It’s become a sort routine of mine to visit Waterstones – the UK’s bookstore chain – nearly every single week.
Usually on a Thursday, to be specific.
So last week, I decided to take some photos, and basically take you guys along with me to the bookstore.
Because everyone here loves going to the bookstore, right?
So come with me to Waterstones!
(photo purposefully blurred because people)
Because my city is quite big, there’s three different Waterstone’s. Though this one isn’t my favourite, it’s the second largest, and the one I tend to visit most often.
And what do I love about Waterstone’s?
How cosy it feels!
Here in the UK, there are other places to buy books, but I’ve found none that feel as cosy and welcoming as Waterstone’s.
I love bookstores that feel old, warm, like they’ve been around for years. The stereotypical place where you can hide away from the world for a while and spend hours reading the synopsis’ of thousands of different stories.
The very second I walk through the doors, I get an overwhelming sense of comfort. I’m surrounded by the things I love. All my worries melt away for a little while, and I can focus my mind entirely on the words.
I always make a beeline for the Young Adult section. Or “teen fiction” as they call it here.
Purely because there’s so many different genres under this one section, so I can take my time choosing out different books, depending on what mood I’m in.
Plus most of the books I read tend to class as YA, so I might as well start here.
Now, it’s these tables in particular that I love:
These tables are dotted all around the store, promising two great books at a great price.
Buy one, get one half price?
How tempting.
So last week when I went in, I was specifically looking for The Raven King. And as you can see from the photo above, I found it on the offer. So I also picked Uprooted by Naomi Novik, which I found on a different table near the fantasy section.
Fantasy is my favourite genre, so obviously I spend a good long time staring at these shelves. And also reading all the little recommendation tabs hooked over the shelves. I love getting recommendations, and for some reason I find a few of them quite entertaining to read.
On this day, I found one that said “If you own even one book, you’ll love this one” and it just made me think “Well I own loads, does that mean I’ll love it more? Is there a scale? Can I measure enjoyment in books?” and so on.
Though it worked, because although I didn’t buy the book that day, I’ve added it to my TBR.
After wandering around, only intending to get one book and ending up pottering around with a stack in my arms, I needed to actually buy the ones I’d chosen. As seen in my April Book Haul, these are the books I got that day:
And with a very happy smile on my face, it was time to leave 🙂
Share your thoughts!
Did you like this idea – a blog post about the bookstores I visit? I hope to do one for my favourite bookstore if this one goes well, so I’d love to know!
Do you live in the UK and visit Waterstone’s? Is it your favourite place to buy books?
If you’re not from the UK, where do you buy your books from? What’s your favourite bookstore called?
How often do you visit the bookstore?
Let me know in the comments!
Until next time…
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Come and visit me!
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A frolic through fiction 
We have a Waterstone’s here too.. Thank you for reminding me that I really need to pay a visit soon! Interesting selection of books you chose too!
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Thank you! I hope you can visit soon 🙂
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Cute post!!
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Thanks 🙂
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I enjoyed reading this post!
I loved my old Waterstones as it was all old and cozy, but then it closed down so I have another one and it’s really modern! Those Buy One Get One Half Price tables always stop me in my tracks even though I know I’m not going to buy any books that day!
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Thank you! I’m glad you enjoyed it 😀
It’s a shame yours was modernized, they’re much better when they have an old, rustic feeling! And I know what you mean about the tables. Even when I actually can’t buy any, I always think in my head which two I’d buy if I could haha!
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I think it’s almost wishful thinking on my part. Like me staring at the table for long enough while make an extra twenty pounds will fill my pockets😂
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Too bad, we don’t have any bookstores in our city 😦
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Oh no! I can’t imagine living in a city without any bookstores!
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Your YA section is bigger than mine! I have 2. One in the city and one in my town. The one in my town has 2 shelves of YA 😢 haha but Waterstones is my FAVOURITE shop! I am forever buying the offer! xx
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The YA section in the biggest one in the city (and my favourite one) is even bigger than this selection! That’s probably why it’s my favourite haha 😀
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I am obsessed with Waterstones. It is literally my favourite place. My daughter used to throw a massive strop every time we went in; I think it was the only time she felt her number one position in my life was threatened…
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Ahahaha I laughed way too much at that xD It’s my favourite place too.
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I work for the…other bookstore chain in the UK *cough* and I STILL love Waterstones the most! It’s so cozy and calm and inviting 😀
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Which one? A few come to mind haha! And no bookworm can deny how comforting a place Waterstone’s is!
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Ahhh I don’t wanna say, but the main colour scheme is blue and they also sell stationary. So yeah xD
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Ahhh I know which you mean. Thought it was that one!
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When I’m away at school, there’s a great indie bookstore called Brookline Booksmith that I love going to! They have two floors – one of all new books and another of all used books. I love checking out the used shelves! Back at home, we don’t have any bookstores really close by. There’s a thrift shop that has a book section that I love looking through (it’s only about $2-3 per book) but other than that, I have to drive for about 20 minutes to get to the nearest Barnes & Noble.
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It’s a shame you don’t have a bookstore closer! The indie bookstore sounds great 😀
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I don’t live in the UK but I’ve been to London a couple of times and Waterstones is my favourite by far, too! Although, I feel WHSmith has the best offers and prices but it’s not half as cozy and welcoming as Waterstones is.
Also, really enjoyed this blog post, you definitely should do one for your favourite store!
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Thank you! I’ll make sure to do the other post in the future, though my favourite bookstore is a lot like this one haha 😀 There is a different one I want to do though.
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