Will browsing be allowed, or will we have to judge a book by its cover? With Waterstones and some indie shops set to open on 15 June, Alison Flood finds out what the plan isMelissa Davies had planned to fulfil a lifelong dream and open her independent bookshop, Pigeon Books, in Southsea, at the beginning of April. Those plans were put on hold by the coronavirus pandemic, but with a relaxation of lockdown rules from next week, bookshops will be able to open to customers – for the first time in over two months. Davies and her husband are now preparing for a very different sort of opening. “We had to quickly rethink our entire business plan and how we could operate, and now we’re gearing up to open our doors for the first time under really different circumstances,” she says. The tiny Pigeon Books will ask its browsing customers to use hand sanitiser, or wear gloves, before and after touching books, and will restrict the number of customers in the shop to two at a time.“We’re excited about opening but also worried about how we’re going to make it work and how we can keep ourselves and our customers safe,” Davies says. She continues to work full time in customer service, and to write (her first poetry collection, Pineapples in the Pool, was published by Unbound in 2018). “We’ll be opening with reduced hours for a few weeks to see how things go. We’re so nervous about it though. Who opens a bookshop in a pandemic?” Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2020-06-12 06:00:14 UTC ]
Sales of Tony Walsh’s first poetry collection have almost doubled in the few weeks since he gave a rousing spoken word performance at a vigil following the terror attack at Manchester Arena on 22nd May. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-06-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Rupi Kaur’s first book, Milk and Honey, sold 1.4 million copieSOrdinarily, the illustration adorning the cover of a new book is not a big story, but such is the hype around the young Canadian poet Rupi Kaur that her plan to release the picture to her 1.3 million Instagram followers on 1 June is... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2017-05-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A record breaking number of submissions has led to the highest ever number of regional shortlisted bookshops at the British Book Awards’ Independent Bookshop of the Year category, sponsored by Gardners Books. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-02-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Stine is achieving a "lifelong dream" by writing the comics, a five-issue series that debuts in February and will feature plenty of interdimensional weirdness. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-12-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Describe your role I’m a bookseller at Wenlock Books, an independent bookshop in Shropshire. My job includes running the shop, social media accounts and Children’s Book Club, organising events and meeting with reps. I also keep the website going by writing blog posts and book reviews,... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-10-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Blackwell’s head of operations Kate Stilborn has been appointed to the bookshop’s board as customer service and operations director. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-06-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Book sales rep David Segrue is set to open an independent bookshop with his wife Amanda in May. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-03-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Relative newcomers, shops reinvigorated by new owners and an institution still innovating in its 70th year are among the regional winners of this year’s British Book Industry Awards’ Independent Bookshop of the Year, sponsored by Gardners. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-03-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A record year for submissions has led to the highest ever number of regional shortlisted entries in this year’s British Book Industry Awards Independent Bookshop of the Year category, sponsored by Gardners Books. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-02-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The people behind Camden Lock Books have opened a new independent bookshop in Hackney, east London. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2016-02-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Facebook Messenger has 700 million monthly users, breaking out its humble beginnings as a messenger app. More brands will be experimenting with Messenger. For instance, Hyatt is using it for customer service. Disney has automated bots as forms of entertainment. Bild, the German publisher, is... Continue reading at Digiday
[ Digiday | 2016-01-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Four months after emerging from bankruptcy, Family Christian Stores is counting on better customer service, no active solicitation for its charities, and improved merchandising and product mix to lift year-end sales. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-11-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Family Christian Stores is reemerging with pledges of better customer service, no active solicitation for its charities, and improved merchandising and product mix. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-11-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Author Betsy Tobin and artist Tessa Shaw are to open Ink@84, the “independent bookshop of the future” in London's Highbury next month. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-11-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Big Green Bookshop is to hold a “pay what you like” sale to raise money for the Jungle Library in Calais. The independent bookshop in London’s Wood Green has so far raised £2,500 for the so-called Jungle Library– a makeshift library set up by teacher Mary Jones at the refugee camp in... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-09-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Linghams Bookshop in Heswall (Merseyside) has been bought by new owners Sue Porter and Mike King. The 2013 Bookseller Industry Awards’ Independent Bookshop of the Year was put up for sale last September by its owners Eleanor and Peter Davies, who had decided the time was right to retire. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-09-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Brilliant Books in Michigan says customers are owed apologies for portrayal of Harper Lee’s long-lost manuscript as a ‘nice summer novel’ rather than an academic curiosityA US independent bookshop is offering refunds to its Go Set a Watchman customers, claiming that the work should be viewed as... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-08-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bloomsbury is publishing The Hollow of the Hand, the first poetry collection from musician P J Harvey, in collaboration with photographer and filmmaker Seamus Murphy. The title will be released in four different editions simultaneously on 8th October: a limited edition with original artwork for... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-07-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Sequel to Fifty Shades of Grey, told from Christian’s perspective, is Amazon.co.uk’s most pre-ordered book of the year Related: EL James to publish Fifty Shades sequel telling story from hero's point of view An independent bookshop in Texas that opened its doors for the first time earlier this... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-06-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A new independent bookshop has opened in Navan in Ireland, selling new books with a focus on children’s literature. Last weekend husband and wife team Shane and Lorraine Breslin “quietly opened” Blackbird Books on the Old Corn Market in Navan, County Meath, which is about a 40-minute drive... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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