The aptly named Harbour Books is situated on Harbour Street, tucked in amongst the various cafes and tempting frippery and vintage inspired shops that line this busy little street. On the day I visited the window was festooned with bunting and advertising for the Whitstable Literary Festival ‘ Whit Lit’ starting later that week.
Don’t be deceived by the deceptively small appearance from the outside. Once you cross the threshold of Harbour Books you will soon realise that this is a shop packed full of temptation for any self respecting bibliophile. All ages of childhood from the youngest to the oldest are well catered for with bountiful displays of children’s literature on the ground floor. The top floor is dedicated to non fiction, travel, history and reference books.
Although on this occasion I wasn’t shopping for children I did notice that prices started as low as £1.25 for a trusty Roger Hargreaves Mr Man book, and who doesn’t love a Mr Man Story. They also stock a reliable supply of Roald Dahl. The variety of adult titles is also wide with a good section of classics. On this visit I wasn’t able to find anything to satisfy my current Neville Shute craving but I did find plenty of other interesting authors and titles. Prices are very reasonable, starting at £2.99 for a good selection of contemporary fiction. For this bargain price I picked up a copy of The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides , a novel that has been on my ‘to read’ list for some time now. As I have an ever growing pile of books beside my bed I restricted myself to the one book on this occasion however my friend was able to buy a lovely selection of books to satisfy various literary requirements.
I am always drawn to stationery and in particular note books, and Harbour Books has a lovely choice of the latter. There are plenty of cards and post cards on offer too. Should you have the pleasure of being in Whitstable any time soon I would highly recommend a rummage around this lovely local book shop.
image via PInterest
