‘The best way to discover hidden gems': why you should try out a bookshop crawl
We've all heard of bar crawls, but what about a bookshop crawl? The premise is essentially the same – you hop from venue to venue – but instead of drinking beers you browse books. Having begun as a trend among TikTok users, mainly in the US, the idea has begun to be adopted across the globe.
There are a few 'official' ways to try it out for your yourself: Bookshop Crawl UK organises the London Bookshop Crawl, as well as crawls across the country, Bristol Walkfest has organised a walking tour of the city's numerous indies, and in April, the Chicagoland Bookstore Crawl ran an event for Independent Bookstore Day which rewarded participants who visited 10 shops on the day with 10% discount on books for the rest of the year. And the Global Book Crawl runs an annual event with 17 participating countries, from Ireland to Fiji.
But mostly, bookshop crawls are much more casual affairs, with groups of friends or individuals using them as a way to explore a city and find their new favourite bookish spot. In this spirit, on a recent trip to London, I decided to take myself on a solo crawl. First, I checked out New Beacon Books in Finsbury Park, which is the longest running Black-owned bookstore in the UK, then went to Camden Town Bookshop and Primrose Hill Books. I loved exploring different parts of London and was able to pick up not only newer books that were on my to-read list but also older editions of childhood favourites – such as Jacqueline Wilson's The Illustrated Mum, which I picked up in an Oxfam in Bloomsbury for about £2. It felt like a real treat to spend a full day drinking iced coffee and browsing bookshops – and definitely something I'll be doing in future when I visit a new city.
It was also helpful to have the specific goal of seeking out independent bookshops – so often when I'm looking to buy a book I just head to Waterstones or Foyles on autopilot. But indies can offer a sense of community and individuality that many of the big chains can't, and are often beautiful, relaxing spaces to be in.
American TikTok influencer Eden Yonas says she has had 'the best time' doing bookshop crawls when visiting new places. They are 'an amazing way to prioritise indie bookstores that you may not visit in your day-to-day life,' she says.
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Fleur Sinclair, owner of Sevenoaks Bookshop in Kent, and president of the Booksellers Association, says book crawls are a great way to 'explore your local community and support local high streets' but also to find unique shops.
Independent bookshops 'have handwritten reviews, an eclectic taste. We have the autonomy to have the books that we want to have, to celebrate what we want to celebrate and I hope that young people really love them and enjoy celebrating that individuality with all these book crawls,' she added.
The only drawback of doing a book crawl is that, tempted by so many amazing books on sale, 'you can very quickly end up with more books than bookshelf space,' Bex Hughes, founder and executive director of Bookshop Crawl UK says. 'Other than that, there are no downsides!'
'Oftentimes, the bookstores we go to are based solely on convenience,' Yonas says. 'Putting aside the time on a weekend or a day off work to just say 'here's a list of places I'm going to check out, no matter how far or close' is the best way to discover those hidden bookshop gems and give them the support that they deserve.'
Independent Bookshop Week is run by the Booksellers Association and will take place from 14-21 June
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