We are a large, inviting and fully accessible rare and second-hand bookshop with over 50,000 books on the shelves. We relocated from Castle Road, Bedford in October 2019 after trading there for 28 happy years. Our prices start at £1 (we have thousands of 'one pounders' in the 'Bargain Zone') while we also have hundreds of rare, collectable and antiquarian volumes in the display cabinets for the serious collector. Most of the books on the main shelves are priced between £5 and £20.
In a quiet part of the town, just outside the centre. A fairly large shop, with several rooms; very well laid out; a good mixture of modern and antiquarian books; friendly and helpful staff. Well worth a visit. Richard Beaton
Fairly large stock in this out of town shop. Owner certainly knew his subject. Very good local and regional holdings and some rare topography books. Chris Harte 13.10.09
Lots of very erudite and arcane looking tomes. Few really readable books but some beautiful volumes on display. What a second hand bookshop should look and feel like but something was missing for me ... Jon Morgan 20.02.12
Definitely worth a visit if you find yourself in Bedford otherwise refer to the comprehensive and interesting website first. During the week you will probably have the shop to yourself. Parking and refreshments nearby. OWC 10.09.12
Lovely shop, knowledgeable owner, wide selection and fair prices. well worth a visit. Astrid 06.03.13
Excellent, interesting and characterful stock in four or five rooms, moderately priced. Includes a "bookshop within a bookshop" as it's described: a room with shelves of £1, £2 or £5 etc books, with some nice finds. WWAD. Street parking outside. Mark V 02.04.15
A very good bookshop if you are a keen specialist in the history of mathematics philosophy and the sciences. For those interests WWAD. Less outstanding, but still good and WAD. Certainly one of Bedford's more compelling features. The Bookman 16.07.16
Excellent shop, the very epitome of what a secondhand bookshop should be. Strong on engineering and the arts as well as local history. Don't miss the vintage telegraphy equipment upstairs. WWAD if you're anywhere near Bedford. Steven Kelly 08.04.17
Excellent shop. VG stock and good prices. We always call in when in the area. WWAD. David 21.04.17
An excellent but pricey shop laid out across 5 rooms. 1 room upstairs has been turned into a sale room with books for £1 or £2. Those books seem unsorted so one needs plenty of time to browse. The history room for me was towards the back upstairs, and although the military holdings were extensive, I struggled to find any naval or aviation books to buy. Despite this weakness in stock I came away with 2 books so not a wasted journey. Pricing for me was on the high side as just about every military hardback I pulled out was £10 so 2 books on intelligence in WW2 I didn't buy as a result. Lastly there's an onsite toilet upstairs if like me you've travelled far. Laurence Batchelor 25.09.18
A marvellous bookshop. I've been visiting it for years and always come away with wonderful things. Owner friendly and helpful and prices extremely fair. Very much the place to discover new and unfamiliar things, even for the seasoned collector. Christopher 08.10.18
Excellent shop WWAD and with friendly and knowledgeable staff. Good range of subjects covered and strong on John Bunyan and local interest. Note that they are preparing to move into a larger shop in the town centre so check before travelling. Their website is well worth a look. Steven 17.06.19
Reopend in magnificent premises at the heart of the town with 5,000 sq ft of ground floor sales space. TBG 21.10.19
Same excellent stock. Nearly all subjects available, but especially good for non-fiction. Well lit and spacious. Sofas and chairs everywhere. Fair priced, owner gives generous discounts. Parking available nearby. Highly recommended. Charles Day 28.10.19
A significant improvement on the old premises which were beautiful but very heavy on the antiquarian side. Light airy and easy to move around.
There is a decent, albeit not massive modern fiction section Science and Household sections with artefacts decorating the shelves and tables.
A large space was given over to a 'bargain' section which was itself, well organised and categorised. All at £2.00 and the majority of my purchases came from this area. It is unlike most 'bargain' areas which contain nothing but dross as there were good quality books in excellent condition at really good prices.
This is worth visiting albeit not worth a detour and there is NOTHING else in Bedford, a County Town which would otherwise lure me there. Firedrake 12.03.22
This is a really special bookshop with a good range of quality stock. Their antiquarian section of rare books is particularly excellent. Good prices and well organised, with lots of different areas to explore. The staff are incredibly helpful and friendly. The shop is large and airy, and the location is lovely - not too far from the river and with some beautiful old buildings around. We made the trip over from Berkhamsted especially to visit the bookshop and it was well worth the trip.
I left with a huge number of books and already looking forward to returning! Thank you for making the visit such a lovely one. TheVintageBookwormUk 15.06.23
WWAD. Need I say more? Well, I will. A quite superb bookshop with prices ranging from £1 to a weeks' wages. The variety was wide and easy to check. The shelves were full and the people running the shop and bindery could not have been nicer or more helpful. There is also an Art Gallery. As I left a lady came in with a trolley for her purchases. Wow! Chris 19.02.24
Open at advertised times 
Phone before travelling 
Appointment necessary 
Status unknown, update requested 