us directly at jenna@bookcornershop.co.uk 

Winter Opening Times

Tuesday: 10am – 4pm

Wednesday: CLOSED

Thursday: 10am – 4pm

Friday: 10am – 4pm

Saturday: 10am – 4pm

Sunday and Monday: CLOSED

Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels – Chorlton Bookshop Manchester -Small but perfectly formed and accessible

March 30, 2022
All part of the Tardis effect!

Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels – Chorlton Bookshop

I am always on the lookout for bookshops – especially independent ones- that are accessible for my trusty powerchair Morgan. So I was delighted to discover Chorlton bookshop in a lovely highstreet just outside central Manchester. On their website  https://chorltonbookshop.co.uk/   they call the shop “small, but perfectly formed” and it certainly is in every way. It has books around the walls, as well as quite a complex construction in the middle which offers discounted books among other goodies. A quick inspection of the website shows how they also sell book related items, cards and even high quality toys. I was also pleased to see an emphasis on local books, guides, history and novels. It was a treat to visit this lovely local shop with its no fuss access and tremendous range of books.

CHORLTON BOOKSHOP
506 Wilbraham Road
Manchester M21 9AW

 

Monday to Saturday, 9:30 – 5:30
0161 881 6374
info@chorltonbookshop.co.uk

Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels – the Bearded Badger Bookshop in Belper is no more!

March 24, 2022
The 1924 Building, Campbell Street , Belper DE56 1AP
The Wool Shop of dreams?

Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels – Bearded Badger Bookshop, Belper, Derbyshire

My latest Bookshop visit was to a shop that closed the following day – I didn’t cause it, but I am a bit sad that it took me until the penultimate day to find it. In my defence I was a bit diverted by positive LFT tests and life in general. Although the bookshop may have gone, Paul the owner assures me there will be pop up and other ventures to look forward to in the future. Also, as he is www.beardedbadgerpublishing.com I am hopeful that he will continue to publish books, such as one I picked up while I was there “Step Forward, Harry Salt” by Ross Lowe, which I am greatly looking forward to reading soon. (More details and available on the website)

So why feature a bookshop that is no longer operating? Well, as you can see it was in a little shopping arcade in Belper, Derbyshire (The 1924 Building), which features an very friendly hairdresser (S24) and a wool/ craft shop (MaD Handmade Designs –www.MadHM.UK ) among other units which are still operating – all small businesses which deserve support.

Secondly, although it was a tiny bookshop Paul was able to offer access for Morgan, my trusty powerchair, offered advice and ordering, as well as Independently Published and local books. It was obviously a friendly place which people enjoyed visiting and all of these attributes make for a good shop. So, please, if you achieve the dream of setting up a bookshop, please think about access as well as all the multitudes of other things. As I said in my recent talk celebrating accessible bookshops – the best ones are at the heart of the community because they welcome everyone!

So good luck Paul – it was lovely meeting you! 

Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels – Fox Books, Leicester

March 8, 2022

Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels – Fox Books, Leicester

It’s been a while since I posted a Bookshop Tour Post, but in the meantime I have given a talk on my adventures, at which one person commented that she thought it would be a list of complaints, and she was pleased to hear about such lovely shops! I have certainly found that if I can get into the shop with Morgan, my trusty powerchair, the people are very friendly!!

Today’s shop is a small one in a newer shopping area in Leicester. It is a lovely accessible bookshop with plenty of space inside as well as a flat entrance with a wide door. The friendly owner was willing to help and chat, telling us how he has opened the shop fairly recently and was so pleased to have held the first event recently. He was more than happy to use his magic device for contactless payment so I was not left to struggle with accessing the till. Altogether a great place to buy books for myself and as gifts. Leicester certainly seemed a busy place and this shop deserves to do well. 

The website is https://www.foxbooksltd.com/ where you can find more details and order books, leave messages etc. 

9 Silver Walk

St Martin’s Square

LEICESTER, LE1 5EW, GB

Get directions

Monday Closed

Tuesday 10 – 6

Wednesday 10 – 6

Thursday 10 – 6

Friday 10 – 6

Saturday 10 – 6

Sunday 12 – 4

Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels – Nantwich Bookshop

February 7, 2022
I told you it was busy!

Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels – Nantwich Bookshop

Many independent bookshops claim – with justification – to be the centre of their community, and my Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels visit to Nantwich Bookshop on a Saturday morning proved that this bookshop was certainly busy! As we approached the awning covered area outside the shop which is filled with tables for coffee and cakes, we were asked politely if we were looking for a table. Northernvicar may have been swayed, but he knew I was keen to discover the books first! A flat entrance and wide door beckoned, with many places to sit and enjoy the refreshments on offer. I had a good look at the shelves, including a display of new fiction hardbacks (pictured) and older fiction books at the back of the shop. There were also some tempting non fiction and local titles on offer. The staff were very friendly, and gave me a bookmark celebrating the efforts of customers over the last couple of years. It also pointed out that it offered such appealing things as Author events and Overnight Book Ordering. 

Altogether this is a friendly shop which I enjoyed visiting with Morgan, my trusty powerchair!

Their website is https://nantwichbookshop.co.uk/ 

CONTACT US

46 High St, Nantwich CW5 5AS, UK

01270 611665

steve@nantwichbookshop.com

info@nantwichbookshop.co.uk

OPENING

Mon – Sat: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm

Last Food Orders: 4:00pm

Last Drinks Orders: 4:30 pm

Sun & Bank Holidays: 10:00 am – 4:00 pm

Last Food Orders: 3:00 pm

Last Drinks Orders: 4:00 pm

CLOSED CHRISTMAS, BOXING DAY & NEW YEARS DAY

Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels – Drake, The Bookshop, Stockton

January 30, 2022

Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels – Drake, The Bookshop, Stockton

I discover bookshops that may be accessible by various means – including twitter, then try to message them to confirm that I can indeed get in with Morgan, my trusty powerchair. That is how I found out about Drake – The Bookshop, in Stockton. The town itself was pretty deserted when we arrived on a Monday afternoon in January, but the shop itself had a steady stream of customers while we were there. As you can see from the photographs, there is a wide enough door and completely flat access. The layout inside is spacious, with room to get right around the displays, which is so important for independent book browsing! It also features a lovely children’s room which is also on the flat, with a lovely display of picture books. The selection of books is excellent, with new hardback fiction titles available. Altogether a welcoming shop with lots to recommend it.

The website for enquiries and more information is https://www.drakethebookshop.co.uk/ 

27 Silver Street, Stockton on Tees, TS18 1SX

Opening times: Monday to Saturday 9:30am to 5:00pm. Closed on Sundays

Telephone: 01642 909970 Email: books@drakethebookshop.co.uk

Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels – Harlow Carr Garden Centre Bookshop

January 16, 2022
Enter via the gardening section…

To find a bookshop!
Studying some of the stock! ( I was wearing a mask!)

There is also a garden…

Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels – Harlow Carr Garden Centre, Harrogate

PHONE

01423 565418

ADDRESS

Crag Lane Harrogate North Yorkshire HG3 1QB

 

 

EMAILSEND EMAIL

WEBSITEVISIT SITE

OPENING HOURS

Open Daily: 09:30 – 18:00

For those of us who would list “visiting bookshops” as one of our hobbies, the last few years have been difficult. Even when restrictions have eased, and we may have felt confident to venture out, not all of us have been able to get into bookshops owing to mobility problems and challenging access. In this series I celebrate the shops that I can actually enter and get round on Morgan, my trusty powerchair. 

Today I am featuring a shop within a shop – a garden centre at RHS Harlow Carr. We actually first discovered it in 2020, when meeting in the gardens for a legal, socially distanced picnic with our adult offspring who we had not seen for months. Venturing into the garden centre I expected the usual – piles of gardening books, maybe a few puzzle books, the usual thing. I entered via the Gardening section, only to discover that the area was in fact a small but well stocked bookshop, with new fiction and non fiction, an older collection of fiction with many interesting titles, biography, history and even specific crime fiction. After months of ordering books on the phone and online it was lovely to actually be able to handle and choose books in real life! As you can see from the photos, the books are well organised in a relatively spacious designated area so my more recent trip was very enjoyable. There are now several entrances to the building, all on the flat,  – there is a slope at one side of the bookshop which is said not to be wheelchair friendly – I could manage it but it is mentioned in the accessibility statement.I am not sure who is in charge of book buying, but there is an excellent selection available whenever I visit.  Thank you Harlow Carr!

Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels – Heffers, Cambridge

December 14, 2021
Shown without the bags of books I bought!

Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels – Heffers, Cambridge

One of my favourite book shops since I was eighteen is Heffers Bookshop in Cambridge. Now it is actually part of the Blackwells group, but I think it retains much of the flavour of an independent shop. It is accessible for Morgan, my trusty powerchair, thanks to a wide automatic doorway and a smaller one down a side entrance. Inside the shop itself there are several levels which can be accessed via small lifts which fortunately work well. The front section, at least at this time of year, is devoted to new books and a good selection of older books chosen by the booksellers. The fiction section is big, and includes books from small publishers such as Slightly Foxed. My favourite department is Crime. Richard has been there for over forty years, and the selection of books goes far beyond contemporary crime. There is an incredible choice of literary crime, “cosy” crime and Golden Age Detection. There is a full set of British Library Crime Classics, as well as more obscure reprints of novels of the mid twentieth century which Richard has discovered and promoted. Altogether it is possible to spend a lot of money there…All the staff are friendly and helpful, and I have spent many hours there whenever I have been able to get to Cambridge.

Heffers Bookshop

Address:

20 Trinity St

Postcode/City:

CB2 1TY Cambridge 

County:

Cambridgeshire England

Phone:

01223 463200

Website:blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/home

OPENING TIMES

Opening times set on 17/03/2021

MONDAY09:00 – 17:30
TUESDAY09:00 – 17:30
WEDNESDAY09:00 – 17:30
THURSDAY09:00 – 17:30
FRIDAY09:00 – 17:30
SATURDAY09:00 – 17:30
SUNDAY11:00 – 17:00

Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels – Oxfam Bookshop, Cambridge

December 7, 2021

Oh, was I supposed to donate not buy? Sorry!

Bookshop Tour on Four Wheels – Oxfam Bookshop, Cambridge

One of the bookshops that I managed to get into during our recent visit to Cambridge with Morgan, my trusty powerchair, was the Oxfam bookshop. A wide doorway with no step, and an impressive ramp meant that I could enter easily and get around to see the books. Being early December, there were a few extra boxes of wrapping paper around but that all added to the festive atmosphere! We also managed to donate some books – they were glad it was only one big bag at the moment! 

There are a surprising number of specialist Oxfam bookshops in Britain, and they always have a good selection ranging from paperback fiction to very specialist titles and some collectable editions which are priced accordingly. Most are accessible, even if they are small shops, though they tend to be crowded! On one famous occasion they saved Peter’s bacon on Christmas Eve when he spotted a Folio edition set of Dorothy L. Sayers best novels in a cabinet – an excellent present which I really enjoyed reading! A quick check online produced a list of the shops here https://www.localstore.co.uk/stores/82699/oxfam-books/ I cannot check its accuracy but it provides a start! The fact that most of the staff are volunteers means that they are usually cheerful and helpful. It is a great place for ex librarians (hello Diane!). 

Of course if you are struggling to get out, you can always look online at https://onlineshop.oxfam.org.uk/ I built up quite a collection of books by a particular author from this site.