Cover Image: Confessions of a Bookseller

Confessions of a Bookseller

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Member Reviews

This was such a fun and delightful read. I have always wanted to work in a bookshop so it was very interesting to get a proper insight as to what is involved. There were many parts reading this where I laughed out loud. I am definetly going to go back and read Shaun's first book.

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Confession of a Bookseller was funny, easy to read, and extremely entertaining. I hope there are more books by this author.

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Reliable funny and insightful. And grumpy. It’s easy to enjoy ther accounts of life in a second hand bookshop and I enjoy returning to the curmudgeonly world the author has created as a source of comfort reading.

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Are you the sort of person/reader who just cannot walk by a bookstore without going in? Have you ever dreamed about being the one to own the shop? Anyone who answers yes will want to give this title a look. It is an entertaining, sometimes curmudgeonly take, on what it means to be the one in charge.

The author owns a used bookshop in Scotland that I hope to visit one day!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Profile Books for this title. All opinions are my own.

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This isn't quite what I thought it was - I figured it would be more of a memoir with some literary styling added in, but it's more of a diary of the author's exploits as a bookseller. As such, I'm going to skip it....and hope someone does write a bookselling memoir! I'm sure this would be fun, but just not what I was looking for with it.

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Funnily enough I read a novel about the joy of physical books as an e-book. Oh well. But I do enjoy physical book and independent bookstores a lot, so this book was still for me.
„Confessions of a Bookseller“ is a funny and sweet story; the type of „easy read book“ that you gladly take with you on a holiday.
Shaun Bythell writes about his experience as a bookseller in a diary-style, which is an interesting perspective that you don’t usually get in as much detail when reading novels set in bookstores.
Due to the nature of diaries, some aspects become very repetitive, which can feel boring at times. What bothered me more were some of the judgmental comments. Many fun anecdotes made it worth reading though – I love his Scottish humor!

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I just love international based books. As well as any book based at a book store. Light and easy read. It made me laugh. And you will fall in love with the characters so easily. I liked the set up of the writing, like it was from a diary or a journal. I would love to read more of this authors books

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Confessions of a Bookseller was such a fabulous read. I enjoyed the previous book and this one was equally quirky. An excellent insight into the great and not so great things about running a bookstore. Highly recommended.

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As much as I love bookstores, especially used bookstores, this book wasn't for me. By nature, it is extremely repetitive and the tiny and rare glimpses of some of this town's eccentric personalities weren't enough to keep me engaged.

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Good book with a solid story. You will fall into the book and keep going till you are done. Definitely one to add to your to be read list.

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If you've ever worked or wanted to work in a bookshop, if you've ever owned or dreamed of running your own bookshop...heck, if you've ever walked into a bookshop!...you need to read this book. Wonderfully & amazingly amusing, this diary formatted tale of a year in the life of bookshop owner Shaun Bythell takes the reader on a journey facing the reality of owning an used bookshop. From the descriptions of his clientele (which anyone who was ever worked in a bookshop will immediately recognize the types of customers he deals with!), to the store's workers (who are eccentrically fascinating but seem to have little to no respect for their poor employer!), to tidbits of his own personal life, Mr. Bythell has written the book that I didn't know needed to be written.

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Confessions of a Bookseller is a published collection of the author's diary entries about running a used and rare bookshop in Wigtown, Scotland. Like the Diary of a Bookseller (to which this book is the sequel), there are interesting parts and boring parts. Unlike the Diary of a Bookseller, I'm not compelled to read on through the boring parts in this one. It feels quite repetitive and a bit too pessimistic for my tastes.

Of course, I'm reading this a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, when the prospect of browsing in a used bookstore has become entirely foreign to me (despite that being the very last non-work "outing" I enjoyed in early March 2020). I am sure the diary entries in this collection accurately reflect the tedium Bythell experienced as a bookseller; however, it's not what I want to read when I long to be out in the world, annoyed with people for their poor taste or rude shopping habits.

DNF at 15%.

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Thanks to #netgalley for the ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review. Another delightful book from Shaun Bythell. I am a sucker for a book set in a bookshop and with this book I get bookshop cosiness and bookseller confessions all told in Shaun's engaging and humourous manner. I loved reading about what goes on in bookshops and all the types of customers you meet and the requests you get. A must read for booklovers ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐#shaunbythell #confessionsofabookseller #tea_sipping_bookworm #netgalley #amazonkindle #booklovers #bookstagram #bookqueen #litsy #goodreads

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A must read for anyone who sells books or knows someone who works in the service industry. I found myself relating all too often with Shaun and his observations about his customers as I have the same type who come to my store. Wonderfully written and I look forward to reading more from him. Thank you for putting into words what I experience on a daily basis!

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I thoroughly enjoyed Confessions of a Bookseller by Shaun Bythell. It features a set of diary entries for one year through which the reader learns about what it is like to own and run a book shop. We also meet a cast of characters (both employees----I'm looking at you Nicky" and customers-----Mole Man, who made me laugh out loud. My husband kept asking me what I was reading that made me smirk and chuckle. Thanks to Netgalley for this free ebook in exchange for an honest review.

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I read The Diary of a Bookseller when it came out and really enjoyed it. Shaun is hilarious and some of the stories he tells are just beyond funny. I feel like Confessions of a Bookseller went a bit deeper than DOAB in the sense of Shaun's private life. He was relatively open in his first book but I feel this one was a little more raw.

Had a blast reading this and I look forward to anything else Shaun may come out with in the future.

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The author reveals less about himself than about his companions, and much of the book is about the minutia and grind of being a used bookseller. I found it fascinating nonetheless. A looking-through-the-eyes experience.

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I absolutely enjoyed this diary in a life of a Scottish bookseller. Some day soon, I would love to visit Wigtown and hopefully see the store in the flesh,

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I absolutely love his books! Laughed out loud many times at him, Granny and especially Nicky.

Look forward to when it is published in Canada so I can order for our store.

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I was unable to read and review the book by the publishing date due to other commitments. I will update the review immediately upon completion of the book. Thank you NetGalley and publisher.

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