On Tuesday (29 October 2024) the six winners of the second ever Booker Prize Indie Bookshop Spotlight were announced and they included Hold Fast Bookshop at Leeds Dock.
The competition, carried out for the second year in the row, invited independent bookshops and booksellers from across the UK and Ireland to celebrate this year’s Booker Prize shortlist by assembling an in-store display of the titles nominated for the prize and posting images of their activity on their social media channels.
Victoria and Chris Bonner, owners of Hold Fast Bookshop, Leeds, said:
Tell us a bit about your bookshop, and what makes it unique.
“We are Victoria and Chris, and we opened Hold Fast Bookshop in November 2022. You can find us floating in Leeds Dock onboard National Historic Ship Marjorie R, a converted Yorkshire Coal Barge. She is moored in the former commercial dock in Leeds where boats like her were loaded and unloaded – these days the industry is gone and we now have coffee shops, wine bars, and an artisan bakery in the dock nearby. We often share the water with paddle boarders and swimmers, as well as a stroppy heron called Keith who fears no human or dog. We have seats on our upper deck where people can read on those rare rainless days we get in Leeds. We also sell plants which adds a much-needed splash of colour to the area.”
How did you start out bookselling and what do you enjoy most about it, and working in a bookshop?
“People often ask where we got the idea to set up a bookshop on a boat – in truth, we have lived and worked on the water for 22 years so it never really occurred to us to try and find a shop on dry land. Having the shop has changed our taste in books – reading more widely has introduced us both to new genres we never would have picked up before.”
Why do you think independent bookselling is so important?
“If there is anything better than chatting about books all day, we have yet to find it and it’s such a vital part of independent bookselling. It’s great to see the interactions in a bookshop – customers often start chatting to each other about what they have read or enjoyed. That doesn’t really happen in other shops – it’s as if ‘normal rules’ don’t apply in bookshops and by stepping in you know things will be a little calmer, more chatty and comfortable. It’s also so important for readers to see a range of books of all kinds of genres. I think most have more courage and a sense of adventure with their book choices than the dreaded algorithm would ever give them credit for.”
What does the Booker Prize mean to you as a bookseller and what does it mean to your customers?
“The Booker Prize is such a great conversation starter in the shop – people have been hearing about the shortlisted books and authors on the radio, on TV and online and there is a real buzz around the selection. Sometimes there is nothing better than a long lingering browse in a bookshop, and other times you just want someone to give you a book and say ‘read this, it’s good’. The Booker Prize is a shortcut readers need when fatigued by choice or too time-poor to wander the shelves.”
Which of the Booker Prize 2024 shortlisted titles would you like to see win, and why?
“We would be so happy for Samatha Harvey to win. Orbital is a fantastic story and I also like how accessible it is. It’s an extraordinary book, so emotive but quite short and very easy to read. Our customers are enjoying it, and we have lots of people coming in for it after friends have recommended it. I was lucky enough to meet Samatha at an event and she was so nice – and ironically very down to earth – we talked about trying to write on trains and how it’s almost impossible not to be distracted. I’d love to be able to say I had a cuppa with a Booker Prize winner!”
The Booker Prize Foundation also worked alongside The Reading Agency to run a competition for libraries across the UK, who were tasked with creating an imaginative display to encourage readers to take part in the Booker Prize Reading Challenge. The winner is Plymstock Library team, part of Plymouth Libraries.
This post is based on a press release issued on behalf of the Booker Prize
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