Right up until Christmas the
Books Are My Bag campaign is running to celebrate bookshops; our bookshops are under threat and it would be simply awful to see them all disappear from the highstreet. I have so many incredibly fond memories of visiting bookshops with my mama when I was small, being allowed to choose a book, which took me a while each time - I was very particular and the story I chose at the time had to be just right, taking it to the till and proudly carrying the bag out of the shop & all the way home. This is something I hope I can do with my own children one day, when the time comes. We visited the local library often too, but there was something extra special to me about the books that I owned, they were mine and I still have the really special ones to this day.
I've seen so many of my favourite book-tubers mentioning the campaign and I really wanted to get involved! I popped to my nearest
Waterstones (which is admittedly not particularly local - one downside of living in the countryside!), wandered around for a little while and I bought some books, taking full advantage of the buy one get one half price offer. I do love a bargain and sure, I probably could have found them for less money online, but this time that didn't matter. There were so many books I could have bought but in the end I went for
A Question Of Identity by Susan Hill and
The Perks of being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky.
A Question Of Identity is a book I picked up initially because I really love the cover, with its dark & moody colours and the street light illuminating the snow covered scene. It looked like a book I would like and I think I will because I've been wanting to read a few more crime/mystery books. This sounds like it has a bit of an extra twist, when they find someone they think could be a suspect, he doesn't seem to exist! From what I've seen online this is the 7th installment in a series (although the books stand alone) and I'm excited to start reading, I've never read anything by Susan Hill & if I love it I have a feeling I'll try to track down the other 6 books in the series. I might save this one for the end of the month, for Halloween.

For my second book I was inspired by the quote on the Waterstones bags; 'A book worth reading is worth buying' and I couldn't agree more. I first read The Perks of being a Wallflower when I was in my early teens and like many, it was a book that really resonated with me. In the intervening years my copy got mislaid, or someone borrowed it and never returned it, I'm not sure, but either way I wanted to have it in my growing book collection & to read it again. Well, I read this again yesterday in about three hours and I was instantly transported back to my teenage years. This is a book I will always read with a hint of nostalgia but I loved it as much as I did the first time around, all those years ago!
Do you love bookshops?
Love, Jennie
xoxo
I was just the same when I was small! I used to love visiting bookshops, they are very peaceful and relaxing I think. <3 xxx
ReplyDeleteThey are <3
DeleteI love buying books too and like you I know I could buy much (much!) cheaper online but I'd hate to see our local bookshops shut down so I do spend that extra to support them. Waterstones is my favourite and when they used to do their amazing 3 for 2 offer I'd find myself buying 3 books every month, however now it's buy one get one half price that doesn't seem to attract me as much, I don't know why that is? But I'm totally supporting this campaign and I'll be enjoying a good few blustery cold mornings sniffing out a good read in a cosy bookshop :) x
ReplyDeleteClaire | AgentSmyth
It's a shame they don't do that offer anymore! I really like Waterstones too, will definitely be making more of an effort to visit a little more often! xo
DeleteI love getting new books to read and review. -Hanna Marie
ReplyDeleteIt's the best <3
DeleteI've always been the biggest reader and my friends can't believe how quickly I tear through them. I bought a Kindle in the summer (possibly the antithesis of fond memories of going to the bookshop with my mum too!) but I've found that I'm discovering more books than ever because I just wasn't making it to the shop/library these days! I still make a point of buying books as gifts from the teeny shop in my parents' hometown; and can think of nothing better than curling up with a book this weekend!
ReplyDeleteBecks xo
thenotsosecretdiary.com
Aww that's lovely! I wish we had a little bookshop where I live! xo
DeleteI love books but I never seem to find enough time to read them these days! I love The Perks of Being a Wallflower x
ReplyDeleteLife definitely gets in the way a lot! xo
DeleteI love bookshops though it is cheaper to buy online!I definitely need to buy a few new reads soon xx
ReplyDeleteOh it absolutely is, I am going to start making more regular visits to bookshops though <3
DeleteI love bookshops and proper books, but whilst studying abroad I've invested in a kindle so I can keep up to date with English stories without weighing down my suitcase on journeys to and from Paris!
ReplyDeleteAny recommendations are much appreciated :) I've actually never read either of these books (I know... who hasn't read 'Perks'! so they may have to be my next download!)
Keep in touch :)
Andrea
www.lanouvellenoire.com xxx
Ooh there are so many I could recommend. Give Perks a go, it's one of those books you might just fall head over heels for. Recently I've enjoyed Coco's Secret, The Cuckoo's Calling and Gone Girl xo
DeleteThis is such a nice idea :) I love bookshops x
ReplyDeleteunderbluelights.blogspot.co.uk
They're lovely <3
DeleteI love The Perks of Being a Wallflower, it's become one of my favourites since I've read it last year. I love browsing through all the shelves in bookshops, I could dissapear in there for hours.
ReplyDeletePerfect way to spend an afternoon <3
DeleteThese sound like great choices & the first one looks perfect for cosy Autumn reading! I love books, the smell, the weight, everything, and this campaign sounds really worthwhile. Call me old fashioned but I could never read an e-book, has to be the real thing in my eyes!
ReplyDeleteSophie <3 soinspo
I can't get on with reading on a kindle, I'm not sure why, I think I love the feeling of a book too much! xo
Deletejust love The Perks Of Being A Wallflower. And I wish we had Waterstone´s in Sweden.. I just love the bookstore!
ReplyDeleteIt's such a lovely place to spend an afternoon <3
DeleteI love bookshops but I haven't bought a book from one in years! I get all of mine from charity shops. I still want to read The Perks Of Being A Wallflower though! xxx
ReplyDeleteI like looking in charity shops for books too, you never know what you're going to find! xo
Deletei am obsessed with books! I love reading and going to the bookstore.
ReplyDeleteI am going to be having loads of reviews on my blog soon :)
http://georgianicolaouetc.blogspot.co.uk
Aww yay! xo
DeleteI love bookstores but to be honest I buy most of my books online, the reason for that is that I read in English and Swedish bookstore don't have a good selection of books in English. But when I go traveling to English speaking countries I LOVE going to bookstores (and I buy quite a lot)!
ReplyDeleteOhh you talented multi-lingual person, you! I'm jealous, I wish i could read/speak another language! xo
Deletethis post has me aching to peruse through the aisles of a real bookshop. i've been cheating on true paperbacks with my kindle (which i got for convenience when i was living abroad) for too long now, i have to dust off my waterstones card and turn real pages. x
ReplyDeleteMiho @ Wander to Wonder
I wish I could get used to reading on a kindle, they're definitely very convenient and great for travel! xo
DeleteI could never have a kindle purely because I love having my own copy of the book to keep - visiting bookshops with my grandparents is something I've always loved to do :-) The perks of being a wallflower is one of my favourite books too! <3
ReplyDeleteMe too, I really love seeing my collection grow <3
DeleteI love bookshops (and books obviously), I love the smell of the bookshop- all those fresh books (sounds so dodgy) :s
ReplyDeleteWould be so sad to see them go
Daniella x
http://daniella-r.blogspot.co.uk
Haha I know what you mean! xo
DeleteI am also a lover of books but had no idea this was happening thanks for the heads up tomorrow I will be heading to the bookstore! x
ReplyDeleteAww yay! xo
DeleteI LOVE bookshops. When I was little my dad would take me to buy a new book whenever he came to visit. We still do this now; bookshop, pizza, cinema. Perfection! The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a great book. The film is good too. Emma. x
ReplyDeleteStyleMouth
Aww that's such a lovely little tradition, perfect combination! xo
DeleteA ton of bookshops I used to frequent have disappeared. This is a lovely campaign to support.
ReplyDeleteMacie,
Amen Fashion †
It's such a shame when one has to close! ox
DeleteWhat a great campaign. It breaks my heart that bookshops are slowly vanishing from our high streets and always try to buy there rather than online!
ReplyDeleteKatie & Kay xoxo
I'm definitely going to be popping in more often! xo
DeleteI love a good bookshop - I have a local waterstones which I genuinely adore the shop is well planned out, the kids section even has a cool fishtank :) and the staff are so friendly they take time to get to know you if you come in regularly and often ask how parts of my life are going that we might have discussed on my last visit - makes me feel very special and important!
ReplyDeleteMe and the family also visit a village about half an hour away where they have a community bookshop that's a second hand bookshop run by members of the village after their local bookshop was closing down and they fought to keep it they now run it together and they sell a range of books that are donated by the people who use the shop - I always take a few books with me if I am heading out there - I would hate to think the shop would have to close it's such a great idea.
x
That's so nice, I really love when the staff are super friendly and are genuinely interested in their job and getting to know their customers!
DeleteI also love hearing about community projects, people power really is amazing and I'm so glad their second hand bookshop is going strong <3
I admit that I am one of those people who find it so much easier to read on my kindle, but I still own several books and am adding to my collection. I haven't heard of this campaign but I will definitely be checking it out and heading to my local bookstore xx
ReplyDeleteI wish I could get on with reading on a kindle, I keep trying but it's not quite the same for me as a book! xo
DeleteI hadn't even heard of this campaign but am very much a book and printed word lover. Love the look of that first book - I haven't been able to enjoy a good book splurge in a while as my hometown's Waterstones closed down, and then we moved offices at work meaning the flagship store isn't downstairs anymore! Book nerd problems! x
ReplyDeleteOh no! You're overdue a book splurge for sure! xo
DeleteLove their new campaign & really hope bookstores are always gonna be here, I don't know what I'd do with my weekends if I couldn't go Waterstone's! O.o xx
ReplyDeleteI know, it wouldn't be quite the same! ox
DeleteI adore bookshops! I love taking my step-kids with their birthday money, and helping them choose a new book - they're always so excited :)
ReplyDeleteA Question of Identity sounds like a great read, I'd love if you did a review! :)
Jess xo
That's so lovely! I absolutely will once I've read it, I think it's going to be a good one! xo
DeleteThe perks of being a wallflower is so close to being my favourite book! Only just pipped to the post by A Certain Age by Rebecca Ray.
ReplyDeleteCharlotte - blotandreapply.com x
Ooh I've not read that, I'll pop it on my to-read list! xo
DeleteI'm guilty of buying most of my books online. Mainly because I'm picky about the covers because I hate film adaptation covers. But considering I loathe e-readers and love books and print publication so much, I think I should support bookshops more often than I do. There are always offers on a lot of options so there is no excuse.
ReplyDeleteThere's nothing quite as satisfying of spending hours in a bookshop, browsing and deciding. It's a great experience and I do hope it'll still be a possibility in the future.
Sej || What Would Grace Kelly Say
x
It's a lovely way to spend a rainy afternoon I think, I always wander in and find something unexpected! xo
DeleteI hate moving with books! I love reading, but if I owned every book I read... my library would be much greater than I care for!
ReplyDelete7% Solution
I'm the opposite, I'm dreaming of a home library one day ;) xo
DeleteI never buy them online because I love looking and feeling book in my hands before it becomes mine. There is really somethimng special about bringing a book home, like I have one more member of family :)x
ReplyDeleteThat is the most wonderful way of looking at it <3 <3
DeleteI need to use bookshops more often, I don't even have the excuse of buying them online for cheaper as there are quite a few second-hand bookshops nearby which can't be too expensive at all, need to give them a go!
ReplyDeleteI love looking for books in charity shops, you never know what you're going to find <3 xo
DeleteOoh that first book looks just my cup of tea!! Have you ever read any Dean Koontz? He's a bit hit and miss but some of his thriller type books are really amazing! I do LOVE a good book, and although I've just got a kindle I don't think anything will ever beat the feeling of actually holding a book, and turning that last page over, the excitement when you can see you're closer to the end (and despair) haha. I like buying second hand - My work has got a little library for donations to the hospital charity, love it :) xx
ReplyDeleteI haven't, but I'll look his work up of goodreads for sure! xo
DeleteWhat a great campaign, I will definitely support it! Bookshops are probably my favourite place to be. Just running my fingers along the spines of all the beautiful books and inhaling the woody smell of their pages, instantly calms me. My nickname as a child was Flossy because my Mum said if I didn't have my head in the clouds I had it stuck in a book, and yep that pretty much sums up my childhood! Even now book reading is my safe place x
ReplyDelete