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mugren's review
1.0
I thought I'd enjoy reading about bookshops, but this was the wrong book for me to read. Many of the writers in this book are ones that I've never come across. They are extremely self-indulgent. Also, none of the entries felt worthy of being included in such a book. If better pieces couldn't have been included, at least include writers that are better known.
geekylou's review
3.0
Books about books how can you go wrong? Loved the atmosphere of this book as it took you into bookshops from around the world. From Egypt to Nairobi, Istanbul and London amongst others with authors visiting there memorable book shops and telling there stories of the people, books and even coffee flavours and tobacco smells inside the more hipster shops. Really enjoyed it and now back to the real world after disappearing to the delicious book caves of the world lol
queerbillydeluxe's review
4.0
ARC from Netgalley. It's an anthology, so I enjoyed some more than others...but still a really good read.
nikkivrc's review
3.0
I love books like this, but the quality of a lot of these essays left a lot to be desired imo.
wietse111's review against another edition
3.0
Een verzameling essays over boekwinkels. Heel erg diverse stukken. In stijl, maar ook in waar ze nou echt over schrijven. Soms over de plek, soms over de tijd die ze daar doorbrachten, soms over de mensen die ze daar ontmoetten. Maar, uit alle verhalen spat wel een liefde voor boeken en boekwinkels.
Die liefde herken ik zeker, en er zaten een aantal mooie verhalen in (Elif Shafak en Sasa Stanisic staken er voor mij boven uit), maar ook een aantal essays waar ik moeilijk doorheen kwam. Door het wisselende leesplezier toch maar 3 sterren
Die liefde herken ik zeker, en er zaten een aantal mooie verhalen in (Elif Shafak en Sasa Stanisic staken er voor mij boven uit), maar ook een aantal essays waar ik moeilijk doorheen kwam. Door het wisselende leesplezier toch maar 3 sterren
tansy's review
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
3.0
Book 8 in my 2021 unread books project: a birthday gift from my sister that had languished unread for at least two years, in part because I have never read anything by any of the writers included in this book of essays.
Most of these essays tell a very similar story, i.e. "I like bookshops and here's some thoughts about a particular bookshop I went to when I was younger that shaped me into the person I am today". It's a perfectly nice story, particularly if you also like bookshops, (which you probably do if you're reading a book about bookshops), but it does mean that the essays all blur together. The standout pieces are the ones doing something different, such as Saša Stanišic's comparison of book-buying to drug addiction, Alaa Al Aswany's recollections of talk he gave prior to the Arab Spring demonstrations in Egypt, and Daniel Kehlmann's enthusiastic advert for Dussmann's in Berlin, via a dialogue between two authors about, (to quote Edward Gorey), "the unspeakable horror of the literary life".
In short, this is nice, but unmemorable and will probably remain on my shelves out of sentimentality for at least another year before eventually making way for more interesting books.
Most of these essays tell a very similar story, i.e. "I like bookshops and here's some thoughts about a particular bookshop I went to when I was younger that shaped me into the person I am today". It's a perfectly nice story, particularly if you also like bookshops, (which you probably do if you're reading a book about bookshops), but it does mean that the essays all blur together. The standout pieces are the ones doing something different, such as Saša Stanišic's comparison of book-buying to drug addiction, Alaa Al Aswany's recollections of talk he gave prior to the Arab Spring demonstrations in Egypt, and Daniel Kehlmann's enthusiastic advert for Dussmann's in Berlin, via a dialogue between two authors about, (to quote Edward Gorey), "the unspeakable horror of the literary life".
In short, this is nice, but unmemorable and will probably remain on my shelves out of sentimentality for at least another year before eventually making way for more interesting books.