LBMC: #2 Clerkenwell Tales Bookshop

Clerkenwell Tales is a charming little bookshop on Exmouth Market, off Rosebery Avenue.  It has a beautiful teal shop-front and vibrant window displays, thoughtfully chosen to reflect the area’s varied and eclectic character. The shop opened in July 2009 under the stewardship of former Waterstone’s bookseller Peter Ho. Peter wasn’t there during my visit – chaperoned by the incorrigible Mr Tim Wells (pictured) – but I was greeted by the lovely Anna, the other booklover who helps Peter run the shop.

We talked briefly about the selection of books on offer, which range from contemporary to classic fiction, non-fiction, design, cooking and poetry. Anna explained that the books are picked intuitively with booklovers in mind, which is something that distinguishes Clarkenwell Tales from a lot of the other shops. It also has a relaxed and friendly atmosphere and a great layout that offers perfect space for browsing, nosing around and stopping off to flick through a comic or two.

The shop also sells an interesting range of cards, wrapping papers and other literary paraphernalia. It’s small and intimate but well organised and uncluttered, which is something Peter says he was “very conscious” of when designing it. This, he explains, was done so that “every book would be given the chance to catch the eye”. And it certainly does. Clarkenwell Tales is a wonderful shop, which offers a great choice of books and an inviting atmosphere in which to peruse them.

Free Word | Peter Ho

Clarkenwell Tales
30 Exmouth Market
London
EC1R 4QE
Opening Hours: Monday – Friday: 10:00 am – 7.00pm/Saturday: 11:00 am – 6.00pm/Sunday: 12:00 am – 4.00pm

PS If you’d like to find out more about the LBMC challenge, please go here. If you’d like to recommend a bookshop please leave a comment on my blog, tweet me (@DollyDelightly) or send me an email. Thanks.

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LBMC: #1 The Swedenborg Society Bookshop

I have somehow  – in a bout of inadvertent spontaneity – set myself the challenge of visiting every independent bookshop on the London Bookshop Map. Upon making my London Bookshop Map Challenge (LBMC) known on Twitter I received several shop recommendations, urging me to go to Judd Books, The Broadway Bookshop,  Clerkenwell Tales and  the Kirkdale Bookshop, all of which I now also intent to visit. This brings the total to a hefty 109 different shops, in different parts of town! What was I thinking? Probably not very much at that precise moment, but I like a challenge and have sulfur in my blood! (The latter is something Henry Miller used to say. Not sure if it applies here but it kind of sounds good.)

The first bookshop I went to is the Swedenborg Society one, which I picked because of its proximity to my work. The shop is located on the corner of Barter Street, opposite Bloomsbury Square. It specialises in the work’s of  Swedish philosopher, theologian, scientist and mystic Emanuel Swedenborg. Most of the books in the shop are published by The Swedenborg Society, which has been going since 1810. This wonderful little establishment also sells other editions, most of which pertain to the philosopher, his ideas and his cultural and historic significance.

The books published by the Society are absolutely beautiful. The intention is to have them look like classics, Nora (Foster), the Society’s Publicist and Assistant Curator, told me. A lovely idea, I agreed, marvelling at the handsome hardbacks. I was greeted and shown around by the very lovey Company Secretary Richard Lines, who offered me a potted history of the famous philosopher and took me on a guided tour of the Grade II listed premises. The building houses a vast and impressive library, which contains  the most extensive collection of Swedenborg editions in Europe, some in their original languages of Swedish and Latin. I was also lucky enough to be shown a couple of leather bound manuscripts written in Swedenborg’s own hand, which looked fantastic if indecipherable.

Richard took me up and down several flights of stairs annotating our journey as we went, telling me about the Society’s heritage, its early patrons and contemporary friends (A. S. Byatt,  Iain Sinclair, Homero Aridjis among them). As we made our way through the building, Richard explained that the Society is currently in the process of cataloging Swedenborg’s Library and Archives online, to make them accessible to the general public. All the antiquated hardbacks and manuscripts are stored around this grand scholastic hub, which also has a 100 seat neo-classical hall, where the Society hosts literary evenings, talks, exhibitions, performances and lectures. Their programme is extensive and varied and has in the past included an Ingmar Bergman season, a poetry reading by Ali Smith, a special screening of Grant Gee’s documentary on the writer WG Max Sebald and a musical performance by Jozef Van Wissem.

The Swedenborg Society bookshop is one of Bloomsbury’s little treasures. It has a wonderful array of specialist books and great staff, who are infectiously enthused about them.

The Swedenborg Society
20-21 Bloomsbury Way
London
WC1A 2TH
Opening Hours: Monday – Friday/9.30 am – 5.00 pm

PS If you’d like to recommend a bookshop please leave a comment on my blog, tweet me (@DollyDelightly) or send me an email: dolly.delightly.books@gmail.com. Thanks.