On the fifth of October the Blue Bear Bookshop in the village in Hartley Wintney, located in the north of Hampshire, has opened its doors for the first time.

This soft opening proved very successful and the shop has quickly become one of the most frequented sites in the village. 

It may surprise readers to know that this independent bookstore is actually not entirely new, in fact it has already existed for the last five years in its previous location in Farnham. 

It would seem that there are many factors leading to this move but the overall impression given by an employee when questioned on this point is that it was simply a “good opportunity” to move to a more suitable location. 

Customers will find many titles and authors not uncommon to their perusal but primarily it is the more unusual, the less frequently talked about novels that are being placed front and centre. 

Many of these more uncommon books lining the shelves are translated from any number of languages, from French to Japanese and from Korean to Swedish. 

When asked about how this selection is formed the employee responded by saying that they “search for authors that people typically wouldn’t be found in a high street bookstore”, noting that “lots of research” goes into picking this line up. 

The store is arranged with the till in the first room along with a collection of classics, a fiction section and a kids section accompanied by a few extra commodities. 

Almost directly opposite the entranceway is a corridor leading down with two large rooms branching off to the right, the walls of which are decorated with bookcases and decorations alike, such as huge artistic posters and quite a few bears along the shelves, as the name would suggest.

 The first of these rooms is host to YA books, a section attaining to Sci-Fi and Fantasy, a selection of comics and further ware.

The second room houses non fiction, from history books to biographies, from volumes on social sciences and the humanities to writings on nature and travel. 

Alongside the many, many books, the Blue Bear Bookshop offers much more.

Customers are also able to purchase a wide selection of book ends and other such shelf ornaments as well as board games, card games, dice games and a whole host of other commodities from that genre.

 At the front of the store coffee, in addition to further beverages, can be purchased.

Staff are planning to begin a book club hosted on site, open to members of the public, the date and time of which are still to be confirmed.

Notably ‘blind books’ are also available, these being books bearing identities that are mysteries till they are purchased.

Staff were very friendly and approachable, when asked how business had been going since opening an employee answered without hesitation, saying “fantastically, we have been welcomed very well by the village”. 

This fact will become evident to any person who chooses to visit this fresh establishment. 

And finally, when queried on why the Blue Bear Bookshop is itself uniquely great, this literary den of antiquities was described by this very same employee as a “home from home”.

All that is left is to ask the question, When will you be visiting the Blue Bear Bookshop?