Piper Nuelle

Much ADO Books, a quaint little bookstore that is hidden in the beautiful little village of Alfriston, not a half hour drive from Eastbourne on a good day with good traffic.

I heard about this hidden ‘Gem’ of a book shop from a random book lover I met when browsing books in a more mainstream book store. She had told me about this beautiful, gorgeous little shop that is the ideal wonderment of any book lovers. This is a book lovers dream… I mean, if you had to own a bookstore and you love books, and you wanted it to be in the heart of a cute little village… This is what you would imagine… I can guarantee it!!!

So, after a rather stressful morning and afternoon of me having to have some CT scans due to symptoms of a potential brain condition, I told my husband about this bookstore I desperately wanted to see and explore, and seen as we were travelling back from Brighton Hospital and on our way back to Eastbourne, we decided what better time to see this book shop than now.

On first impressions the shop is small, compact and extremely ‘Oldy Worldie’ in theme and feeling, but as you step inside it becomes like a Tardis! A colourful, amazing and just wow Tardis!

Downstairs begins with a chair that seconds as a bookcase, it has a perfectly formed seat for the buttocks of an avid reader, and then along the sides and back is a dedicated bookcase that holds many books. It being brightly decorated with pink and lime green means it sticks out but in a good way and the décor of the shop itself is quirky, colourful and unique.

There is also a great mix of old books and new books, some are even classed as Vintage with the leather bound covers, so there is indeed something for everyone inside this shop. The main heart of the shop is where the more modern stream of books is sold but if you venture outside to where a fenced off area from the road sits, you can find older and pre-loved books and even a section with book blind dates.

We saw displays of books, some written in a more older English charm, some smaller books that fit into the palm of your hand, others with collages of historical moments and information. There was also a trail, a ‘Book-and paper-arts trail’ dotted around the store and in different display cases which showed information about certain works of art, artists, books and more.

As well as books for adults they also house a cute kids section at the back of the store which is where many a signed copy from the local author, ‘Jacqueline Wilson’, reside, who as a child I read many of her books, and even my children have gone on to read many of her books. But due to there being an almost dedicated shelf to her, I just had to get my paws on a signed copy of one of her books. The one me and my daughter chose together was ‘Katy’… This one stood out to us because on the back the blurb it mentions about how Katy was one for ‘Flying‘ and being adventurous until she has a horrible accident. And it kind of hit home, as my husband, my daughters father had a terrible accident where he was run over, had to have an amputation and had to learn to walk again. We just felt this book might give us some feeling on how he felt, and that like him, you can walk and ‘Fly‘ again.

Another detail I adored about this bookstore was the stairs that led up to the first floor, they were decorated with book spines, so it looked like a bookcase as you climbed the stairs which was amazing. If my house had stairs I would totally steal this idea and create a book spine staircase.

The upstairs again held more books and that colourful character and charm as well. There were a few rooms that all led off one main room and all housed different genres of books and upstairs was actually where I found the books I wanted to buy, but I will do a separate post on the books I purchased.

There were some gorgeous vintage books that sat atop a bookcase and just below it sat a cute arm chair where I spotted many a reader sit and read a page or two of a book they wished to purchase or just have a little nosey inside of. This to me is a really nice addition, some consumers of books literally just want a nice little bookstore they can go to and maybe spend a while there, just being with the books, sitting alone and at peace. And judging by the seat cushion, many a bottom has sat upon this chair reading their next novel they wish to take home and devour.

Outside of the shop is also especially picturesque, tranquil and beautiful. A bench with books engraved into the wood sits at one end, a gorgeous vine arch stands before a statue of the one and only ‘Shakespeare’ along with a sweet little table and chairs for people to sit in and enjoy the sun with a new book and the bumble bees and butterflies that would be attracted to the stunning flowers such as Lavender they grow in their gardens.

I have never seen a more beautiful bookshop in my life and I have visited many. This is honestly the place of dreams and other worlds with many a story to tell.

The owners and the staff in the store have to be some of the friendliest people I have ever met. Me, my daughter and my husband each purchased a book, and to say thank you we were given a sprig of Lavender to put in our bag, and a free poem to keep the written word alive.

What I also liked was I picked up a hardback copy of a book and the gentleman at the till told me that there was a copy instore of the same book but in paperback and a little cheaper. Me being me wanted the pretty hardback but I really appreciated the fact that he tried to offer a cheaper alternative, to me it shows that they are in this for the love of books, for the readers and not just to make a quick buck from the visitors to their store.

Overall my experience here was great, it greatly surpassed any expectations I had and it has made me want to go back and visit it again!

If you are in the area I would highly recommend giving this cutesy little bookstore a visit and support, it is a small business and shops like this we need to keep on the streets, we need to keep them going.

So yeah, if you are in the area check them out. They do also have a website too if you cannot visit in person – https://www.muchadobooks.com/

xo Piper xo