28 02 2018 Libreria
Written by Ashley Kelmore, Posted in Bookshops
I know I’m going to be having lunch near Shoreditch today, so I do a check on bookshops in the neighborhood. Not far from Brick Land Bookshop is Libreria, a small, independent bookshop. Their thinking is “At Libreria we curate our books to maximise serendipity.”
I love that idea. I usually wander around bookshops looking for a book that jumps out at me. I have a list of books to buy, sure, but most of what I read ended up in my hands because it caught my eye when I was roaming the aisles and exploring the shelves.
It’s snowing today, and I can’t feel my feet, but the shop is warm. It also has a mirror wall that has me fooled into thinking the shop is twice as large as it is. There are little nooks to read in, and the shopkeeper is sitting near the front door, playing music that makes me want to leave quickly. I’m sure electronic music is something that lots of people enjoy; I do not, and so probably exit much quicker than I otherwise would have.
Even with that desire to escape the noise, I am able to find a couple of books to buy. I don’t make a beeline for the non-fiction section like I usually would, mostly because the shop isn’t really set up that way. Instead of “literature” and “philosophy” they have sections like “wanderlust” and “bad feminist.”
I recommend spending a little time on their website to learn more about this unique shop; I’ll be returning, although probably not on day that’s as cold as today.