I went on a bookshop crawl in Lancaster and so should you

It’s a fact, you can never have enough books. My bookshelf may disagree as the shelves are bending under the weight of all the books I’ve bought this year but never had time to read because course reading just has to come first over trashy Young Adult novels, right? But sometimes bookshelves just look so much better with the occasional shiny new additions.

Living in Lancaster is both a good and bad thing, since it’s just full of charity shops. The temptation to go on a crawl is always there and the variation means that you can always find a new book. But your bank account may not thank you.

Oxfam bookshop

First up was one of the best bookshops in Lancaster, a separate Oxfam shop purely for books, meaning this one is packed with every genre you could want. This shop specifically has a special collectable shelf which will always hold my heart. On each crawl you have to go and admire the pretty, old hardbacks that you just can’t justify because you’d be too scared to read them. This should be a stop on your crawl, but maybe leave it to last otherwise you’ll be carrying all those books around the rest of Lancaster.

Barnardo’s

While there’s not a huge selection here with their book selection, only covering two shelves, this should still be a stop on your list. Just because there aren’t as many to choose from doesn’t mean you should give this one a miss. You never know where you might find your next favourite book, so always give the little charity shops like this a look.

Atticus

Unfortunately, this book shop was shut today, however, I am definitely keeping it on the list because this is one of my favourites. This bookshop is tucked away near the Common Garden Street bus stop and has books piled high, overflowing the shelves. It has the perfect traditional old-fashioned bookshop vibes and if only this had a little coffee shop, I would live there. Would recommend this one to everyone, and I am gutted that it is shut during March.

Waterstones

A bookshop crawl is not complete without a trip to Waterstones, it is practically law. With a special table for BookTok books, it tempts me every time and I have to admit, this time it was successful. Whilst it is devastating that they shut the big Waterstones on the other side of Lancaster, this one still has an amazing selection and plenty of trashy YA to distract everyone from their uni work.

Cancer Research UK

Again. another charity shop with a few shelves overflowing at the back of the shop. Always worth a look, and although I didn’t find anything today, it won’t stop me from going back again next time to find more books for my TBR (to be read).

St Johns Hospice

This charity shop has a good selection of books, with quite a few shelves as charity shops go. Hidden at the back of the shop, this charity shop has an offer of three paperbacks, CD’s or DVD’s for one pound, definitely one of the cheapest, meaning it’s one of the best when looking for second-hand books on a student budget.

But there are many others…

While we were on a tight schedule today, there are many other bookshops that we didn’t have time to get to!

The British Heart Foundation always have a lot of books to peruse through so you can always find something good there. And right next door is Scope who often also have a book or two to tempt you. Of course, there is always the Lancaster City Council Library full of books that you can borrow for free – I just don’t like that I can’t keep them – but this is always a good option. Plus, don’t forget the library on campus that has fiction as well as academic books.

My book haul

Now, this is what everyone was waiting for! I will admit that I shouldn’t have bought this many but they called to me, just don’t ask me if I’ve read them yet. Give me tow to three years to get through the rest of my TBR first.

First up at Oxfam was “Juliet, Naked” by Nick Hornby; followed “We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves” by Karen Joy Fowler; and finally “Wicked” by Gregory Maguire.

Next was Waterstones (which definitely broke the bank): “Good Girl Complex” by Elle Kennedy; “Not Here to be Liked” by Michelle Quach; and “Maybe Someday” by Colleen Hoover.

My final purchase was “The Last Letter from your Lover” by Jojo Moyes.

A bookshop crawl is always a good distraction on a Wednesday afternoon, and no one will be seeing me for the next week while I spend too much time reading these trashy novels.

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