I am not religious but I am forever looking for good reference books -and so I came upon the Quaker…read moreBookshop by chance. I admit my knowledge of the Quaker religion is little -and I had no idea what I would come across. What I found was a comfortable if not a little dowdy bookshop with a surprisingly very well stocked Fair trade cafe in the middle. No glamour here - but an impressive selection of good coffees, flapjacks and chocolate goodies mixed with religious books of many faiths ! - supporting the Quaker's tolerance and acknowledgment of other religions. What surprised me most was amongst the religion was a section on green issues and in particular "food issues." Books and leaflets such as how to cook and eat and even grow locally plus numerous fair-trade information sources are all available. In retrospect I suppose my own ignorance is to blame here - the Quakers anti-war and antiviolence beliefs require peaceful solutions for the bigger picture - and these all neatly interlace with fair-trade. Interested in fair trade -?? this is a good place to look for information -me - still looking for those obscure reference books with pictures.....

Religion really does not have to enter the conversation here when a quick, (fair-trade) coffee and…read morecaramel slice is in order. I cannot comment on the bookshop per se, as I have not browsed the shelves- normally for me the Quaker Meeting House functions as a delightful, quiet study environment. There is plenty of space, a multitude of nooks and crannies to nestle within, and for a bit of exercise there exists an enjoyably circuitous route around the recently renovated building to the WCs (which, I must add are very nice indeed). This peaceful haven is truly a complete world away from the cantankerous Euston road that it sits upon!

Excellent bookstore and cafe. Great selection of reading…read morematerials for all ages and interests. Also very helpful and knowledgable staff to assist you.

Waterstones is the kind of shop that makes me very happy! I always loved bookshops especially in…read morethe UK... The spaces are always beautiful and the atmosphere kind of enchanting. Also the covers on British editions are so much better than the French ones! Even if I have a huge pile of books to read at home I can't resist buying a book or two....

W H Smith in Berkhamsted has an ideal location right on the high street. It occupies the ground…read morefloor and basement of the building which makes it surprisingly large. Unfortunately I find the shop can sometimes be a little dirty and the service not amazing. This experience has been fairly typical of visits into W H Smiths around the country though, so is not anything unique about the Berkhamsted branch. There's not a lot you can buy in W H Smith that you can't get elsewhere, with more choice, but the magazine section is large, which is probably the highlight of the store.

Good selection of magazines etc but store always seems cluttered and difficult to manouvre around…read moreespecially if you have a pram. Staff not particularly friendly and a bit overkeen to sell you their half price chocolate!

I really like coming here on a regular basis. Even though most of the novels are not to my taste,…read morethe selection of travel guides, history books, LPs and CDs is amazing. Def worth a visit if you stop by the city centre.

Dear Yelp People. Please get this right. The Big Green Bookshop is in Wood Green NOT Alexandra…read morePalace.

Anyone familiar with the depiction of the small independent bookshop in the (excellent) comedy…read moreseries Black Books will find the Big Green Bookshop a bit of a shock to the system. For the uninitiated, the main character of the TV show, Bernard Black, spends most of the time slouched behind his book-strewn desk, clutching a fag and bottle of cheap wine, and shouting at customers. I was delighted to discover that this is far from the case here. The owners of the Big Green Bookshop are chatty, friendly, polite and helpful and the shop is clean and extremely well ordered. There's also a coffee machine and some water on the side provided for browsers Their inventory, whilst limited by the size of their premises, is packed with interesting books that you might actually want to read. The co-owner I spoke to last time I was there also said they can order most things in in a day or so. What clinches the 5 star rating for me is that the same co-owner managed to guess the name of a book I had seen reviewed but had forgotten, from the two things I did remember: the word frog and the fact that I vaguely remembered that the author was sort of Hungarian. Not only this, but he pointed me in the direction of another book by the same author, and ordered the one I'd asked for in because he wanted to read it himself. What a legend.

I like this branch, it is small and compact and you do feel they make the best of the space, but I…read moredon't feel it is cluttered. I really like upstairs, I can whittle away the time in their just by looking at books on travel and spirituality etc. They have provided soft furnishing their its almost meditative up their. I have not bought anything from their yet so I cant comment on customer service. I'm glad their is still a Waterstones not to far from me since they closed the big one in Watford a couple a years ago.

Originally an independent bookshop it was bought out by Otakar's who then sold it to Waterstone's…read more The layout always feels messy to me, as you walk in your ay is obstructed by a series of tables with new books or those which are part of a "three for two" offer. Broadly speaking non fiction is upstairs (some sections here are poorly stocked- I've always found the languages section especially poor). The most positive factor in the store are the staff; this is definitely the store to go to if you are not sure about a title, etc. as they will go out of their way to track down what you are looking for. If however you are buying a best selling book they will usually be much cheaper at Sussex Stationers about 200yards further down the shopping precinct.

I am one of the few Yelpers who seems to have come here for the books, not the cakes. In fact, upon…read moreentering the shop, I was so immediately attracted to the very many excellent and intriguing books, I missed the cafe entirely. (I have no doubt the cafe is excellent, as the reviews here confirm.) The sales staff was absolutely top-notch, and while the staff person was busy identifying several of the books by John Berger that were available, he and I had a nice conversation about Berger. As it turns out, London Review was involved in the publication of one of Berger's recent books, so of course they had it in stock. A truly superb bookshop, for new books, stocked with a highly discerning eye.

Hving read Andrew M's review, I think that I can see a pattern. I too was lured here on the promise…read moreof London's best carrot cake and like him, I was to be disappointed when we arrived as they had run out of said cake. It must be good! My friend Sharon brought me here and she is an avid reader. If you love interesting books, this is a treasure trove with books covering a whole multitude of subjects. The staff are excellent at recommending and finding specific books for you There's a little cafe next door to the bookshop - reading can induce an appetitie, don't you know? We snagged one of the little tables and went for alternatives to the disappointingly absent carrot cake. We chose the intriguing courgette and lemon curd cake as well as the mixed berry cheesecake The courgette and lemon curd cake was great - a subtle hint of courgette so as not to be too vegetabley but lovely and moist with more dominant lemon flavour. The mixed berry cheesecake was nice but more conventional Sharon was intrigued enough to try and recreate the courgette cake at home, always a sign of a good dish. Perhaps one day, Andrew and I may get the chance to try teh famous carrot cake

Great bookshop, well stocked with fiction and travel downstairs and reference upstairs plus a…read moretucked away coffee area, to sit and chill- perfect in the summer as it is wonderfully air-conditioned although service depends on the business of the book-sellers hmm that's it.. it can close quite early though, be nice if they kept it open in the evenings longer, maybe some more events..