7 of the best book stores in Liverpool

By Rachael Buttery

Liverpool has a wide variety of diverse bookstores, whilst the idea of a bookshop may bore some people, Liverpool is studded with some incredible, unusual and diverse stores that are one of a kind to the city. Here are seven of the best bookstores in the city that you may or may not have heard of.

1. Henry Bohn's Books

By Rachael Buttery

Located near the Liverpool Empire Theatre, this time capsule is far more than just a book shop. Henry Bohn’s has stood strong in the city centre for 25 years and is arguably hard to compete for its affordable prices. Henry Bohn’s has an endless array of genres but mainly taking a nod to the old times. From biographies of historical figures to antiquarian and modern classics. It is particularly applaudable for its wide range of non- fiction in arts and culture, which coincides perfectly with their large array of vintage CD’s and vinyl records. This book shop itself looks like a set from a 1940’s romance film, its comforting in its old ways and is a perfect place to go for anyone wanting a trip down memory lane.

2. Aldous Books

By Rachael Buttery

This family-owned bookstore is a second- hand book shop that is found in the heart of Liverpool’s arts and culture hub, the Blue Coat on School Lane. This family-owned business is fueled by a father and his children’s collective love for giving used books a second chance. They hold a range of vintage books that are collections of art, some from the 1970’s, as well as one of a kind- children’s books from the 80’s. The beauty of this shop is their appreciation for the physicality’s of the books they sell; every book seemed to have a spine more unusual then the last, and almost everything felt that it was the only one of its kind that exists. Aldous Books is perfect for the art lover who can appreciate the strange and unusual and might take a liking to collecting one- off novels.

3. Worlds apart

Although not entirely a book store, this hidden gem is a great place to explore the old and new world of the ultimate escapism- comic books. The store offers an array of comics from superhero classics from the infamous worlds of Marvel and DC, but is also a great place for comic lovers to find one of a kind collectables and has a choice of over 50 publishers of comics, so you're bound to find one you've never heard of. The shop is glittered with all weird and wonderful gadgets and sci- fi collectables. Its a perfect place to find something new and explore the world of sci- fi.

4. Reid of Liverpool

By Rachael Buttery

Reid of Liverpool is the last surviving Georgian purpose-built retail in the entire city. Built in 1785, the location of the shop alone represents the pinnacle of Liverpool’s history and culture. Just on the outside of the knowledge quarter, small green building sits humbly on Mt Pleasant Road, a road that is studded with unique coffee shops and cafes amongst Georgian buildings and faces John Moores university’s John Foster building, which used to be an old nunnery. The shop doesn’t conform to one particular genre of read, but mainly offers educational literature and novelty reads on the most obscure and niche topics of History.

By Rachael Buttery

5. Messrs. Fletchers and Frost

Although this bookshop isn’t specifically in Liverpool, it is in the neighboring town just across the River Mersey, New Brighton. Messrs. Fletchers and Frost only began in April of this year but have already become a community favorite. Peter Frost makes sure there is always a wide variety of events from knitting classes to intimate poetry readings from up-and-coming modern writers. This book shop is the most modern and forthcoming of all the bookshops in this list, it looks forward and celebrates new writers, with fiction of all genres sitting in the middle of the shop whilst biographies, political and modern cultural reads sit on the surrounding four walls. Messrs. Fletchers and Frost is for a reader who wants to read about the now, and discover some new imagination.

6. Happily Ever After

The Happily Ever After bookshop is the nook to find if you have a soft spot for all things romantic. The small but mighty book collection is happily tucked away in the Baltic Market but offers a huge array of romance novels. The shelves are packed with a range of books from indie authors to TikTok hyped authors such as Rebecca Yarros. The owners Lana and Stewart started the shop in hopes to break the stigma around romance novels and embrace the big but perhaps introverted community of readers. Although this bookstore is a niche of its own kind, it’s a great place to reading more modern things and enjoy a fairy-tale ending.

7. Literally...

By Rachael Buttery

Also located at New Brighton, this bookshop is just opposite New Brighton train station, so is very accessible from the city. This store began as small Tupperware boxes dotted around the town full of books that where free to take during the pandemic in 2021. It since then has became a small but mighty bookstore, filled with books that specialize in Liverpool's history and culture, they offer literature on Liverpool docks history to just about anything to do with The Beatles. They also offer vintage collectables like original Beano comics dating back to the 1950's and short reads about literature lords like Oscar Wilde. This is a great place to visit and explore the seaside neighbor of the city of Liverpool.

By Rachael Buttery