Publication date UK format 6/10/22 book 243 pages
I would like to thank the author, publishers and Netgalley for allowing me to pick this to read and review. all my reviews are honest.
Synopsis
Seeking a Christmas present for that bibliophilic relative who has seemingly read everything? It's right here.' Financial Times
'Peculiarly hilarious!' - William Gibson
'Every page is a pleasure' - Lindsey FItzharris
'Utterly charming' - Tom Holland
'Unfortunately I have mislaid the book in question' - Neil Gaiman
Welcome to Sotheran's, one of the oldest bookshops in the world, with its weird and wonderful clientele, suspicious cupboards, unlabelled keys, poisoned books and some things that aren't even books, presided over by one deeply eccentric apprentice.
Some years ago, Oliver Darkshire stepped into the hushed interior of Henry Sotheran Ltd on Sackville Street (est. 1761) to interview for their bookselling apprenticeship, a decision which has bedevilled him ever since.
He'd intended to stay for a year before launching into some less dusty, better remunerated career. Unfortunately for him, the alluring smell of old books and the temptation of a management-approved afternoon nap proved irresistible. Soon he was balancing teetering stacks of first editions, fending off nonagenarian widows with a ten-foot pole and trying not to upset the store's resident ghost (the late Mr Sotheran had unfinished business when he was hit by that tram).
For while Sotheran's might be a treasure trove of literary delights, it sings a siren song to eccentrics. There are not only colleagues whose tastes in rare items range from the inspired to the mildly dangerous, but also zealous collectors seeking knowledge, curios, or simply someone with whom to hold a four hour conversation about books bound in human skin.
By turns unhinged and earnestly dog-eared, Once Upon a Tome is the rather colourful story of life in one of the world's oldest bookshops and a love letter to the benign, unruly world of antiquarian bookselling, where to be uncommon or strange is the best possible compliment.
My Review
This was a brilliant book. I enjoyed it so much . This author wrote this book with some brilliant whit. I just had to finish this book in one sitting as I couldn't put it down. If you ever wondered what working in a book shop for rare books is like then this book is definitely for you. I definitely recommend reading this book. It was obvious from reading this book that there was never a dull moment in this bookshop. Set in a side street in the centre of London it certainly gas some strange and wonderful people visiting the shop. It was so interesting and I especially loved reading the story a out when the council paid a visit for there inspection. I could definitely relate to some of the annoying customers as I too would be smelling the books or pop in to walk around. There are just a world of amazing things. The authors writing was amazing and I loved this page turning book. It was so much fun reading the tale of the book that had been in the shop the longest. Although the author has finished working in that shop I do hope if he is still working on the book industry that he carries on writing books as I would love to read more books from this author.
So much praise goes out to the author and publishing team for bringing us this fantastic book. It was so interesting learning about life in rare bookshop.
Where you can buy this book
Amazon US K $14.99, HC $27.95
Waterstones HC £14.99
Google Books EB £7.99
B&N HC $27.95, EB $20.99
Kobo EB £7.99, AUDIO £9.99
Amazon UK K £7.99, AUDIBLE, HC £10.49
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