things change

Scarborough already has a few places for book-browsing; a decent Waterstones for new books, and several second-hand bookshops.

The cramped Mrs Lofthouses Secondhand Book Emporium may make you sneeze, but is worth a visit for the huge number of books. Curiously there is only ever a gentleman there – Mr Lofthouse?

I prefer the small collection of second-hand books upstairs at Taylor’s Café & Books. It’s also a very nice café, particularly if there is space in the front area.

Scarborough really does need sprucing up and the arrival of an independent bookshop is encouraging and also a little surprising.  Wardle & Jones Books has only been open for a couple of weeks.

It’s a very small (compact?) bookshop with small seating areas, inside and outside, for coffees and cakes. It’s very pleasant, the owner was charming, and I came away with a couple of novels (The Aftermath by Rhidian Brook and A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman).

[Looking at the front covers, one is ‘The International Bestseller’, the other ‘The Million-Copy Bestseller’. Oh dear, these would normally frighten me off. I hope the hype turns out to be justified].

Good luck to Wardle & Jones Books, of Scarborough.