Indie Bookshop of the Month: March 2023- BookBar

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16 May

A bookshop and wine-bar… the best combo ever?!

BookBar is a space where old friends can meet and new friends can be made. Chrissy Ryan, creator and owner, says: “There is nothing better than sharing a good book. The joy of unravelling the characters and plot points with a friend over a glass of wine, hearing inspiring ideas at a book club, sharing in the community a love of reading inspires.”

BookBar encourages people to connect through books and meet at the bookshop’s events; live music, readings, wine tastings and even ‘read-dating’ - their very own version of speed-dating! And they serve coffee too.

See you at the BookBar!

When did you first open your doors?

April 2021.

Do you remember the first book you sold?

I don’t remember exactly what it was, but I think it was a children’s book! That first day was all a bit of a blur!

What has never gone out of stock (because it’s always popular).

Conversations on Love by Natasha Lunn, Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson, Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin, Assembly by Natasha Brown, Pachinko by Min Jin Lee.

Is there a book you’d refuse to sell?

That’s a great question, and one I think about quite regularly! We only have a limited amount of space and the most important thing is that we are friendly and welcoming, so when we’re choosing stock, that’s the priority.

Do you have a bookshop pet?

We don’t! But we have lots of wonderful animal customers, including some regular sausage dog vistors – Arnold, Ethel, Neville and Roxy.

What are you reading right now?

I’ve just started Small Worlds, the new novel by Caleb Azumah Nelson which is coming in May. It promises to be as beautiful as his first novel Open Water, which is one of my favourite books of the last few years – a love letter to south London and Black art. This one is about a dancer in a crisis of faith and it is gorgeous so far!

You are able to give one book to every child. Which title do you choose?

Noughts and Crosses by Malorie Blackman.

Best thing overheard in your bookshop?

We’re a wine bar as well as a bookshop and we open late, so we get lots of dates and meet ups, but I wouldn’t want to pry! It’s a small space, so it could be easy to listen in so I always turn up the music and tune out. BookBar is a really social space; we’ve had customers meet at our sharing table who get chatting about a book we’ve recommended or that’s on the shelf, and next thing you know they’re sharing a bottle of wine and heading to the restaurant next door for dinner! So, I guess the best conversations are the ones overheard between strangers as they bond over bookish conversation!"