The Diary of a Bookseller

One of my favourite comedies from the early '00's was Black Books, a comedy set in a second hand book shop and starring Dylan Moran as a misanthropic book seller who hates people and drinks copious amounts of wine. This is the book equivalent to that comedy, and I absolutely loved it.

The book outlines a year in the life of Shaun Bythell, owner of The Book Shop, and his daily interactions with customers and excursions to source books. It's never pretentious, and often very, very funny. I particularly warmed to shop assistant Nicky, who is basically described as a wombling Jehovah's Witness, who often turns up to her shifts in the book shop in an all in one black ski suit with an accompanying assortment of food found in the skip behind Morrisons. The daily struggle with customers was also very funny and informative - I gained a particular fondness for regular customer Mr Deacon, but ultimately reminded me that I never want another career in retail!

The book serves as a great insight into the dying breed of booksellers, and provided a lot of information about books that I didn't know, such as books published before 1501 known as 'incunabula'. I liked the little excerpts from George Orwell which proceeded every month too, as they provided some cohesiveness to the structure of the book and made it feel less like a traditional diary.

I think the only section I didn't enjoy was where the author got sidetracked talking about fishing for a few pages in August. Again, they only lasted a few pages, but they felt a little bit out of place.

In all honesty, I think this is one of the best books I've read this year, and has had me heartily reminiscing about the old book shop that I use to frequent as a youngster. Now, unfortunately, it's been turned into a pub (!) but this book proves just how vulnerable and invaluable book shops are in our country since the rise of the ebook and major retailers. My only regret is that I read this on my kindle, but make no mistake, I'll be buying the hardback.

This is so funny. So, so funny. Anyone with even the slightest experience of 2nd hand bookshops will find empathise, anyone with any experience with small communities will cry with laughter. There's a bit when an unwanted admirer dies that made me laugh so hard I woke up the cat. There's one big and rather serious problem though, which is that the book is already incredibly dated, and it's not published until October. By the time of release a lot of the events will be over 3 years old and the industry moves fast. He talks at length of his belief in the end of the physical book. 2 years of data and sales growth already show this is unlikely to happen anytime soon.

As someone who has worked in the book trade (retail and libraries) there was much I could relate to in this book and I was very envious with how rude Shaun gets away with being to his customers. I think that this will be a bit niche but people who like diaries / blogs-to-books will love this

Shaun Bythell owns The Bookshop, Wigtown – Scotland’s largest second-hand bookshop. It contains 100,000 books, spread over a mile of shelving. This is his diary of a year running his bookshop, ably assisted by a series of characters, both staff and customers. It is very funny and Shaun has a knack of penning descriptions of the customers who frequent his shop, form Mr Deacon who orders his books in person, rather than online through to the inane questions asked by customers who think they are funny, with such gems as ‘I can’t find anything to read in here’ and ‘It is cheaper online’.

You also get an insight into how hard it is to keep a second hand bookshop going with the mighty Amazon and eBooks/Kindle changing the book market place dramatically over the past few years. When he bought the bookshop in 2001 we had the Net Book Agreement (NBA) and chain retailers like Dillons, Ottakers and Borders, who have all gone now, plus eBooks were just starting to make an impact (there is a YouTube clip of him taking a shotgun to a Kindle and mounted in the shop – ironic for me as I read the book on my Kindle!).

He is ably assisted/hindered by his one full time member of staff Nicky, who leads a novel way of life that includes raiding the local Morrisons bins for ‘Foodie Friday’. You get an insight into the world of assessing and buying book collections, usually after the death of a family member and can read the passion he has when he discovers a rare book or one beautifully bound and/or illustrated. The bookshop itself is used for events, including an annual literary festival and even has a bed in it, which makes a change from the usual coffee outlet found in a chain bookshop.

Having worked in a bookshop (okay it was WHSmith’s but I was the Book Department Manager), I can relate to his perceived rudeness to some of his customers. As he says in the book he can get away with it as he owns the shop, sadly others in retail have to accept the insults and sarcastic comments some customers can send your way. He is never overly rude though, just to those that deserve it.

Reading this book wants you a) to read many of the books he recommends and b) visit his bookshop, if only to meet some of the customers like Mr Deacon and the owner himself. If you have any interest at all in books, do read this as it will reinforce your love of books and bookshops.

I love stories set in a bookshop be it romance or murder or any other genre. A stack of books in the background will always make me want to read the story. This, however, is not a story but a diary kept over a period of a year by the owner of a second hand bookshop in Wigton. I thoroughly enjoyed it and, as I have spent a large part of my working life dealing with the public and am always astonished at their rudeness/stupidity/ fill in as appropriate, so I had to laugh at some of the stories the author told. There are nice helpful and generous visitors as well I hasten to add.

Trouble is with a book like this you wonder just how much of it is really true and really happened and how much is adding 'verisimilitude to an otherwise bald and unconvincing narrative'. I mean, not everybody can be mad or eccentric or colourful as they seem to be here, particularly his assistant in the shop. It was years after reading the James Herriot books that we readers learned that some of the tales told were embroidered somewhat. No problem with that really but that is ok if it is fiction, not so much if it purports to be non-fiction.

However, no matter I really enjoyed this and it made me laugh so that surely is the best recommendation?

Rich and varied tale of the tough world of bricks and mortar booksellers.

Having visited Shaun's bookshop it was easy to picture both the shop, Wigtown and the beautiful Galloway countryside. Ok that's the end of the tourism promo, now the review.

The books is a concise and well written read with Shaun dispensing many fascinating literary facts, bookseller anecdotes and observations on his varied and often eccentric clientele and staff. I love the random book club concept.

Whilst the stories can a little repetitive he does gives a great insight into the world of the second hand bookseller and the irresistible domination of the market by amazon which makes my review here somewhat ironic as Goodreads is owned by amazon.

The chapters are headed by Orwell quotes from when he worked in a bookshop which are a nice touch and the narrative naturally follows the ebbs and flows of the seasons as sales peak and trough throughout the year.

If you are ever in the Wigtown area I'd highly recommend Shaun's bookshop for a visit but don't dare his wrath by leaving without a purchase - very hard to do in my experience.

If you'd like to see some of the characters involved search for "readers delight" on YouTube and do follow them on Facebook.

Will this be published as an ebook?, well my review copy was, but at least I read it on a kobo rather than a kindle.

I was provided this book free by the publishers via netgalley but was not obliged to write a positive review.

Meet Shaun Bythell, the owner of Scotland’s largest second- hand bookshop called ‘The Bookshop’ and is located in Wigtown which is in the Dumfries and Galloway region of Scotland and is also home to the Wigtown Book Festival which runs from 22nd September to 1st October this year. In Shaun’s bookshop he has a few books in fact over 100,000 books. This must be the closest thing to book heaven you can get. Shaun has been keeping a diary since taking over Wigtown bookshop and Diary of a Bookseller is an extremely funny and humorous look at life running a large bookshop.

Someone once said to me that second-hand bookshops are were books go to die. I completely disagree with that comment and when you read Diary of a Bookseller you will come to see what joy Shaun brings to his work. There are some very funny stories from his diary of customers and his staff and not to mention the bookshop cat. Shaun’s witty diary entries are a joy to read as he goes about running his bookshop. On the miles of bookshelves there are books on every subject, it would be hard to think that anyone would dare say they cannot find anything to read, so you would think. Then there is his assistant Nicky who just leads an interesting life. Each time I visit my local Morrisons store I will think of Nicky. You have to read to understand this.
Then there are the trials and tribulations of running a bookshop let alone a second-hand bookshop. That word ‘Amazon’ keeps cropping up. Over the last few years we have seen digital books taking a slice of the market so Shaun has had to cope with the ever changing reading habits of the buying public. There is nothing better than holding a ‘real’ book in your hands books are meant to be held and read from page to page not switched on or off. Just don’t mention eBooks to Shaun Bythell. Some of us have seen the clip of him taking his shotgun to an eReader.

If you have read and enjoyed The Bookshop Book by Jen Campbell then you will love The Diary of a Bookseller by Shaun Bythell. Just makes me want to work I a bookshop and sell books all day. It is written by a man who clearly has a passion for books and selling books. It is an ode to second-hand bookshops everywhere. I just loved this wonderful book. Now what did I do with that Kindle?

A big thank you to NetGalley and the author for an ARC of this book.

I honestly wasn't sure what to expect - my 'go to' genre is mysteries, and this definitely isn't a mystery (unless it's why Nicky insists that what she gets from the Morrison's skip is still 'food'). I didn't realise this was based on an actual bookstore - have since Googled it and made a mental note that it's somewhere I need to visit - or actual bookseller and it did take me a few pages to grasp the diary structure. Once I did though, I thoroughly enjoyed it! Anyone who is/has been a bookseller can relate to varying degrees about the interactions with customers and their sometimes quirky and unusual requests and comments. I know I can certainly think of a few of my own!

I admit, as an avid Amazon user, that I was unaware of the 'trickle down' - or rather, the non-trickle down - effect it has on the bricks and mortar independent bookshops. I still frequent the independents as and when I can, but I suppose the convenience of Amazon is part of its lure. But I have a greater appreciation for how difficult it must be to co-exist with a behemoth like Amazon, which is simply not interested in competition. Particularly for someone who has spent a large portion of his life focused on both books and his community, and bringing the two together in this small town in a rather remote part of Scotland.

I found this book thoroughly enjoyable; it was funny, thoughtful, and entertaining, with endearing characters and some tear-your-hair-out ones. (less)

Really enjoyed the book, fascinating look at the behind the scenes workings of a second hand bookshop. Funny too!

I thought this was a highly amusing and informative book as it steps behind the scenes at The Bookshop in Wigtown, which is a second hand bookstore in Scotland. The owner, Shaun Bythell, recollects the past year as the owner and all that entails - the highs, the lows, the weird customers, the onslaught of Amazon and its' practices, the funny and stressful sides of a booksellers life and how he gets his revenge on those who browse his shelves and then claim they can get the book cheaper elsewhere - when he knows they can't!!

There is a real warmth in the way that he writes and it had me chuckling on many occasions and it just sounds like my idea of heaven to visit! It has even prompted me to join the Random Book Club that the bookshop runs so can't wait for my books to start arriving!!

For all those of us who love reading and love rummaging through old bookstores of which there are far too few nowadays! Save the secondhand bookshops!!

A good read, and definitely a bookshop I plan to visit. More detailed review on my blog; link below.

The Diary of a Bookseller by Shaun Bythell

Never before has a Diary ostensibly about such mundanity been quite so engaging and laugh out loud hilarious. This is a book for readers who love to hide themselves away in the shelves, for the reader questing for more than the Tesco or Waterstones bestsellers lists, it is for the cantankerous and the adventurous. In short a delight!

This book is, as it says on the cover, a diary of a year in a secondhand bookseller’s life. On the factual side we are told how much the till took each day and how many online orders the shop received (and was able to supply) – this gives quite an insight into how financial vulnerable small independent retailers are. But the bits that I, and many others by the look of the reviews, really enjoyed was the no-holds-barred account of each day’s interactions with staff, neighbours and customers (both the paying kind and the looky-loos). I’m sure anyone who has ever worked in retail has had ‘moments’ where they have been confused, amused or shocked by the comments and reactions of customers – although I don’t think many could describe these interactions as amusingly as Bythell does. Not always in the most polite way (especially when talking about some of his staff) but with honesty, wit and a fair amount of dark humour. Think Black Books and you won’t go far wrong. What does shine through though is the love of the job itself – buying in stock, working with authors and helping people to find the books they want (even if they didn’t know what that book was) – and of reading. I’m a little bit jealous of Bythell’s life – the job, the beautiful part of the country he lives in and the community he is a part of – but his sales figures make me worried that it’s a life that is under threat. The best thing I can think of to do is to plan a return trip to Galloway – taking lots of book-buying cash with me. It’s a tough job, but I think I could manage it…

This whole web based malarkey is beyond me but I am going to recommend this title in store everyday until I retire, Thanks for writing the truth about book selling , warts and all !

As soon as I saw this book I NEEDED to read it. I suppose because in my other imaginary life, the one far from my real one this is what I have always thought I would love to do, be a bookseller or just simply work in a book store. On putting this book down, yes the imaginary me would still like to do it but boy it would be more a challenge than I thought! ha!. I found this diary hilarious, the quirky, weird and wacky customers, repetitive jokes and great personality of Shaun (I wish he was my pal😁). On the other hand though I really felt for him as he tells of the struggle to compete against online booksellers and customers often wrong perceptions that his books are more expensive.
A great escape and insightful diary. I found it totally fascinating and I'm sure any book worm would enjoy it too!.
My thanks go to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this arc.

In Scotland the lives a book shop with a wonderfully sarcastic owner, weird customers and slightly offbeat staff, this diary is so good that I am seriously considering a road trip up there to try and become a squatter in the shop among all the books.

I won't be allowed to live there any other way unless I become a squatter and try to claim squatters rights, I need to do some research about that to see if it's a feasible plan *strokes chin while thinking*

I this in a couple of sittings as I didn't want it to end and don't know why it's taken me this long to review it, naughty me.

*Huge thanks to Shaun Bythell, Serpent's Tail, Profile Books and NetGalley for this copy which I chose to read and all opinions are my own*