chaliepud Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 Someone mentioned in another thread yesterday about loving books set in bookshops, so I was wondering how many books are? The Shadow of the Wind has a bookshop as have the books in Maggie Stiefvaters Wolves of Mercy Falls trilogy, and I know I have read others, the title of which my bad memory has taken away! Can anyone think of any others? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 Subscribed! The Thirteenth Tale comes to mind, but only a small section in the beginning happens in a bookstore. Nonetheless, it is a great read and recommendabe. I'll have to come back if I can think of other books. I'd love to find more myself! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield. There's also 84 Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff; I know it's non-fiction, but it's such a lovely book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julie Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 The Claire Malloy series by Joan Hess . I believe she is on book 17 ???? They are cozy mysteries, I guess you'd call them . I've read a few ,but didn't realize she had written so many . Hess is also the author of the Maggody books, which I really like .They are about a lady police chief in a small hick town where not much ever happens, except they have an odd group of people in their town which are always into some type of trouble or other . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaliepud Posted December 31, 2011 Author Share Posted December 31, 2011 Oh yes, I've read The Thirteenth Tale and enjoyed it.. Not sure about those books Julie, I've never been a mystery fan, but I'll take a look! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dawnbirduk Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 I also enjoy books set in bookshops and libraries Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hayley Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 I'm pretty sure Patrick Gale's Notes from an Exhibition is set partly in a bookshop Also I seem to remember the bookshop from The Shadow of The Wind also turns up in Zaphon's The Angels Game And if libraries count then there's a couple of parts in a library in Elizabeth Kostova's The Historian And Matilda... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ooshie Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 (edited) It's about a kind of library rather than in a bookshop, but how about The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger? I have bought this but not read it yet, so can't say how good it is, but here is a synopsis from Waterstones: Audrey Niffenegger's two novels, "The Time Traveler's Wife" and "Her Fearful Symmetry", have made her one of the most popular writers in the world. She is also the author of two extraordinary novels-in-pictures, "The Three Incestuous Sisters" and "The Adventuress". Now, with "The Night Bookmobile", she has written her first graphic novel. First serialised in the "Guardian", "The Night Bookmobile" tells the story of a young woman who one night encounters a mysterious disappearing mobile library that happens to stock every book she has ever read. Seeing her history and her most intimate self in this library, she embarks on a search for the bookmobile. Over time, her search turns into an obsession as she longs to be reunited with her own collection and her memories. I really enjoyed The Small Hand by Susan Hill - again, not set in a bookshop but the main character is an antiquarian bookseller, which added to my enjoyment. Again, a synopsis from Amazon: This is the chilling tale of a man in the grip of a small, invisible hand...an exceptional and bestselling ghost story by the author of "The Woman in Black" and "The Man in the Picture". Late one summers evening, antiquarian bookseller Adam Snow is returning from a client visit when he takes a wrong turn. He stumbles across a derelict Edwardian house, and compelled by curiosity, approaches the door. Standing before the entrance, he feels the unmistakable sensation of a small cold hand creeping into his own, 'as if a child had taken hold of it'. At first he is merely puzzled by the odd incident but then begins to suffer attacks of fear and panic, and is visited by nightmares. He is determined to learn more 'about the house and its once-magnificent, now overgrown garden but when he does so, he receives further, increasingly sinister, visits from the small hand. And, for anyone who hasn't read The Thirteenth Tale yet, I join the others in recommending it! Edited December 31, 2011 by Ooshie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaliepud Posted December 31, 2011 Author Share Posted December 31, 2011 I'm pretty sure Patrick Gale's Notes from an Exhibition is set partly in a bookshop Also I seem to remember the bookshop from The Shadow of The Wind also turns up in Zaphon's The Angels Game And if libraries count then there's a couple of parts in a library in Elizabeth Kostova's The Historian And Matilda... I have read Notes from an Exhibition but don't remember a bookshop, but then I really didn't enjoy the book so it will not have left a long lasting memory. I think I have The Historian tucked in a drawer somewhere, it's been there awhile!! Not sure about Matilda, though I know my daughter loved it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaliepud Posted December 31, 2011 Author Share Posted December 31, 2011 It's about a kind of library rather than in a bookshop, but how about The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger? I have bought this but not read it yet, so can't say how good it is, but here is a synopsis from Waterstones: Audrey Niffenegger's two novels, "The Time Traveler's Wife" and "Her Fearful Symmetry", have made her one of the most popular writers in the world. She is also the author of two extraordinary novels-in-pictures, "The Three Incestuous Sisters" and "The Adventuress". Now, with "The Night Bookmobile", she has written her first graphic novel. First serialised in the "Guardian", "The Night Bookmobile" tells the story of a young woman who one night encounters a mysterious disappearing mobile library that happens to stock every book she has ever read. Seeing her history and her most intimate self in this library, she embarks on a search for the bookmobile. Over time, her search turns into an obsession as she longs to be reunited with her own collection and her memories. I really enjoyed The Small Hand by Susan Hill - again, not set in a bookshop but the main character is an antiquarian bookseller, which added to my enjoyment. Again, a synopsis from Amazon: This is the chilling tale of a man in the grip of a small, invisible hand...an exceptional and bestselling ghost story by the author of "The Woman in Black" and "The Man in the Picture". Late one summers evening, antiquarian bookseller Adam Snow is returning from a client visit when he takes a wrong turn. He stumbles across a derelict Edwardian house, and compelled by curiosity, approaches the door. Standing before the entrance, he feels the unmistakable sensation of a small cold hand creeping into his own, 'as if a child had taken hold of it'. At first he is merely puzzled by the odd incident but then begins to suffer attacks of fear and panic, and is visited by nightmares. He is determined to learn more 'about the house and its once-magnificent, now overgrown garden but when he does so, he receives further, increasingly sinister, visits from the small hand. And, for anyone who hasn't read The Thirteenth Tale yet, I join the others in recommending it! Another 2 for my wishlist! I loved Niffenenegger's previous books, and while I'm no into graphic novels I did say that I would try different genres this year! The Small Hand will have to wait until my husband isn't working away I think.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roland Butter Posted December 31, 2011 Share Posted December 31, 2011 I'm with Kylie - 84 Charing Cross Road is a wonderful book. It's really about people who love books, rather than the physical bookshop, but it's something every BCF member would relate to, I'm sure. I always thought Helene Hanff would enjoy being a Forum member herself Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaliepud Posted December 31, 2011 Author Share Posted December 31, 2011 I never realised 64 CCR is non fiction and based on a true story, another one for my wish list!! Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted October 30, 2014 Share Posted October 30, 2014 I want to bump this thread up, I'm always up for a good book that's set in a bookshop! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted November 8, 2014 Share Posted November 8, 2014 Mr Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore is set in a bookshop. Unfortunately I didn't get on with it (haven't reviewed it yet though), but a lot of people seem to enjoy it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted November 8, 2014 Share Posted November 8, 2014 I have that already on my wishlist I can't remember if I've checked if they have a copy at the library... Should check! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chesilbeach Posted November 8, 2014 Share Posted November 8, 2014 The Bookstore by Deborah Meyler is set in a NY bookshop (the clue is in the title! ). I read it a while back, and although I didn't fall in love with it entirely, the sections in the bookshop itself are great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SueK Posted November 13, 2014 Share Posted November 13, 2014 Another one for the list is The Bookshop by Penelope Fitzgerald One of her typical unassuming books set in a seaside village in Sussex. It is odd in some respects but I'm a fan of hers so I liked it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaraPepparkaka Posted November 14, 2014 Share Posted November 14, 2014 (edited) There's Laurence Cossé's book, original in French, "Au Bon Roman", I read it in Swedish "Drömbokhandeln", a good translation, it seems to be available in English as "A Novel Bookstore". Edited November 14, 2014 by SaraPepparkaka Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtrpath27 Posted November 21, 2014 Share Posted November 21, 2014 The Storied Life of AJ Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin. I really enjoyed it. Set in a library (not a shop, but close!) are the short story The Museum of Literary Souls by John Connolly (a nice quick read) and the novel Legendarium (on my TBR) by Michael Bunker and Kevin G. Summers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaliepud Posted July 20, 2015 Author Share Posted July 20, 2015 To add another.. a fair amount of Mrs Sinclair's Suitcase by Louise Walters is set in a bookshop. Goodreads synopsis Roberta likes to collect the letters and postcards she finds in second-hand books. (In the bookshop she works in) When her father gives her some of her grandmother's belongings, she finds a baffling letter from the grandfather she never knew - dated after he supposedly died in the war. Dorothy is unhappily married to Albert, who is away at war. When an aeroplane crashes in the field behind her house she meets Squadron Leader Jan Pietrykowski, and as their bond deepens she dares to hope she might find happiness. But fate has other plans for them both, and soon she is hiding a secret so momentous that its shockwaves will touch her granddaughter many years later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 ^ That's already on my wishlist, thanks to you, I believe! I've remembered another one, and I can't believe I haven't mentioned it on here before. If you like chick lit, you might really like this one! The Secret of Happy Ever After by Lucy Dillon: When story-lover Anna takes over Longhampton's bookshop, it's her dream come true. And not just because it gets her away from her three rowdy stepchildren and their hyperactive Dalmatian. Unpacking boxes filled with childhood classics, Anna can't shake the feeling that maybe her own fairytale ending isn't all that she'd hoped for. But, as the stories of love, adventure, secret gardens, lost dogs, wicked witches and giant peaches breathe new life into the neglected shop, Anna and her customers get swept up in the magic too. Even Anna's best friend Michelle - who categorically doesn't believe in true love and handsome princes - isn't immune. But when secrets from Michelle's own childhood come back to haunt her, and disaster threatens Anna's home, will the wisdom and charm of the stories in the bookshop help the two friends - and those they love - find their own happy ever afters? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaliepud Posted July 20, 2015 Author Share Posted July 20, 2015 I don't usually read chick lit, but I'm always up for trying something, especially if it comes recommended.. I'll pop it on the old wish list! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 I'm now a bit nervous... Don't pay too much money on the book if you ever get to buying it, because you don't usually read chick lit and you might not like it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alicedrinkwater Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 Not only does it take place in a library, it's about a book thief that is better than The Book Thief (in my opinion), and it has beautiful poetic prose. Here is a quote: Do you love to read? I'm talking about nestling in a pool of lamplight and cradling a book like a baby in your lap and nudging the corner upward with your thumb, the whorls snagging the grain of the paper, and hearing the soft sizzle as the page turns. Do you love to read? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chaliepud Posted July 20, 2015 Author Share Posted July 20, 2015 Hmm, I'm not sure about that one, I just read a synopsis and it seems very quirky and very imaginative?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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