My 2024 London Book Haul: The Bookshops
Millennium Bridge, St. Paul's Cathedral, pigeons and gray skies… all the signs of London.
You can’t really see it on my face, but this is me in my happy place.
I’ve been to London more times than any other major city outside of Croatia. Somehow it always makes sense to go back. For me, London means art exhibitions, food markets, great parks, ciders and—bookshops! London is a haven for book lovers.
Sure, I could order books from my couch (giving Mr. Bezos a few more dollars) and wait for the delivery man, but that just doesn’t compare with finding a bookshop, marvelling at its interior, browsing the shelves, reading the spines, hearing the rustle of paper, stumbling across unexpected treasures you didn’t even know someone wrote about. Each book I buy expands my horizons, makes me discover a new author/artist/designer, and soon I have a whole new little universe to explore. Which inevitably leads to more books! My only real limitation is my airplane baggage allowance (my budget is just a bit more flexible).
Buying books is not the only thing I use bookshops for. Being a graphic designer, it is fuel from which I draw my creative energy in the coming months. And it’s not just covers that offer inspiration, but the insides as well: illustration, layout design, type choices, paper texture… It keeps me familiar with the current trends of book design and helps me discover fellow designers—Behance and Dribbble only take you so far.
Preparation
One challenge with London is its sheer size. Even though I come prepared with a Google Maps list of all the bookshops I want to visit, there’s never enough time, so I end up adjusting my priorities on the go. I usually aim to balance a few of the bigger bookshops with some smaller, more unique spots (visiting at least one second-hand store is a must). Certain areas, like Charing Cross Road, have such a high density of bookshops that you can practically hop from one to the next, while other unique spots around the city take a bit more planning to visit. Additional help in preparing for my London bookshop crawl this time was Bookshop Tours of Britain, a book by Louise Boland whose content is probably clear enough from its title.
Taking advantage off the couch in Waterstones Piccadilly, flipping through the Angela Harding book.
Waterstones
Waterstones is always an easy choice—since their shops are everywhere, I often just pop into one for a quick browse whenever I pass by. Although quite commercial (Waterstones is the largest book retail chain in the UK) and the books are mostly the same, each branch has its own unique character.
The Waterstones on Piccadilly (allegedly the largest bookshop in Europe!) is a must visit, if nothing else because of its size, which guarantees you miles of book on every subject. Art and Design sections are huge, and so is Film—all the things I like on the same floor. I still remember the shelf I first saw the huge and heavy Saul Bass book on, years ago, which is still one of my most prized book possessions.
On our way to the Design Museum, we passed by the Kensington branch of Waterstones—a smaller shop, but sometimes that makes you notice things more. In addition to picking up several books, I discovered Backstory, a beautifully designed and light-hearted literary magazine subtitled ‘for book lovers.’ I couldn’t resist buying the latest issue, number 2. Later, I learned that the magazine is published twice a year and was launched by an independent bookstore of the same name. Unfortunately, its location in South London was out of our way this time, but I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for it in the future.
Foyles
Darkness descends as Foyle's flag flutters in the wind, and I browse the film directors' section.
While it’s a bit smaller than Waterstones Piccadilly, I prefer Foyles on Charing Cross Road slightly more, just based on its interior and cosier atmosphere. Founded in 1903 by the Foyle brothers, its location certainly contributes to the impression since Charing Cross Road is a famous bookshop street. The street’s reputation was bolstered by the book 84 Charing Cross Road, which chronicles the transatlantic correspondence between an American writer and a London bookseller (if you haven’t, check out the charming 1987 movie starring Anthony Hopkins and Anne Bancroft). There’s a cafe occupying the fifth floor which is a nice place to take a break from browsing the books. Apart from books, Foyles also offers a collection of CDs, DVDs and vinyl.
Any Amount of Books. I love the turquoise front and the warm light inside…
Any Amount of Books
While we’re on Charing Cross Road, just across Foyles, there’s Any Amount of Books, one of London’s most beloved second-hand and antiquarian bookshops with a long tradition (there has been a book shop at 56 Charing Cross since the 1920s, if not earlier). Friendly staff and reasonable prices are guaranteed, and somehow I always manage to find a great design book on their shelves.
Hatchards—the fanciest gentleman among London bookshops.
Hatchards
Hatchards is London’s oldest bookshop, founded in 1797 and you can feel that history as soon as you step in from the bustling Piccadilly street. Elegantly curved staircases, refined décor, and creaky wooden floors create a truly special experience—you can almost imagine writers of past centuries browsing these very shelves. The books are fantastic, too, especially the art section, which makes it abundantly clear just how many volumes have been written on Matisse and Picasso (imagine a lot, then double it). My favourite part is their display of rare books and first editions. The prices have one or two zeros too many for my wallet, but I can still admire the exceptional design and craftsmanship of old bookmaking.
Books bought at Hatchards come in a paper bag of unmatched quality—walking out with that thick, dark green paper bag and gold-foil logo makes you feel like a distinguished gentleman, missing only a tweed suit.
Marcus Campbell Art Books
Even though a bit crowded and not that Instagram-friendly, judging by the book inventory alone, my favourite London bookshop could easily be Marcus Campbell Art Books. Tucked away just behind Tate Modern (one of our obligatory stops in London), this is a specialist bookstore known for its niche focus on art books, offering new, used, and rare editions. Among the shelves, you’ll also find boxes filled with books priced at £2, £5, or £10. While these boxes usually contain nothing too exciting—mostly exhibition catalogs—they're always worth a browse, as I’ve stumbled upon hidden gems there in the past that made the search worthwhile. This is a place I never leave without a pile of good books and this visit was no exception.
Skoob Books
Skoob Books (“skoob” is backwards for “books”) is the only store from this list I haven’t already visited on my earlier trips to London. A big basement-level second-hand bookstore with affordable prices sounded like a must see, and I did enjoy the maze-like structure of shelves lined from floor to ceiling, but in the end, I walked out empty handed.
South Bank Book Market
Book hunting in the open air by the Thames (beneath the Waterloo Bridge) is always a thrill. This market offers a nice mix of second-hand books at very affordable prices with a good selection of old Penguin paperbacks. Once, I found a small Penguin book on Matisse here for just 3 pounds, which served as a great read on the plane back home. There’s also a good amount of old maps, prints and postcards.
Books aside, the South Bank is one of my favourite places in London, with wide pedestrian-friendly spaces, bustling atmosphere, food market and nearby attractions like the Tate Modern, British Film Institute and, most importantly, a carousel!
Books in other places
London is a great place for art lovers, with dozens of museums and galleries, many of them offering free entry to permanent collections. All major art museums have well-curated shops which are also a great place to buy books. They often have exclusive books and catalogs produced only for exhibitions or in partnership with featured artists, as well as beautifully designed merchandise, prints, and stationery inspired by the museum's collection. (This is also where I often find cool gifts for my nephews!) Here are some of the better equipped shops worth visiting:
Tate Modern and Tate Britain
The National Gallery
The Courtald Gallery
Victoria & Albert Museum
The Serpentine Galleries
The Design Museum
As lovers of Japan, a place we make sure not to miss is Japan House London, a cultural venue in Kensington that showcases Japanese art, design, gastronomy, innovation, and technology. Naturally, there is a small but thoughtfully curated collection of books on Japanese culture, art, design, and history. And their matcha latte is not bad at all!
If you’re a cinephile like me, one place you cannot skip when in London is the BFI Southbank (British Film Institute). Their shop stocks everything film-related, from books and magazines to DVDs and T-shirts. It’s not a bad place to pass the time while you wait for a screening.
Closing words…
My October 2024 stack of books from London: a nice combination of art, design, architecture, diaries, fiction and non-fiction.
My bookshop adventures in London represent the joy that comes from exploring local shops instead of just clicking ‘buy’ online. Each book I bring home feels like a little piece of my journey—as I browse my bookshelves, I can remember where each book was bought (and I prefer them over fridge magnets). And there’s always that thrill of discovering an unexpected gem. So, the next time you’re in a new city (or even your own) make sure to carve out some time to explore a bookshop.
These visits resulted in a stack of fourteen books—not my personal London record, but I won’t complain as each one sparks joy (so they’re definitely safe from Mrs. Marie Kondo)!
If you’re curious to learn more about the books themselves, I’ll be doing a separate article soon to highlight some of the more special finds, so stay tuned!