Ampersand Books
64 St.Benedicts Street
NORWICH  Norfolk  NR2 4AR
tel: 01603 663169  e-mail  map
Open: Tuesday - Saturday 10.00 - 4.00.
Medium general stock with emphasis on East Anglia, paranormal and cycling. Formerly trading as Angel Bookshop in North Walsham, Norfolk.
    Small rooms which, on entering, hit you with a not unpleasant musty smell. General stock with much on cycling. - Chris Harte 24.02.10.

Baron Art
17 Chapel Yard  Albert Street
HOLT  Norfolk  NR25 6HG
tel: 01263 713430  map
Open: Monday - Saturday 9.00 - 5.00.
A small stock of art books, natural and local history, in a shop selling Art Deco.

Blickling Hall Bookshop
Blickling Hall (National Trust)
Bickling  NORWICH  Norfolk NR11 6NF
tel: 01263 738030  map
Open: Wednesday - Sundays (from 17 March) 10.15 - 5.15.
    Not visited, but reputedly has larger stock than at Felbrigg. - Richard Beaton.
    Well worth a visit. A small hall and room with a wide range of books. All very clearly guided and sensibly priced. Staff very helpful. I left again with half a dozen bargains. Bookshop can be visited free. Will George 27.03.08.
    I agree with Will George - best second hand bookshop attached to a National Trust House, that I know. Good tea shop just outside - so books AND buns what could be better! - Angie Santa 02.04.08.
    I have to confess that the shop turned out to be much better than I had expected, and the two bags of books we bought rounded off a most enjoyable visit. - TBG 18.06.08.
    I arrived shortly before closing not realising how large it is - apparently it was the first, and is the largest, of the Trust's Norfolk bookshops. Well worth a visit. - Henry Middleton 05.10.08.
    More than 10,000 books, shelf subject index, reasonable prices, helpful staff. A 3-carrier bag visit! - Richard Bridgland 30.06.09.

Books Etc
15a Church Street
CROMER  Norfolk  NR27 9ES
tel: 01263 515501  map
Open: 7 days 11.00 - 4.00 (winter Wednesday - Saturday).
Large general stock.
    This shop is generic for the area. Many books, lots of magazines and even a few CDs. Everything was for the general reader and not a thing for a collector. It was sad to watch elderly customers searching around for either cheap titles, a chat with the woman in charge, or just finding it a place to keep warm out of the biting wind. - Chris Harte 24.02.10.

The Bookman
Bagleys Court  Pottergate
NORWICH  Norfolk  NR2 1TW
tel: 01603 219950  map
Open: Monday - Saturday 11.30 - 5.00
Secondhand books, comics and annuals."The biggest little bookshop in town".
    Pleasant people who said that they just had a very general stock with not too much in the way of old books. Ideal shop for the general reader. - Chris Harte 24.02.10.

Bookworms of Cromer
9 New Street
CROMER  Norfolk  NR27 9HP
tel: 01263 515078  map
Open: Monday - Saturday 10.00 - 5.00, closed Wednesday
Large general stock.
    "Competitively priced general secondhand books in consistently good condition". - TBG
    Situated in a side street it was a joy to enter the shop just to get away from the chip fat smell which permeates the surrounding area. General stock which was being snapped up by holiday-makers trying to find something to occupy their time in a rather depressing town. - Chris Harte 24.02.10.

The Brazen Head Book Shop
Greenside  Market Place
BURNHAM MARKET  Norfolk   PE31 8HF
tel: 01328 730700  map
Open: Monday - Saturday 9.30 - 5.00 & Sundays in summer.
Very large general stock and children's, art, topography and gardening.
    "Excellent range, good prices and in the process of expanding". - Kim Andrews.
    On the day we visited it was impossible to get into the architecture room because a bookslide had completely blocked the doorway. Still, the downstairs rooms are more organised, with plenty of good books in the front room cabinets. - TBG 18.06.08.
    A high turnover of fresh stock coming through the door at sensible collector-friendly prices. - Avid Book Collector 01.04.09.
    Stunning location, great selection, good value prices - well worth a visit - Brett 17.09.09.

Ceres Bookshop
20 London Street
SWAFFHAM  Norfolk  PE37 7DG
tel: 01760 722504  fax: 01760 724941
Open: Monday - Friday 9.00 - 5.00
A wide range of new and secondhand books on all subjects and a large selection of maps. Book search facility available. Reductions for special linterest groups.
    On entering the shop I had no idea what I would find tucked away in corners. Half an hour later my wallet was lighter but I had purchased some splendid books. I left behind many rare rural Broads and sporting titles which, I was amazed to be told, had been on the shelves for ages. If you collect material on regional country pursuits then search these shelves. - Chris Harte 24.02.10.

Church Street Books
Dolphin House
DISS  Norfolk  IP22 4DD
tel: 01379 652020  e-mail  map
Open: Monday - Saturday 10.30 - 5.30, closed Wednesday. About 7,000 books in stock. General, but specialising in aviation, poetry, philosophy, modern first editions, architecture, classics/modern classics and signed copies, as well as local history. The only independent secondhand bookshop in the old Norfolk market town of Diss. In a timbered building, built in the 1520, in the town's market square. Books bought and sold and book searched carried out.
    Situated just off the market square. Nice, neat bookshop with little in the way of antiquarian but perfect for a country town. No real speciality, just general material. - Chris Harte 24.02.10.

Crabpot Books
High Street
CLEY  Norfolk  NR25 7RN
tel: 01263 740218  map
Open: Monday - Saturday 10.00 - 5.00.
General secondhand stock with a strong leaning towards natural history.
    I know this shop exists because a number of readers have refered to it, but as yet no one has visited, and I can't find a phone number for it.- TBG 12.07.07.
    According to the board outside opening hours 10.00 - 5.30 Monday to Saturday. However, on an August Tuesday afternoon at 1.45 p.m. the door displayed a notice (untimed) which read "Back in 30 minutes". It was still present (and the shop still shut) an hour later when I (and the other potential customers I noticed with noses pressed against the window) decided to call it a day and move on.
    Perhaps I shall call in next summer, if it is still in business. This was a shame, since the stock looked good, and I spotted through the window several books in which I would have been interested. What would Drif have said?!" - Henry Middleton. 13.08.07
    I'm so sorry to have disappointed Henry Middleton when he visited in August. It really is very rare for us to have to close unexpectedly, and I know exactly the day he refers to. I'd had to ask my partner to come and pick me up from the dentist having had a tooth extracted; there were some complications, and we were ages getting back. Still, that hardly helps. Do pass on our apologies, and we hope to see him next summer. - Louise Abbott (Crabpot Books) 29.09.07.
    These things do happen, and the Norfolk coast road can get very busy at times. I hope the tooth is better now, and I hope to be that way next summer to call in. - Henry Middleton 08.10.07.
    Bright, well laid out, and offered a surprising variety of competitively priced secondhand books. Norfolk and natural history are an obvious choice of specialism, and there was a well-stocked bookcase of New Naturalist titles. - TBG 18.06.08
    Super clean shop and stock ,good chairs ,nice chap fronting it . Stock varied and of interest to most people. - V Cushing 30.09.08.
    My return visit this summer was successful! The shop lived up to expectation and is a must for New Naturalist collectors, with all the latest titles in stock as well as an excellent range of the out-of-print ones. - Henry Middleton 05.10.08.

The Dancing Goat
5 Oak Street
FAKENHAM  Norfolk  NR21 9DX
tel: 01328 855757  map
Open: Monday - Saturday 10.00 - 5.00.
A cellar bookroom and some bookcases in the coffee shop above.
    A small and disorganised stock in the basement of an excellent cafe - not worth a special visit, unless it's for the cakes. - Kim Andrews.
    I agree with the above review (especially regarding the cakes) - but I would also advise bringing a torch - the books are in the cellar and the lighting leaves a lot to be desired! - Henry Middleton.

The Dormouse Bookshop
29 Elm Hill
NORWICH  Norfolk  NR3 1HG
tel: 01603 621021  map
Open: Monday - Saturday 10.30 - 5.00.
Medium general stock, East Anglia, travel, natural history, crime fiction, entertainment and science fiction.

EACH Charity Shop
32-33 Chapel Street
DISS  Norfolk  IP22 4AN
tel: 01379 651939
Open: Monday - Saturday 10.00 - 4.30.
    EACH gives the whole second floor over to second-hand books (circa 2,500 books, mostly paperbacks and hardback reprints). The EACH charity has a policy of rotating stock between their various shops. However, EACH don't sell online via ABE or Ebay so bargains may still be had. - Avid Book Collector 12.09.08.

J.C Books
55 High Street
WATTON  Norfolk  IP25 6AB
tel: 01953 883488  map
Open: Monday - Saturday 10.00 - 4.30, closed Thursday pm.
A large general secondhand stock and particularly, the theater and performing arts. PBFA Member.
    "The owner and his wife where the best! I left 107 pounds lighter and feeling warm with the feeling of accomplishment of acquiring some great books on field sports and others on dogs". - Linda.
    "A good old-fashioned stock, well-organised and a knowledgeable owner". - Kim Andrews.
    One of the best bookshops in East Anglia: wide ranging, interesting stock. Watton is not on the major routes through Norfolk but is well worth the detour. - Richard Beaton.
    Definitely worth a detour! - Henry Middleton.
    Although they don't buy much in, they still have a wealth of top range antiquarian stock in addition to much vintage theatrical ephemera. - Avid Book Collector 01.04.09.
    What a super bookshop. This is what I remember them to be like years ago. A most pleasant owner for whom nothing was too much trouble (even to the extent of offering to stay open late when I phoned ahead to check his closing time). He took me to the shelves where I needed to search and provided me with a chair. As you can imagine I found numerous books to purchase among his quality stock. I enjoyed looking through the shelves; the friendly attitude, and was quite taken with the East Anglian holdings. Very much a top of your list visit. - Chris Harte 24.02.10.

J.R & R.K Ellis
53 St. Giles Street
NORWICH  Norfolk  NR2 1JR
tel: 01603 623679  map
Open: Monday - Saturday 8.00 - 4.30
Medium general stock including paperback fiction and publishers remainders.
    Mainly fairly recent general stock. However, ideal for the student as there was a lot of used and remaindered academic material. - Chris Harte 24.02.10.

Simon Finch Norfolk
5 Fish Hill
HOLT  Norfolk  NR25 6BD
tel: 01263 712650  e-mail   website  map
Open: Monday - Saturday 10.00 - 5.30.
We are a traditional country bookshop with a large general stock of over 18,000 books in ten rooms. Although our books cover all subjects we specialise in Natural History, Illustrated and Sporting books.
    "Don't be put off by the leather-bound books in the front room as there is plenty of general stock in the upstairs rooms." - Kim Andrews.
    The Finch empire's Norfolk outpost has an almost Dickensian air about it. This isn't really surprising as it doesn't look as if any money has been spent on the property since Charles was writing the tomes the shop sells. Although to be fair, they have at last fixed the hole in the stairs. A good room-full of art books is a recent improvement, there's lots of leather, and it's still worth poking about in the dusty corners. - TBG 18.06.08.
    Simon Finch's shop in Holt is actually a pretty dire satellite shop. The people who run it for him advise that he sends the best stock down to his shop in Mayfair, London, and uses the Norfolk shop simply as a magnet to attract sellers. This might be why the stock in the Holt shop seems to move at a slower pace than a sleepy tortoise. I've visited three times in five years and seen the very same books on the shelves everytime. Visiting the shop is not so much a shopping jaunt as an embarrassing reunion with old friends you've snubbed on successive occasions. - Avid Book Collector 12.09.08.
    Not a shop which will stay long in the memory. Fine bindings in the front; odds and ends elsewhere. - Chris Harte 24.02.10

Felbrigg Hall Bookroom
Felbrigg Hall, Garden & Park (National Trust)
FELBRIGG  Norfolk  NR11 8PR
tel: 01263 837444  map
Open: 25th March - 29th October 1.00 - 5.00
    Some useful fiction stock. - Michael Mendelblat.
    The stock is tiny, a few hundred dull books, at best - not worth a detour. - Stephen 22.05.09.

Freya Books & Antiques
St. Marys Farm  Cheneys Lane
TACOLNESTON  Norfolk  NR16 1DB
Tel: 01508 489252  map

John Lowe's Bookstall
The Old Granery Antiques Centre
King Staithe Lane
KING'S LYNN  Norfolk  PE30 1LZ
tel: 01553 775509  map
Open: Monday - Saturday 10.00 - 4.30.
    General secondhand books but particularly military and history. TBG 18.06.08.

The Movie Shop
11 St. Gregorys Alley
NORWICH  Norfolk  NR2 1ER
tel: 01603 615239  map
Open: Monday - Saturday 11.30 - 5.30.
Secondhand books on film and music and some more general stock.

Much Binding
36 Church Street
CROMER  Norfolk  NR27 9ES
tel: 01263 517194  map
Open: Tuesday -Sunday 10.00 - 4.00
A general secondhand stock with a leaning towards history, science and older books.
    Only seems to open in summer months. - Chris Harte 24.02.10.

The Old Reading Room
The Street
KELLING  Holt  Norfolk  NR25 7EL
tel: 01263 588227
Open: 7 days 9.30 - 4.00.  map
Tea room and gift shop with a general stock of secondhand books.
    Varied stock with emphasis on rural topics, birdwatching etc. You need to weave in and out of the tables to check the stock. - Michael Mendelblat.
    In a decade of visiting, the stock has barely changed. I feel it's there as much for decoration as anything else, something for the cafe customers to read while they have their coffee and cake. Stephen 25.05.09.

Old Station Pottery & Bookshop
2 & 4 Maryland
WELLS-NEXT-THE-SEA  Norfolk  NR23 1LX
tel: 01328 710847  map
Open: Monday - Friday 9.00 - 5.00, closed Tuesday pm, all day Thursday and for lunch.
Three rooms of secondhand books, particularly older children's ("Ripping yarns and improving tales"), art, poetry and a large stock of paperback fiction.
    3 rooms of books in the main building and a fourth (mainly paperbacks) in the garden. Strong on Victorian/Edwardian children's books and fiction. When you've found something you want to buy, ring the old handbell vigorously to call the owner down from upstairs. - Richard Beaton.
    Good for children's fiction and art, and there are also two remainder and secondhand paperback shops in the main street. - TBG 18.06.08.

Oxborough Hall Bookroom
Oxborough Hall (National Trust)
KING'S LYNN  Norfolk  PE33 9PS
tel: 01366 328258  map
    It is located in the 'Gunroom', in the gatehouse, and non-National Trust members will have to pay to access it. The stock is general and it is not very large, but there was some interesting material when I was there. - Henry Middleton.

Pilgrim's Progress Bookshop
63 High Street
LITTLE WALSINGHAM
tel: 01328 820399
Open: Friday & Saturday, or by chance.
Theology and some general secondhand stock

Peter's Bookshop
19 St. Peters Road
SHERINGHAM  Norfolk  NR26 8QY
tel: 01263 823008  map
Open: Monday - Saturday 10.30 - 4.30, closed on Wednesday.
General stock of older secondhand books covering most subjects.
    Jam-packed with books to the very ceiling (steps and ladders provided). Very strong on fiction, but with a little of everything. East to find, 50 yards from the Poppy Line railway station, and well-worth seeking out. The owner's also have another shop (Peter Pan) with more modern stock including remainders etc. - Richard Beaton.
    So many of my childhood memories included a trip to this shop. The wonderful booky smell that hits you as you enter. The treasures hidden and found. My love of reading came from this place. It is best to go there without a specific book in mind - you will leave with many happy hours of reading ahead of you. A 'must' in any trip to Norfolk. - L Stevens 18.04.08.
    My visit started off well with the person on duty helping me to find my areas of interest among the rabbit warren of floor-to-ceiling books. After a dusty time I went to the counter triumphant with what I had found. After a consultation with someone behind a closed door I was allowed to purchase but a few. The excuses are not worthy of repeating but it begs the question as to why have titles on the shelves if you don't want to sell them? - Chris Harte 24.02.10.

M & A.C Thompson
The Bookshop  1 Town Green
WYMONDHAM  Norfolk  NR18 0PN
Tel: 01953 602244  map
Open: Monday - Friday 10.45 - 4.45 Saturday 10.00 - 5.00 closed all day Wednesday.
General secondhand books including biography, entertainment, fiction and topography.
    Useful and busy little shop with neat and well-organised stock. However, the owner does not attend trade auctions and relies solely upon stock brought in by customers or acquired from local charity shops. The best stock is taken home and sold via the internet using a different trading name. For this reason the shop is well-patronised by locals seeking general second-hand books but discerning collectors will find very little of interest. Don't ask for a discount, the owner will become very agitated and upset. - Avid Book Collector 12.09.08.
    I have just read my details in your list of secondhand bookshops in Norfolk and I am puzzled by a couple of points. Firstly, I do not take the best stock home to sell on the internet, only a small selection of books which have usually already spent some time in the shop. Secondly, I am amazed to read that I become "very agitated and upset" when asked to give discount. This is utter nonsense. As regular customers and other booksellers are well aware, I am usually very generous with my discounts. I feel that these comments are entirely unjustified and I resent the good reputation I have built over 27 years in Wymondham being misrepresented in this way. Allan Thompson, owner 06.11.08.
    I've always found the owner helpful and pleasant. I wonder if Avid Book Collector's disagreeable experience was as much to do with his own attitude to book buying and asking for discounts. - Stephen 22.05.09.
    I have nothing but praise for the owner, Alan Thompson. He is always friendly, polite and professional, and runs his business in a way which reflects his personal integrity. I recommend that you go and see for yourself! - Colin 28.07.09.
    A pleasant visit which saw me come away with a few titles which were priced most generously. I found the owner a decent chap who had time for a general chat while I was searching his shelves. In between the general old books was the occasional treat. - Chris Harte 24.02.10.

The Tombland Bookshop
8 Tombland
NORWICH  Norfolk  NR3 1HF
tel: 01603 490000  fax: 01603 760610  e-mail   map
Open: Monday - Saturday 9.30 - 5.00 (4.30 on Saturdays)
Traditional mix of secondhand and antiquarian books. Booksellers of over 30 years experience in a fifteenth century shop in the city centre opposite the cathedral.
    Met the collector's curse on my visit. "The owner isn't here today but leave us your phone number and I'm sure he can get you what you want." I'm still sitting by the phone. - Chris Harte 14.04.09.
    Had another attempt. None of what I collected was on show in the shop but was told to send a list and they would check the barn where "we hold much of our specialist material." Books on the shelves were quality and prices appeared to be reasonable. Any collector should put them on a visiting list. - Chris Harte 24.02.10.

Torc Books
9 Hall Road
SNETTISHAM  Norfolk  PE31 7LU
tel: 01485 541188  map
Open: Friday & Saturday 10.00 - 4.00
General secondhand books and bindings.
    Although the owner has more or less retired and is now only open on Fridays and Saturdays, we still managed to find one or two interesting books. - TBG 18.06.08.

Turret House Books
27 Middleton Street
WYMONDHAM  Norfolk  NR18 0AB
tel: 01953 603462  map
   The owner is an amiable retired scientist who specialises in medical and science books with a smattering of local topography and fiction. The stock is old, interesting and reasonably priced. However, the stock is also small, and confined to one front room, even though tantalising boxes of books are to be glimpsed on stairwells and in other rooms. The bookroom is open erratic hours - safest bet is to visit on a Saturday - and you'll need to ring the bell to see if anyone is at home. As it is opposite Thompson's bookshop visitors should be able to visit both shops at the same time. Parking in the street is easy and free. - Avid Book Collector 12.09.08.
    A most friendly owner and a shop which might possibly be the front corner of his home. Small stock, mainly scientific, but with a few regional holdings. Nothing for me but much for those who collect the specialities. - Chris Harte 24.02.10.