Do you have a favourite bookshop? If you do, it’s probably not your local Waterstones or Foyles. Don’t get us wrong, they’re essential when you’re hunting for a specific book or want to peruse for hours through their vast collections, but nothing beats a classic, cosy independent.
There are countless indie sellers up and down the country, each with their own unique charm, but it turns out that one Britain-based store is better than the rest. That’s according to Cultured magazine, which has just released a list of the 11 best independent bookshops in the world.
Burning House Books in Glasgow is officially the best small bookshop in the country, and one of the best on the planet, Cultured says. This little store places an emphasis on stocking ‘books with a focus on art, experimental writing, counterculture and queer history’. It’s owned and run by Aimee Bea Ballinger, who said she founded Burning House out of frustration.
Ballinger told Time Out that she decided to start her own business ‘after years and years of unpaid internships and job rejections’. She decided in 2015 that ‘if I really wanted [books] to be my job I was going to have to do it all myself’.
She began running a small travelling market stall a decade ago, before settling into a permanent unit in Cornwall – which flooded before she could even open the store. It wasn’t until 2021, after a move to Glasgow and a brief stint running a studio in the West End, that Burning House found its current Govanhill home in the south side of the city.
It might have been a bumpy ride, but Ballinger says she’s proud of the space she’s created. ‘My shop is small, and my collection very curated’, she explained, ‘my intention is that people come to me without any real idea of what they want but we can speak about what they love and what I love and hopefully they walk away with something mind blowing and new.’
Based on Cultured mag’s comments, she’s succeeding in what she set out to do. The magazine explained that it’s Ballinger that makes the shop so special. It said: ‘Aimee… has the best curation so you really can’t go wrong. You know that any book you choose will make you feel something.’
If you’re sold but don’t live in Glasgow, don’t worry: you can order from Burning House’s curated collection online here.
You can have a look at Cultured’s full list of the best independent bookshops in the world here.
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