Shopping at local, independent bookshops is one of the best things about buying books. They work with local communities to make reading a fun, accessible hobby for everyone and the booksellers are friendly and genuinely passionate about reading! It’s one of the best alternatives to Amazon for buying books for this reason (and many more)! So for Independent Bookshop Week, I’ve put together the 10 best independent bookshops in London to browse and buy books from! Each bookshop has its own quirks and purpose that make them unique and a safe space for any book lover!
1. Skoob Books
📍66 The Brunswick off, Marchmont St, London WC1N 1AE
Skoob Books is a second-hand bookshop established in 1979. It was originally located in Neal St, Covent Garden but moved to the Brunswick, between Brunswick Square and Russel Square in 2008. I discovered Skoob Books when I couldn’t afford to buy a new version of The Crucible for my English GCSEs. I searched for second-hand bookshops in London, and Skoob Books was the first bookshop that popped up!
Skoob Books has a range of different books of different genres and over 70,000 titles in store. The basement location makes for a cosy environment and my personal favourite section of Skoob Books is the Penguins Classic bookshelves.
If you’re a book lover who is looking to shop second-hand, then Skoob Books is one of the best independent bookshops in London for second-hand books!
Opening times:
Mon-Sat – 10:30am-7:30pm
Sun – 10:30am-6pm
2. Upper Street Bookshop
📍42 Upper St, London N1 0PN
Upper Street Bookshop is a fairly new bookshop that opened in 2021 on Islington’s high street! What makes this one of the best independent bookshops in London isn’t just the colourful shelves and cute novelty items, but their blind date with a book stand sitting outside! For £8 you can buy a book without seeing its cover. It’s wrapped up like a gift and on the front, it has 4-5 clues as to what the book’s plot is about!
Opening times:
Mon-Sat – 9:30am-6:30pm
Sun – 11am-6pm
3. Book Bar
📍166 Blackstock Rd, London N5 1HA
If you’re a book and wine lover, then I know one of the best independent bookshops in London to tell you about! Book Bar was opened in 2021 on Blackstock Road, Islington by Chrissy Ryan, who wanted to create a social space for anyone who fancies sharing their love for books over a glass of wine.
Book Bar has an incredible range of diverse books, from world history and psychology to food + drink, gender + queerness, feminist theory and tons of fiction books. I love how they also include staff picks for different occasions, for example, staff picks celebrating queer writers and stories for Pride Month.
Another amazing feature of Book Bar is that they have a book cellar! It’s a cosy cellar featuring even more books and seats where you can read, study and chat with friends!
Book Bar also holds various events, including author events and their very own book club!
Opening times:
Mon – Closed
Tues – 10am-6pm
Wed-Sat – 10am-9pm
Sun – 10am-6pm
4. Ink@84
📍84 Highbury Park, London N5 2XE
Up the road from Book Bar is Ink@84! This is not only one of the best independent bookshops in London, but also, in my opinion, one of the prettiest bookshops in London! Notable by its beautifully decorated windows, Ink@84 was first opened in 2015 by artist, Tassa Shaw and author Betsy Tobin!
The reason I think Ink@84 is one of the prettiest bookshops in London isn’t just because they feature cute cards, candles and trinkets along with books. They also have a sliding library ladder! It’s my dream to have one of these when I have a library in my future forever home, so seeing one in Ink@84 got me so excited!
Ink@84 also hold events and workshops such as book launches, book clubs and novel writing workshops!
Opening times:
Mon-Sat – 10am-6pm
Sun – 12pm-5pm
5. The Common Press
📍118 Bethnal Green Rd, London E2 6DG
The Common Press is a bookshop that has a special place in my heart because it’s where I read my piece on the Sex Agenda Zine by Decolonising Contracapetion about my menstrual cup experience and how it helped me overcome period shame.
Located in Shoreditch, The Common Press is one of the best independent bookshops in London that celebrate queerness and intersectionality. If you asked me the definition of a safe space, The Common Press is the perfect example. The staff are lovely, there are study spaces and cosy corners and of course, the books include a range of stories and authors from marginalised backgrounds.
Attached to the bookshop is a cafe too where you can sit down and have a coffee over a book or with friends!
Opening times:
Mon – Closed
Tues-Sun – 10am-10pm
6. New Beacon Books
📍76 Stroud Green Rd, Finsbury Park, London N4 3EN
New Beacon Books is the UK’s only remaining independent Black publisher and bookseller. It was opened in 1966 by John La Rose and Sarah White and has a range of books mainly related to African, Caribbean, African American and Black British history, poetry, fiction, non-fiction and children’s books.
After the pandemic lockdowns, New Beacon Books were facing closure however, a fundraiser helped to keep it running and I’m so thankful that it’s still here. This just highlights how much of an impact independent bookshops have on the community and why it’s important to shop in them as opposed to unethical corporations.
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The booksellers at New Beacons Books are lovely and they’re always there for suggestions on any topic you’re interested in reading!
Opening times:
Mon-Wed – Closed
Thurs-Sat – 12pm-6pm
Sun – 12pm-5pm
7. Word on the Water
📍Regent’s Canal Towpath, London N1C 4LW
London’s book barge, Word on the Water isn’t only one of the best independent bookshops in London, but also one of the most unique bookshops in London. It quite literally is a bookstore on a barge with books ranging from Penguin classics to contemporary stories. It’s very cosy, with comfy seats where you can read and sometimes cute pups roaming around too!
Opening times:
Mon-Sun – 12pm-7pm
8. Round Table Books
📍Brixton Village, 73 Granville Arcade, Coldharbour Ln, London SW9 8PS
Round Table Books is a teeny tiny Black owned bookshop in Brixton Village that specialises in selling books only by diverse authors. The original bookshop started as a pop-up, celebrating the one year anniversary of KNIGHTS OF publisher. After so many positive responses, Round Table Books became a permanent space in Brixton Village.
What makes it one of the best independent bookshops in London is how passionate the booksellers are about diversity and social justice. Their passion bleeds through their book suggestions and you’ll walk out of there with tons of books that will change and/or grow your perspective!
Opening times:
Mon-Tues – 11am-5pm
Wed-Fri – 11am-5:30pm
Sat – 9:30am-5:30pm
Sun – 11am-5:30pm
9. Gay’s the Word
📍 66 Marchmont St, London WC1N 1AB
Gay’s the Word is one of the best independent bookshops in London as well as the oldest LGBTQ+ bookshop in the UK. It was opened in 1979 by a group of gay socialists from Gay Icebreakers as a community space where all profits were put back into the business. It still runs like this today, with an even wider range of LGBTQ+ books since 1979 and community events taking place such as book launches and book clubs!
Opening times:
Mon-Sat – 11am-6pm
Sun – 1pm-6pm
10. Housmans
📍5 Caledonian Rd, London N1 9DY
As someone who is passionate about inclusivity, diversity and decolonisation, Housmans is one of the best independent bookshops in London for all things radical thinking. Located in King’s Cross, it’s one of the UK’s longest-running radical bookshops, which opened in 1945 by Laurence Housman and a group of pacifists to promote human rights and peace.
Housmans remains a non-profit bookshop, specialising in books featuring pacifism, feminism, progressive thinking, Black politics, LGBTQ+ politics, and environmental justice but also children’s books, poetry and graphic novels. Additionally, they hold events relating to social justice!
Opening times:
Mon-Sat – 11am-6:30pm
Sun – 12pm-6pm
Book Shopping at The Best Independent Bookshops in London
As I said before, what makes this selection of bookstores the best independent bookshops in London is that they all have a quality and/or purpose that makes them unique and inclusive! So if you’re ever book shopping in London, I promise, these are the bookstores that are worth shopping at!
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