The First One....

Yes, well, this is it.

The very first official article on the blog.

I’m Stevie, and along with my co-book-lover, Baju, we are “Book Lovers Melbourne”.

There’s nothing I like more on a day off than to trawl my way around a handful of the many wonderful independent book shops that Melbourne has to offer. I think we’re very lucky here in Melbourne to have such a great choice of book outlets and, contrary to perceived wisdom, book shops are very much a thriving part of our community.

My only gripe has always been a lack of a centralized source with which to help plot that day’s odyssey around the various stunningly illuminating ports of call available to the Victoria based bibliophile... or, withholding the verbosity... 

Melbourne needs a good book shop guide with a map!

So we thought we’d come up with one. Our listings section is currently in production, along with the much vaunted mapping tool, so watch this space.

Now there are a few points we need to make clear to you, dear reader.

Firstly: We are entirely independent. We are not sponsored by any of the bookshops or outlets we list. We list them because we think they are deserving of your attention and a visit to them will enhance your book loving lifestyle. That also means we entirely reserve the right to express an opinion on any store/book/product etc we care to discuss. Comments from us are entirely OUR opinion.

Secondly: This is a hobby site/project. We endeavour to be as ‘professional’ as possible but we reserve the right to be amateurs, both in our content and our productivity. Your opinions and input are always welcome, unless they are abusive, annoying or negative in this regard. We both believe reading and its related shopping opportunities, to be the most pleasurable of pursuits; our aim here is to improve that experience, not preach/teach or guide.

Just read stuff. The rest will come naturally.

Third: We’re not elitist. We list book shops we like to visit and find enjoyable based on our love of reading material. We’re not saying that if you only buy $5 paperbacks based on sex or cowboys you’re a bad person, (in fact, I’d rather you read the back of a Corn Flakes packet than nothing), we’re just highlighting the places we like to buy books.

Finally: We really, really love books. That’s why the site is called what it is. Whether you’re getting them from the library, buying them to decorate your home, re-covering them, re-crafting them, writing them, up-cycling them, collecting them or good old-fashioned reading them, we hope you will enjoy our site.