Books

Persephone Books

Kate Weston | Friday 10 February, 2012 15:09

Cosy, beautiful and blissfully calm, Persephone’s Bookshop really does justice to the books they publish.

Set up in1996 by Nicola Beauman—an author herself—to publish books by women from the early 20th Century that have gone out of print, Persephone is all about books “by women, for women and about women”. Their titles include both fiction and non fiction works, and are as beautifully presented as their shop.

Persephone’s books can be distinguished by their grey covers and individual end papers taken from wallpaper and tile designs from the time the books were originally published. Each book also comes with a bookmark that matches the end paper. They aim to publish 2 or 3 books every 6 months, titles due to be published in April are Virginia Woolf’s A Writer’s Diary and Harriet by Elizabeth Jenkins.

The shop itself opened ten years ago in Bloomsbury. Inside it has the appearance of a lovely tea shop, elegance and femininity oozing from every flower and book display. They have two book groups a month, along with tapas nights and tea time Q&As, and discussions with authors.

For more information on the titles available by Persephone go to www.persephonebooks.co.uk. Although they do mail-order and distribute to other bookshops, it’s a much better idea to go to the shop for yourself.

Persephone Books, 59 Lamb’s Conduit Street WC1N 3NB

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