When I meet my cousin in Sevenoaks, the childhood home for both of us, we go for a coffee, maybe mooch around a few shops and then have lunch. On this visit I was told ‘we’re going somewhere different for coffee.’ This turned out to be Sevenoaks Bookshop and it was a total delight. This is my first bookshop, the first one I have any memory of, the first one where I chose and bought my own books. This would have been circa 1958/9. I have only been there a few times in the last 60 years and definitely not recently.
The first delight is that it is still there, having opened in 1950. The second delight is that it remains independent, not Waterstones under another name, and thirdly it is obviously thriving. To make an independent bookshop financially viable is no mean feat in the days of the behemoth Amazon and of supermarkets slashing paperback prices. When I spoke to the lady at the cash desk she said that they worked very hard to engage with people. There were many author events advertised. At the start of Covid times the lease next door had become available and it was too good an opportunity to miss. This extra space is now a bright, inviting children’s area and a small coffee shop.
I did of course buy books on my unexpected visit. If one loves independent bookshops, as I do, then you have to financially support them. This goes without saying really. I realise that I still have 3 books that I purchased in Sevenoaks, this would be well over 60 years ago: Heidi, Heidi Grows Up and Heidi’s Children. They each cost 7/6d. They are translated by Charles Tritten and illustrated by Pelagie Douane. There were very many different editions of the Heidi books around then but I chose these specifically for the illustrations. I remember thinking they had a very Swiss feel about them. They worked perfectly with the story.
A total bookshop treat … and the coffee was good too.