We are surprisingly well-serviced by fabulous bookshops here on the NSW south coast. We’ve got the beautiful ones, the friendly ones, the incredibly well-stocked ones, and the ones that combine all of that and more.
These are five of my favourites in this area:
boobook on owen, Huskisson: There’s something about the combination of carefully chosen books and the proximity of Jervis Bay that makes this little bookshop very, very seductive. It’s a lovely space, with a terrific range of children’s books. My boys love popping in for a browse.
Dymocks Books, Nowra: I love the team in here. Love. They are so knowledgeable and so happy to chat about books, and the customer service is always A-1. These guys are readers and it shows. A huge selection of books and staff who will happily help with recommendations and suggestions.
Harbour Bookshop, Ulladulla: Plugged in to the local community, with an excellent selection of books and events to match. Perfect for your holiday read, a special gift or thoughtful advice on books you’ll love!
Dean Swift Books, Nowra: With an ever-changing calendar of events, this indie bookshop works hard to promote books and authors in the region. The friendly staff are ever-helpful and my boys have a particular love of the ABC Shop incorporated inside (Doctor Who, anyone?).
Anne’s Second-Hand Bookshop: If you love a good browse in a second-hand bookshop, don’t go past Anne’s! Really well-curated selection of used books and lovely, friendly staff as well.
Are you new here? Welcome to my blog! I’m Allison Tait, aka A.L. Tait, and I’m the author of two epic middle-grade adventure series, The Mapmaker Chronicles and The Ateban Cipher.
You can find out more about me here, and more about my books here.
Great list Alison! Checking a few of these book shops out today on my drive from Bermagui back home. 🙂
Thanks for those suggestions Alison. I’m down that way a lot so will check them out. The Read Leaf in Milton is lovely. My personal favourite down that way is The Harbourside Bookshop in Ulladulla. Fantastic service and a really great selection of books.
Knowledgeable staff, definitely. This is because I frequently rock up and say “you know, that book with the red cover that’s about the pirate thing” and they find it. x
I’ll add two more wonderful South Coast bookstores – although a bit further south. Two of my personal favourites are Booktique at Merimbula (coffee and chocolate shop attached – does it get any better than that?) http://www.booktique.com.au/ and Candelo Books at Bega http://www.candelobooks.com/
I just love local bookstores! The Literary Bookpost in my hometown of Salisbury, NC is wonderful! It is just so beautiful and has an amazing, imaginative entire floor for kids. Plus, the booksellers are so knowledgeable and have fantastic recommendations. I have been perusing your blog this morning and just love it! I can’t wait to listen to your podcast!
Thanks so much Kristy! Your local bookshop sounds amazing. I love the idea of a whole floor for kids!
I do like a cafe attached – and therefore Readings in Hawthorn is pretty good. Also the diversity of books, the knowledge of the staff and so on. Something quirky always helps too!
Yes, to all of the above!
A book shop with a cafe attached, here in the west a special one is First Edition in Fremantle
Sounds lovely. I visited Fremantle last year, but didn’t discover that one!
Hmm, interesting question!
For me it’d be a combination of atmosphere and the range of books available. I think these are the things that make the point of difference between purchasing in person vs purchasing online.
Agree! Also, I think that when you visit a bookshop you’re after an experience – you want to browse and find things you may not find otherwise. When I shop online, I tend to be after something specific.