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March 29 2024 5.19am

bookshops: your favourite

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View Forest Hillbilly's Profile Forest Hillbilly Flag in a hidey-hole 08 Sep 18 4.00am Send a Private Message to Forest Hillbilly Add Forest Hillbilly as a friend

So Amazon are largely responsible for Foyles, once the largest bookshop in the world, being taken over by Waterstones.
[Link]

Now I buy shedloads of stuff from Amazon, particularly before Christmas, as I hate shopping in crowds. So I am perhaps hypocritical.
Bookshops have had to change to survive, and have added coffee shops, book club meetings and author book signings.

Bu I love second-hand books. In 1999 I bought a first edition 'Jawa'(hardcover with dust jacket) by Peter Benchley for £1 from a charidee shop, and now it is worth around £500

So my favourite book shop in recent times, is Kirkdale books of Sydenham. Upstairs they have new books, a meeting place/coffee shop, and local news and events. However, downstairs are shelves packed with dusty second-hand books. I have spent many an hour (or two) perusing the shelves and skim-reading sections, before making a purchase.
Lovely way to spend a morning, but with Amazon and internet, the whole High Street is at risk. Probably bookshops might be gone in as little as 10 years.

 


"The facts have changed", Rishi Sunak

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View 20 Spaces Isnt Enoug's Profile 20 Spaces Isnt Enoug Flag Bolton 08 Sep 18 5.53am Send a Private Message to 20 Spaces Isnt Enoug Add 20 Spaces Isnt Enoug as a friend


84 Charing Cross Road.

 

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View chris123's Profile chris123 Flag hove actually 08 Sep 18 9.09am Send a Private Message to chris123 Add chris123 as a friend

Black Books.

 

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View Rudi Hedman's Profile Rudi Hedman Flag Caterham 08 Sep 18 9.19am Send a Private Message to Rudi Hedman Add Rudi Hedman as a friend

Originally posted by 20 Spaces Isnt Enoug


84 Charing Cross Road.

Smut?

 


COYP

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View Rudi Hedman's Profile Rudi Hedman Flag Caterham 08 Sep 18 9.26am Send a Private Message to Rudi Hedman Add Rudi Hedman as a friend

Something else damaging bookshops.

Apart from saving paper and instant downloading and maybe price after they’ve read however many chick flicks, I’ve never understood women wanting to use e-book readers, kindle etc. Why do you need to hold that many books on it, you have a handbag and if you’re on holiday you have a suitcase to carry a few light paperbacks. If it’s a hardback autobiography you generally want to keep it for various reasons. I just don’t get it.

 


COYP

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chateauferret Flag 10 Sep 18 10.38pm

I used to work in Foyles in the 90s and it was totally bonkers. Russian three-queue system, zero training, a phone in each department which only ever rang at ten to six on a Saturday night to summon someone to the office to get his or her jotters, and a department manager who thought it was funny to phone up other departments with enquiries about their stick at ten to six on a Saturday.

Jacked it in after nine months because it was s***.

 


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The Ferret
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View Stuk's Profile Stuk Flag Top half 10 Sep 18 10.51pm Send a Private Message to Stuk Add Stuk as a friend

Originally posted by chris123

Black Books.

That was a brilliant show.

 


Optimistic as ever

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View Penge Eagle's Profile Penge Eagle Flag Beckenham 10 Sep 18 11.22pm Send a Private Message to Penge Eagle Holmesdale Online Elite Member Add Penge Eagle as a friend

Sports Pages on Charing Cross Road was great many years ago. I used to pop in and flick through the different array of fanzines.

 

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View Stuk's Profile Stuk Flag Top half 11 Sep 18 12.33am Send a Private Message to Stuk Add Stuk as a friend

Plus books used to be a great 2nd hand source, they had one in West Croydon and another in Colliers Wood.

 


Optimistic as ever

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View Midlands Eagle's Profile Midlands Eagle Flag 11 Sep 18 6.01am Send a Private Message to Midlands Eagle Add Midlands Eagle as a friend

Originally posted by Rudi Hedman

Something else damaging bookshops.

Apart from saving paper and instant downloading and maybe price after they’ve read however many chick flicks, I’ve never understood women wanting to use e-book readers, kindle etc. Why do you need to hold that many books on it, you have a handbag and if you’re on holiday you have a suitcase to carry a few light paperbacks. If it’s a hardback autobiography you generally want to keep it for various reasons. I just don’t get it.

I read your post twice and still can't decide whether it's supposed to be tongue in cheek or serious.

My wife and I are both Kindle users and whilst she is an avid reader I don't read much nowadays. I've been struggling to finish the book about the Palace supporter who moved to Australia that I've been reading for a year.

In answer to the question my favourite bookshop is The Works as I have a large bookcase full of cookery books which is something only feasible in physical format

 

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chateauferret Flag 11 Sep 18 8.18am

Originally posted by Midlands Eagle

I read your post twice and still can't decide whether it's supposed to be tongue in cheek or serious.

My wife and I are both Kindle users and whilst she is an avid reader I don't read much nowadays. I've been struggling to finish the book about the Palace supporter who moved to Australia that I've been reading for a year.

In answer to the question my favourite bookshop is The Works as I have a large bookcase full of cookery books which is something only feasible in physical format

If you need those great big tomes on computing subjects to refer to and which on paper cost £40 a go electronic publishing is a godsend.

I don't see why we should pay VAT on them, though, given that paper books are less evironmentally sustainable yet VAT-free.

 


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View Forest Hillbilly's Profile Forest Hillbilly Flag in a hidey-hole 11 Sep 18 3.10pm Send a Private Message to Forest Hillbilly Add Forest Hillbilly as a friend

just as an add-on to books v kindle.

Books are environmentally friendly, because they use trees. If we recycled all paper, we wouldn't need trees.
The only benefit to using recycled paper , is that it uses less bleaching agents during manufacture.

Kindles and such , have lithium/(nuclear) batteries, so in the longer term are just as hazardous.

Plus I prefer books. Second-hand ones. well-thumbed, a bit dog-eared and dusty, but enjoyed by previous owners

 


"The facts have changed", Rishi Sunak

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