Last year, I was so bored with my workplace that I was seriously thinking of opening a bookstore and fulfill one of my dreams (so that I can keep reading from morn till night and have work+pleasure at the same time). My ideal bookstore would be like the one in the movie ?You’ve Got mail?.
Some of the places that I pick up books from are mainly in Hyderabad (my abode) and now u know where the City of Joy is!! (mentioned in my profile)
Akshara :
True to itz name, this lille bookshop is a delight to all book lovers. Although the place does not offer any seating or assistants, you get personal attention in case of any queries by none other than Lakshmi (owner of this shop). They stock books of every category and sometimes you would find some very odd titles with lesser-known authors.
But the real reason for rating it as No: 1 is itz association with The Little Theatre, a group of eminent personalities who read extracts from books. the authors meet conducted from time to time where there is book reading session by authors who interact with the customers as well.
So far authors like Khushwant Singh, R. K. Laxman, Upamanyu Chatterjee etc. have held reading sessions and interacted with the customers.
It is located on the Banjara Hills Main road so that one need not hunt for it.
Crossword:
Crossword belongs to a different category altogether. It is very organized and spacious. I also love the reviews written by the staff, which helps me in case I haven?t read the book yet. If you have some time to kill and want to discover new authors spend the time by sitting in a cozy corner and concluding whether you really want to buy the book or not. Itz location in Shopper?s Stop (in Begumpet) is ideal if you want to take a break from u?r shopping and catch up with some reading.
Walden:
Another good old bookstore in Hyderabad, which lost itz popularity after the inauguration of Crossword.If you are the one who loves to pick up the bestsellers then this is The Place.They have a huge display of not only the current bestsellers but bestsellers of all times. If you have interested in different hairstyles, interior decoration, makeup techniques, painting techniques then this is the right place for u since they have a large collection of books on these and other hobbies. The children section is another plus here you get books right from toddlers till teenagers. It is located in Somajiguda, one of the prime locations of Hyderabad.
Odyssey:
This Chennai based chain store is one of the new additions to the bookstores in Hyderabad. Apart from the usual books, they have very good stationary and also for those you dabble in paints all the painting material. Also the collection of Classics they have (Adventure Classics, Romantic Classics etc.) make ideal gifts for any book lover. Also located in downtown Hyd ?Panjagutta so that it attracts the crowd, which commutes in this busy road.
Another store worth a visit is the store in Lifestyle.
A special mention to the Koti bookstores for all those techies looking for books on Java, DHTML besides many other educational books.
I generally buy books which are for keeps ?I mean- books we love to read again and again over the years like Gone with the Wind, To Kill a Mocking Bird, The Alchemist and many more. Towards that end I have converted the puja room of my house to a small library ?coz whatz more sacred to a booklover than the books we own!!!!