posted on 19 Aug 2019

The Tree House Bookshop, Kenilworth

We almost literally stumbled over The Tree House Bookshop when we paid a visit to Kenilworth – although we usually do better research for our visits, we had no idea it was there and suddenly it was in front of us as we emerged onto the main shopping street from the car park.

A few boxes of books outside on the pavement was no real preparation for what was inside – which was a real delight. All bookshops have an intangible atmosphere that in many ways says more about them than a cold analysis of the stock and that’s most certainly true of the Tree House Bookshop.  After our visit we were talking about what we thought of the experience and almost simultaneously we both came up with the same word – ‘friendly’. That might be a slight understatement – the shop feels relaxed, comfortable with itself and happy to embrace anyone coming in through the door.

To be honest, the stock – mostly donations I think – is a bit of a jumble and certainly hit and miss. That’s not to say it’s not organised - it certainly is – but only in the broadest sense of that word. You’ll find, for example, that subject areas are grouped together but there’s no attempt to achieve alphabetical order.

But, hey, who cares. It’s one of those shops where you never really know what you’re going to come across and so for book collectors it’s full of latent promise and for the ordinary book buyer there’s the pleasure of serendipity. Prices are also very sensible and I don’t think anyone would object to the few pounds being asked for most copies.

Actually, reviewing The Tree House as a bookshop is to do it a disservice because this is evidently more of a community resource centre than a book shop. The website which can be accessed here has this to say:

“The Tree House Bookshop is a second-hand bookshop and live music venue by the clock tower in Kenilworth.  Our purpose is to bring people together through books and the arts generally, which we believe are hugely significant to any healthy society.  The money we make keeps the bookshop going, and any profits are given to charity.  It is run by a team of volunteers.  We have two book clubs (daytime and evening), a weekly craft group, a monthly open mic for music and spoken word, a monthly poetry evening and regular live music from professional musicians on national (or even international) tours.  Sometimes we have art lectures and films, and other one-off events and initiatives.”

 Their own postcards provide probably the most concise menu of what they offer. A copy of the card can be viewed at the bottom of this review and I suspect once you’ve read it that you’ll want to include a visit to this shop on your itinerary whenever you’re in the area.

 

Terry Potter

August 2019