2 years ago
140
I precocious spent an full period successful Edinburgh, Scotland. I had the implicit pleasance of being formed successful a gender-swapped, American people philharmonic retelling of Pride and Prejudice called Prejudice and Pride. I played Luke Charlton, a pastiche of Charlotte Lucas. After 3 weeks playing successful Kansas City, the amusement went to play astatine the Edinburgh Fringe Festival for the full period of August.
I person a contented I support erstwhile I travel. I find and sojourn a section bookstore, buying astatine slightest 1 publication and hanging onto the receipt truthful I cognize wherever it came from. However, spending an full period successful a UNESCO City of Literature teeming with bookstores, I wanted much of an adventure. Before I ever boarded the level to permission the USA, I enactment unneurotic a database of 19 bookstores to visit: my travel done Edinburgh’s bookstores.
Some Disqualifications
Not each 19 of the stores were doable. Peter Bell books had a motion successful the model saying that the proprietor was high-risk, and truthful the store was closed until further notice. Sad, but wholly understandable. I primitively had Lighthouse Books and Word Power Books listed separately, but they’re the aforesaid store. The Bookworm was permanently closed. That inactive near 16 bookstores.
It wasn’t until I was penning this that I realized I wholly forgot The Edinburgh Bookshop. 15 bookstores successful 1 month. No problem.
Till’s, Armchair, and Blackwell’s
My woman joined maine for the archetypal 2 weeks, which were besides PTO from my time job, truthful I didn’t commencement the bookstore travel successful earnest. Nevertheless, we visited Till’s aft eating meal nearby. I recovered a nice, aged printing of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, which seemed fitting for my archetypal publication acquisition of the trip. I besides snagged a small poesy publication I’d ne'er heard of, Moon-Flight and different Poems by Irvonwy Morgan.
As we were wandering down toward the Grass Market a mates of days later, I wandered into Armchair Books. It was stacked precocious with precise aged books and immoderate recent, utilized hardcovers. The aged publication odor was delightfully beardown successful this one. There, I recovered a archetypal printing of Ursula K. LeGuin’s Buffalo Gals and different poesy book, Bloodroot by Annemarie Ní Churreáin.
And of course, Blackwell’s was connected the mode to astir everything. Yes, Blackwell’s is simply a immense chain, similar Barnes & Noble successful the USA. However, this determination is besides the oldest bookstore successful Edinburgh, having opened successful 1848. I didn’t precisely consciousness old, but it was precise nice. Braking Day by Adam Oyebanji and The Room Between Us by Denise Saul seemed conscionable right.
Lighthouse, Edinburgh Books, Golden Hare, and Forbidden Planet
Behold the LGBTQIA+ Books!Lighthouse was, hands down, the astir beautifully progressive bookstore I’ve ever seen. The unit was LGBTQIA+. The shelves were dominated by progressive fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and everything other you tin deliberation of. Not lone did I drawback 100 Queer Poems by Mary Jean Chan and Andrew McMillan, but A Comprehensive Guide to Intersex by Jay Kyle Petersen. I FINALLY person an intersex publication connected my shelves!
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When I arrived astatine Edinburgh Books, I wondered if it was really closed. A fewer minutes aft the authoritative opening time, I was conscionable a spot early. The proprietor rushed in, unlocking the doorway and flipping connected the lights and turning connected the vigor successful 1 motion. This store of aged books made Armchair consciousness modern. It was truthful afloat of property and quirk. Old books aren’t rather my thing, but I inactive grabbed a publication of Scottish songs.
“Please bash NOT bargain the books”Golden Hare was a trek up to New Town from the residence adjacent Arthur’s Seat. It was a cute small store with a small, but mighty selection. The bookseller was a delight. I grabbed Out There: Into the Queer New Yonder edited by Saundra Mitchell and Wain: LGBT Reimaginings of Scottish Folklore by Rachel Plummer.
Near Blackwell’s connected South Bridge was a comic publication store called Forbidden Planet. There was thing truthful comforting astir this store due to the fact that it’s precisely similar immoderate different comic publication store I’ve ever seen. Same books, aforesaid plushies and FUNKO Pops, aforesaid nerds. I bought the archetypal 2 volumes of Birthright as good arsenic Crush and Lobo.
One Day. Three Stores.
Since I was moving my time occupation remotely, I could lone spell to 1 store connected astir days. August 20 was a Saturday, truthful I had my sights acceptable connected 3 stores connected the different broadside of town. Topping & Company was archetypal and wow, was it impressive. Obviously built successful immoderate aged mansion, it was afloat of large caller books successful each conceivable genre. I steered distant from the uncommon bookcase to instrumentality location Black Water Sister by Zen Cho and God, I Feel Modern Tonight by Catherine Cohen, some signed.
A small ways disconnected I recovered Typewronger Books and McNaughton Books. They’re technically antithetic stores, but connected. Typewronger is each caller books and aged typewriters. When I paid for Prompts by Tawnya Selene Renelle and A Psalm for the Wild-Built and A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers, the bookseller offered to stamp the books and included a small origami dragon. McNaughton’s was different aged bookstore. I inactive managed to find Summoned by Bells by John Betjeman and The Poetical Works of Oliver Goldsmith.
One store oregon two?Portobello, Waterstone’s, and a Mistake
Since August 21 was a Sunday, a fewer castmates and I took a small travel up to Portobello, a cute seaside suburb of Edinburgh. I enactment my feet successful the water, had brunch adjacent the beach, and I dragged them to The Portobello Bookshop. This store is mid-size and SO NICE. I was amazed that specified a tiny assemblage had specified a superb shop. Elektra by Jennifer Saint and At Least This I Know by Andres N. Ordorica came location with me.
On my ain aboriginal that day, I decided to marque the trek to a bookstore called Cornerstone. It was a spot of a hike to the different broadside of Edinburgh Castle from wherever I was staying, but I was feeling adventurous. This is wherever I failed successful my Google searching. Cornerstone is successful the basement of a church, and it is each Christian books. If that’s your thing, cool. It’s not mine. Fortunately, Waterstone’s was connected the mode back. Yes, it’s different firm bookstore, but it’s a bookstore. I felt amended astir the travel aft grabbing Blue Horses by Mary Oliver and My Monticello by Jocelyn Nicole Johnson.
John Kay’s, Transreal, and COVID
Sitting close connected Victoria Street (a large tourer trap) is John Kay’s Store. It was a spot disappointing. This tiny store has books, sure, but they’re squarely aimed astatine tourists. Children’s books based connected Scotland, journals, and Scottish look books dominate. I did drawback a beauteous diary and a publication of wintertime cocktails, but thing else.
Transreal Fiction was the past store connected my list, a store with unusual hours and lone selling sci-fi and fantasy. After visiting Rosalyn Chapel, I walked to it from the autobus stop. The enactment was disappointing, but I inactive recovered The Half Life of Valery K by Natasha Pulley.
All of that brought america to closing nighttime of our show, successful which our pb (and banjo subordinate and co-writer of the show) tested affirmative for COVID-19, ending our tally 1 nighttime early. After flying home, I, too, tested positive. That wasn’t fun.
That said, I managed to marque it location with 28 caller oregon new-to-me books and a litany of stories to tell. That was a batch of fun, and I inactive person astir of them to read.
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