About three weeks ago, I decided to go on an impromptu trip to Cambridge with my roommate.
I thought I had never been (though my parents told me I've been plenty of times when I was little) and wanted to see what kind of city it was and what kind of bookstores they have!
So I present to you a special bookstore review: the bookstores I visited in Cambridge.
Heffers
The first - and my favorite shop of Cambridge - is Heffers bookstore. Now, the name is super weird but don't let that put you off from an amazing store! I took so many pictures there, that I've put them into a slideshow to make sure this whole post is not only pics!
Doesn't it look pretty? That's my roommate modelling some things for you guys :)
The best part of Heffers was the amazing Young Adult section. They had so many YA books there and most of them in both hardcover and paperback. I'm still on my bookbuying ban, so I behaved, but it was very hard!
Recommended for: I'll recommend Heffers for people who like popular books and good deals because they're cheap. It's also perfect for an afternoon with children (just look at that kid's section!).
Waterstone's
It is no secret that I have a weak spot for Waterstone's, so being in Cambridge I just had to check out their store.
What I learned is that every Waterstone's in Britain looks alike - they just vary in sizes. But that doesn't mean I loved this store any less, because they're just all awesome. I always look at the classics in Waterstone's, because I feel like they always have an amazing collection.
And this store didn't disappoint! SO MANY CLASSICS. ALL SO PRETTY. Especially those gorgeous metallic Fitzgerald books you can see in the front there. I love those. Overall, this store was smaller than Heffers and not that impressive for me because I have Waterstone's Piccadilly on my doorstep, but they still have AMAZING books.
Recommended for: People who are used to the Waterstone's system and people who are looking for many editions of a classic novel!
Cambridge University Bookshop
Now this bookshop is a little bit different - it's an academic bookshop and I mostly went in there to see if I could find anything that would help me with this Shakespeare essay I have to write.
(The weather took a turn, so all the pictures are darker!) This bookshop was closer to the schools and it was such a different store than I expected because it did not just have academic books, but also 'normal' reading books.
In that picture for example, you can see an early version of The Great Gatsby by Fitzgerald (the red and black book on the top)! How cool! I almost bought it, but the 40 pounds that it cost just completely put me off. It's still really cool to see though.
Recommended for: non-suprisinhly, I would recommend this store for academics, students or people who want to continue learning. Or anyone who's looking for a special book.
G. David Bookseller
Now the wildcard of the bunch: a second hand bookshop hidden in a small street in Cambridge.
That's all you can see from the store, so you really have to look for it. I found it online right before we left and decided that I had to see it. And I wasn't disappointed.
These are just a few of the gorgeous books that were outside and the inside was even crazier. I couldn't take any pictures, because it was so small and so busy, but there are just books everywhere! Old books, new books, popular books, barely known books - you can find everything here.
And I did break my bookbuying ban in this store:
I have a weak spot for the orange Penguin classics and Little Women is one of my mother's favourite classics, so I have wanted it for a while already and this one is just perfect. It's classic and gorgeous and a nice size to carry in my bag - I'm in love with it!
Recommended for: I'd recommend this store for people that don't mind digging for their books. It's pretty unorganised so make sure you have time to explore the whole store. If you do, you might find a pretty special book in there!
So with the breaking of my bookban, it was also the end of the Cambridge trip. I'm sure there are a lot more bookshops in Cambridge, but I only had a day so these are the ones I saw. If you're ever going to Cambridge, you should definitely visit all four of these and let me know what other bookstores there are!