Book shopping in London
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Books for Cooks
All the recipe books from celeb and non-celeb chefs you can imagine are sold here – perfect for more adventurous cooks or for those looking for ‘exotic’ cookbooks. The cafe has a test kitchen where you can sample recipes at lunch and teatime.
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Foyle’s
This is London’s most legendary bookshop, where you can bet on finding even the most obscure of titles. The lovely cafe is on the 1st floor, and Ray’s Jazz is up on the 5th floor. In 2011, Foyle’s also acquired Grant & Cutler, the UK’s largest foreign-language bookseller, whose vast catalogue is now available on the 1st floor.
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Fopp
You don't need to spend a fortune at CD-cum-DVD-cum-bookshop Fopp. In fact, its prices are quite surprisingly reasonable alongside Virgin Megastores and HMV. This flagship store has an extensive range, plus signings and performances by stars. Other London branches can be found at Westbourne Grove and Shaftesbury Avenue.
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Housmans
This long-standing, not-for-profit bookshop, where you’ll find books that are unavailable on the shelves of the more mainstream stockists, is a good place to keep up to date with all sorts of progressive, political and social campaigns, and with your more radical reads. The forthcoming owner is a mine of local information.
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Daunt Books
An original Edwardian bookshop, with oak panels and gorgeous skylights, Daunt is one of London’s loveliest travel bookshops. It has two floors and the ground level is stacked with fiction and nonfiction titles; the lower ground is where to head if you’re travel focused
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Blackwell’s
Once a specialist in academic titles, this shop has now branched out into travel and other general-interest books. It is still, however, the favourite haunt for those hunting for academic textbooks and is perfect for anyone starting a new course.
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Magma
This much-loved shop sells books, magazines, T-shirts and almost anything on the design cutting edge. Great for present shopping.
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Waterstone’s
The chain’s megastore is the largest bookshop in Europe, boasting knowledgeable staff and regular author readings. This is London’s biggest Waterstone’s, with four floors of titles, a cafe in the basement and a nice rooftop bar.
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Shepherds Holborn
Suckers for fine stationery, leather boxes and that exquisite, specialised Florentine papier à cuve (paper that is hand-decorated with marbled designs), we get our fix at this wonderful bookbindery.
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Grant & Cutler
Specialises in foreign languages.
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Gay’s The Word
This London gay institution has been selling books nobody else stocks for three decades now, and still has a great range of gay- and lesbian-interest books and magazines as well as a real community spirit.
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Al Saqi
Located in a beautiful building topped with a dozen busts, this shop specialises in books in English about the Arab world and Islam, including the full catalogue of books it publishes itself.
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Ian Allan
The train-spotter in you won’t be able to resist this shop, which specialises in books on transport and defence: aircraft, motor vehicles, buses and, of course, those choo-choo trains.
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Guildhall Library Bookshop
Part of the offices of the Corporation of London, this specialist bookshop carries an excellent selection of books on London and prints of historic maps of the city.
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Blenheim Books
Formerly a gardeners' bookstore, Blenheim now specialises in design, architecture and photography, though its garden section is still extensive.
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Charing Cross Rd
The road with bookstores, including Borders, Foyle's (with the famous Ray's Jazz Shop), Murder One (for thrillers) and Shipley (for art books).
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Honest Jon’s
Two adjoining shops with jazz, soul and reggae.
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Village Books
Very much the village bookshop that depends on the support of local and itinerant book-lovers, Village Books is so small you could swing the proverbial dead cat and dislodge books from all four walls. But tininess is this shop’s forte, with a wealth of knowledge and experience from Hazel Broadfoot and other staff, who are never far away for literary queries, bookish pointers and excellent service. Stock is very strong, so you should find what you are looking for. There’s also another branch in Wandsworth.
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John Sandoe Books
The perfect antidote to impersonal book superstores, this atmospheric little bookshop is a treasure trove of literary gems and hidden surprises. In business for decades, loyal customers swear by it and the knowledgeable booksellers spill forth with well-read pointers.
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Forbidden Planet Megastore
A trove of comics, sci-fi, horror and fantasy literature, this is an absolute dream for anyone into manga comics or off-beat genre titles.
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Waterstones
Piccadilly Bloomsbury Beautiful branches of the chain. Check out the 5th View bar in the Piccadilly store.
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Murder One
Crime fiction from the likes of Harlan Coben, Carl Hiaasen, Elmore Leonard and Alexander McCall Smith join true crime, Sherlock Holmes and romances (including Mills & Boons), with a (freaky) Sherlock mannequin greeting you from the shop window.
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