| Armchair Books 
72-74 West Port
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH1 2LE map
tel: 0131 229 5927 e-mail
Two long narrow bookshops side by side down the narrow West Port near the Grassmarket, Armchair looks a bit haphazard, particularly in comparison to some of its upmarket antiquarian neighbours, but with a large and varied stock it is well worth a look. The floor may be uneven and one of the entrances a bit too narrow but it has a lot of character as well as a lot of stock. Keep an eye out for the bookshelf in the shape of the Red Baron's plane and if you come eye to eye with a dog whilst looking at books on the lower shelves don't worry, he is just curious to see what you are looking for! - Jeremy Briggs.
As stated, two shops next to each other. Owner and his assistant could not have been more helpful. Good general stock. I found a lot of what I collect on the very top shelf in the second shop. Thankfully I did not have to climb the tall ladder to check what looked interesting as it was done for me with a smile and a pleasant attitude. I enjoyed my time browsing here. - Chris Harte 11.06.10.
Easily the best bookshop in Edinburgh. Friendly staff and owner. - Chris 09.04.11.
Aurora Books Ltd
6 Tanfield
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH3 5DA map
tel: 0131 557 8466 fax: 0131 557 8466 e-mail web
Open: Tuesday - Saturday 10.00 - 6.00.
We buy and sell secondhand, rare and antiquarian books. Our specialities include Biography, Fiction, Modern 1st Editions, History, Literature. Language, Reference, Children's, Scottish and Travel. Our stock can be accessed online through our Website and we also offer a Book Search Service.
A medium sized, well laid out shop with a good selection of titles. - Jeremy Briggs.
Another Edinburgh bookshop where it was a pleasure to talk to the owner. Before my tour of the city bookshops I had e-mailed shops with questions as to their holdings : this dealer was the only one to reply to me. There was quality stock on the shelves without being specialist. Well worth a visit. - Chris Harte 11.06.10.
Barnardo's Bookshop
45 Clerk Street
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH8 9JQ map
tel: 0131 668 3142
Open: Monday - Saturday 10.00 - 6.00, Sunday 12.00 - 5.00.
A small charity bookshop well laid out with a decent selection of titles. About 5 minutes walk from Oxfam in Nicholson Street and Till's Bookshop in Hope Park Crescent. - Jeremy Briggs.
Very run of the mill charity bookshop with stock of a modern general nature.- Chris Harte 11.06.10.
The two shop windows always have different themed displays. Yesterday Scottish titles on the left and keep- fit ones opposite. A better than average charity book shop - I managed to spend £16 on 4 unusual art books. Have found good wildlife titles in the past. All depends on your interests, timing and the generosity of donors. - Chris K 06.01.11.
Cabaret
137 Westport
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH3 9DP map
tel: 0191 2094093
Open: Monday - Saturday - 10.00 - 5.00.
A Jewellery and collectables shop with a couple of cases of mainly Victorian books, and a basement full of older books.
A very nice bric-a-brac shop with just a few books on ground floor bookcases to fill up the space. Basement had a few hundred books but they were mainly pre-war and post-war fiction. - Chris Harte 11.06.10.
Duncan and Reid
5 Tanfield
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH3 5JS map
tel: 0131 556 4591
A shop which is half books and half antiques. The books cover mainly art and antiques related subjects but the shop has a small but interesting selection of old children's books. - Jeremy Briggs.
The highlight of the visit was chatting to a charming, cultured lady who was running the shop. Her literary knowledge was top class and she showed me around many of the quality books adorning the shelves. The arts and antique publications were not my forte but I could well become interested with such a delightful teacher. - Chris Harte 11.06.10.
Edinburgh Books
145-147 West Port
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH3 9DP map
tel: 0131 229 4431 web
Open: Monday - Saturday 10.00 - 6.00.
Scottish books, literature, military, music, theology and travel, as well as some antiquarian.
Was West Port Books and has just reopened under new ownership. - TBG 03.10.06.
The owner's wonderful sense of humour livened up a most enjoyable visit. I searched through my interests while my wife's opinion was that the fiction section "was superb." The large holding of Scottish titles was eye-watering while the music and religious parts of the stock were substantial. Noted for a return visit. - Chris Harte 11.06.10.
I was in Edinburgh Books recently and was totally ignored. Access to browsing was denied by man who saw me trying to get to the books but would not budge. No wonder bookshops are closing. - Harry Lawrence 14.03.11.
I entirely endorse Chris Harte on this one. To his list I could add Classical literature, American History, Cricket, and a few more. Only real (comparative) weakness I see is general history. - ECD 25.11.11.
Elvis Shakespeare
347 Leith Walk
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH6 8SD map
tel: 0131 561 1363 web
Open: Monday - Saturday 10.00 - 6.00, Sunday 12.00 - 5.00.
We are specialist dealers in rare vinyl and quality literature.
Not really WAD unless you collect punk, indie and dance vinyl. Idiosyncratic web site in terms of condition grading and shipping costs. Fairly average non-fiction on offer - prices reasonable. Nearly 8000 books - may be not all on display? Must get some interesting stock, from time to time? I didn't peruse the fiction. - Chris K 27.07.10.
My opinion not really changed after a year away. Couldn't find anything special to buy in films/music/books. Does keep the website very up-to- date with new stock. - Chris K 02.08.11.
Ferry Fair Books
South Queensferry and Rosebery Hall
High Street South Queensferry
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH30 9LL map
e-mail web
Open: Monday - Saturday 11.00 - 4.00 (March - October only)
Charity bookshop with small general stock raising funds for the annual Ferry Fair held each August in South Queensferry.
Main Point Books
77 Bread Street
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH3 9AH map
tel: 0131 228 4837 web
An eclectic choice of books bursting with attitude. Recently move to larger premises.
It was difficult to get too far into this cluttered shop. There were piles of books everywhere with modern fiction appearing to dominate. There were no definitive sections or groupings. Until there is a clean-up it is not really worth a visit. - Chris Harte 11.06.10.
I can happily report that the shop has recently been cleaned up and it is now much easier to find things. Always worth a look and prices are very moderate. - Ken Bogle 30.03.11.
McNaughtan's Bookshop
3a - 4a Haddington Place
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH7 4AE map
tel: 0131 556 5897 web
Open: Tuesday - Saturday 11.00 - 5.00
We have a large general second-hand and antiquarian stock including books on
the fine arts, architecture, children's books, literature, history, music,
travel, topography, natural history, cookery and gardening. Within the shop
is a small gallery space with a rolling programme of exhibitions of the work
of contemporary artists. The exhibition space can be rented and you are
referred to our website for terms and conditions.
This bookshop is Edinburgh at its best. The shelves are groaning with quality and I was amazed at the runs which were being offered for sale. I spent just over two hours here when, in all honesty, it should have been longer. The prices were very fair and I had no hesitation in parting with quite a lot of money in exchange for some very collectable titles. Visit highly recommended. - Chris Harte 11.06.10.
Specialities include Scottish, literature, history and visual arts. Has changed since my last visit in that there's now a small gallery area with paintings by the owner Elizabeth Strong on display. Tantalisingly a lot of white plastic bags at the foot of the shelves: new stock waiting to be processed. Staffed by a young American chap. (I spent £3.50) - Chris K 27.07.10.
Down some steep steps into an extensive basement premises. Probably one of the 2 best rare and second-hand bookshops in Edinburgh. (Just opposite a good s-h vinyl/cd/dvd seller in Elm Row.) Found 2 good cheap, local history p/backs and an unusual French art history title. WAD. - Chris K 02.08.11.
Oxfam Book Shop
25 Raeburn Place
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH4 1HU map
tel: 0131 332 9632
A medium sized charity bookshop, and the largest of the six in Edinburgh, it has the best selection of stock and is only a few minutes walk from the Shelter bookshop on the same road. - Jeremy Briggs.
A typical charity bookshop selling material of a most general nature. - Chris Harte 11.06.10.
Oxfam Bookshop
210 Morningside Road
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH10 4QQ map
tel: 0131 446 9169
A small charity bookshop with Oxfam's typically good selection of books, barely a minutes walk from the Hospice Bookshop just down the road. - Jeremy Briggs.
It was really only the few titles in the 'Old Books' section which were worth observing. The rest of the shop's stock was somewhat general. - Chris Harte 11.06.10.
Shop interesting, but prices really too high - particularly for a charity shop. Would buy more there if prices were fairer - as it is, I just browse - Chris 09.04.11.
I agree with Jeremy Briggs on this one. I live just along the road from this shop, visit it almost daily, buy from it frequently, and also donate my own surplus to it. Prices seem not out of line with other such shops in town. - ECD 25.11.11.
Oxfam Bookshop
116 Nicolson Street
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH8 9EJ map
tel: 0131 667915
A small charity bookshop which includes CDs, DVDs and some comics in its stock, it can be a bit of a squeeze to get around at busy times. About 5 minutes walk from Barnardo's in Clerk Street and Till's Bookshop in Hope Park Crescent. - Jeremy Briggs.
Peter Bell
68 West Port
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH1 2LD map
tel: 0131 229 0562 / 556 2198 e-mail web
Open: Tuesday - Friday 2.00 - 5.00, Saturday 11.30 - 5.00.
Five thousand very carefully chosen, high quality books with a strong scholarly emphasis; especially history, philosophy, Scottish, art exhibition catalogues. Strong internet presence. Now includes a selection of Andrew Pringle's stock.
I do not like being snubbed when I enter a bookshop. It took a lot of effort for the owner to break himself away from his sandwiches and post to even look at me. There might have been good antiquarian titles around the shelves but such an attitude problem left me completely unwilling to purchase anything. - Chris Harte 11.06.10.
I scarcely recognise Chris Hart's description here - it must have been an off day. The shop's own summary of itself I find accurate - especially in regard to philosophy. It's a small shop, and it's nice to be able to come and go without having to be drawn into chat with the owner, especially on a day when one doesn't find anything of special interest - as can happen. - ECD 25.11.11.
Pulp Fiction Books
41-43 Bread Street
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH3 9AH map
tel: 0131 229 4444 web
Open: Monday & Wednesday - Friday 11.00 - 7.00, Saturday & Sunday 12.000 - 8.00.
Pulp Fiction is an independent genre-fiction bookshop in Edinburgh. We stock new and classic secondhand books, including the best in Science Fiction and Fantasy, Horror and Humour. Great selection of new and near-new graphic novels, too.
Royal Mile Gallery
272 Canongate
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH8 8AA map
tel: 0131 558 1702
Prints and maps only.
Shelter Bookshop
106 Raeburn Place
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH4 1HH map
tel: 0131 315 0221
Open: Monday - Saturday 9.00 - 5.30, Sunday 12.00 - 5.00.
A small charity bookshop with perhaps the most varied stock of the six charity bookshops in Edinburgh. A well stocked bookshop, it has a motley and rather disorganised selection of magazines and British & American comics. They would sell more of these if they only took the time to organise them properly. It is only a few minutes walk from the Oxfam bookshop on the same road. - Jeremy Briggs.
A very disorganised shop with people just milling around and children playing with magazines which had been stuffed into boxes. The books were very ordinary modern publications. - Chris Harte 11.06.10.
Mr. Harte's views are rather unfair and not characteristic of this shop. He must have been unlucky in his timing. I usually find something of a bargain to buy but not yet among the older titles at the rear. It is worth a visit and the Shelter shops next door have above average clothes, videos, dvds, cds and vinyl. - Chris K. 14.03.11.
I agree with Chris K. Like all charity shops, the trick is to make regular visits. This shop has a rapidly changing window display and often has good review copies and recently published stuff. It's not really geared to the antiquarian collector but perfectly fine for the casual browser of limited means. Other charity shops nearby. - Ken 09.04.11.
Southside Books
58 South Bridge
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH1 1LS map
tel: 0131 558 9009
Open: ?
Small, narrow shop next to Blackwells. Changed hands and re-opened a while ago. (See http://www.yelp.co.uk/biz/southside-books-edinburgh for 10 very similar reviews.) Popular with students but rather pricey. Agree: have yet to buy a book under the new regime. Lots more to choose from though.- Chris K 30.11.10.
St Columba's Hospice Bookshop
15 Montagu Terrace
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH3 5QR map
tel: 0131 552 3994
Open: Open: Monday - Saturday 10.00 - 4.00.
Situated on a corner by Heriot's Rugby Club. Fitted out and newly decorated by volunteers. Shelves of books easy to examine as they are laid out neatly and in disciplined rows. Nothing antiquarian or collectable, just easy reading titles. - Chris Harte 11.06.10.
The Bookworm
210 Dalkeith Road
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH16 5DT map
tel: 0131 662 4357 e-mail web
Open: Monday - Friday 9.30 - 5.30, Saturday 9.30 - 5.00.
Front shop is mostly paperbacks in all subjects of fiction. Upstairs mostly non-fiction, with one of the best selections of military history in Scotland. I have been in business for over twenty years at the same premises.
Bookworm has two rooms, a big bright front room of mainly paperback fiction laid out like a record shop with the books in rows one behind the other, and a smaller back room of non-fiction more normally laid out in bookcases. Near Cameron Toll, this is more remote from the city centre than the rest of the Edinburgh shops, but worth the trip especially for their military history section. - Jeremy Briggs.
The Gently Mad
2 Summer Place
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH3 5NR map
tel: 0131 261 6028 e-mail web
Open: Tuesday - Saturday 11.00 - 6.00.
In the shop above our bindery we hold an interesting selection of antiquarian and collectable books that cover a wide range of subjects. We always have a good selection of military, natural history, children's illustrated, transport, sports, folklore and legends, art, history and classic literature.
Small bright shop of mainly hardback books only open at weekends. - Jeremy Briggs.
On my first visit to this narrow shop with a downstairs work place, I found 2 nearly new desirable books. Spent £17.50. Doesn't accept plastic money but there is an ATM nearby. I'll be returning. - Chris K 30.09.10.
50% off sale at the moment. Found an uncommon field guide book. Has been open during the week this summer but best to check by 'phone. [If the nearby post office is closed, now the nearest free ATM is a short walk away at Tesco's in Broughton Road.] - Chris K 02.08.11.Was T & B Bookcrafts, changed ownership and name in January 2013. TBG 06.03.13.
The Old Children's Bookshelf
175 Canongate
Royal Mile
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH8 8BN map
tel: 0131 558 3411 e-mail
A medium sized bookshop split over two rooms on the Royal Mile, this shops does "exactly what it says on the tin". Children's books, both text and illustrated, hardback and softback, plus annuals, comics and magazines. They have reference books on, and biographies of, children's authors. The stock perhaps leans more to girls titles than boys but both are well accounted for. I don't know of a better selection of children's books anywhere in Scotland and it would take Northumberland's enormous Barter Books to match it in quantity of children's titles, although they would rarely match Bookshelf's quality and range of collectable stock. - Jeremy Briggs.
The Old Town Bookshop
8 Victoria Street
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH1 2HG map
tel: 0131 225 9237
Absolutely breathtaking stock. So good that I needed the assistance of the knowledgable manager to take me through some of the runs of journals which were in abundance. This shop is for the very serious collector who would not be disappointed in what they found. Five stars. - Chris Harte 11.06.10.
Starry-eyed reviews aren't that useful. Was reminded to check out the shop anew after seeing the superior stock at their stall in PBFA/ABA fair today. Emphasis on maps, prints, Scottish and especially art history & architecture. Tall, narrow neck-cricking room with books added ad hoc it seems. Not alphabetised much. Spent £12 on a book on Scotland's geomorphology in very fine nick. - Chris K 14.03.11.
Great shop in a great location, feels like the books have been chosen rather than just chucked in. - PaulP 02.08.11.
Till's Book Shop
1 Hope Park Crescent
EDINBURGH Midlothian EH8 9NA map
tel: 0131 667 0895 web
Open: Monday - Friday 12. 00 - 7.30, Saturday 11 - 6.00, Sunday 12.00 - 5.30.
Established in 1986, Till?s Bookshop has become an institution with generations of Edinburgh students, their teachers and locals alike.
A friendly, medium sized, well organised bookshop split over two rooms at the east end of the Meadows, Tills has bookshelves rising up to a near vertigo inducing height and, on cold days, an open fire in the back room. Along with a good general selection of books, a big science fiction and fantasy section, and a very interesting section of film and television books, it always has original 1950s and 1960s film posters for sale, plus a varying selection of movie magazines and, at times, Front Of House stills. Around since the mid-1980s, the shop has survived the opening of two charity bookshops within 5 minutes walk. If you have only time to visit one secondhand bookshop in Edinburgh, make it Tills. - Jeremy Briggs.
I am afraid I will have to completely disagree with Jeremy Briggs about giving priority to this bookshop. It would be very low on my Edinburgh list. It was on my third attempted visit I found out that opening time was usually after midday, a fact which might have helped me had it been advertised in the window. I found the holdings to be generally uninteresting and more to the whim of the North American owner. Little good British material. - Chris Harte 11.06.10.
Harte has dyspepsia again. I have been visiting this excellent bookshop since 1970, and have made many good, cheap purchases. - Brian 14.06.11.
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