The Castlemaine Bookshop Trail: Part 2

 Just a short drive from Castlemaine, Book Heaven is a sprawling bookshop crammed with around 100,000 books. Whatever your genre, one of the nine rooms at Book Heaven will have at least a couple of bookcases full of titles to choose from. As an example, its well-stocked sports section not only has shelves devoted to footy and cricket, but it also includes books about minority sports. I even found a couple of gymnastics titles from the 'Golden Era' period of the late 1970s, so bonus points there.

Other sections include sci-fi, travel, music, movies, Australiana, farming, dogs, horses, war, and even journalism and publishing.

Anyone who reads this blog will know by now that my go-to place in any bookshop is the children's section. If I was delighted by the sports books, I was disappointed by the children's books. There are lots of shelves devoted to them, but most of them were titles published from the 1990s onwards. Any old hardbacks were of the Anne of Green Gables, Little Women, Heidi variety, that have been published over and again. No rare titles in sight.

The music section at Book Heaven

Something that struck me as odd about the children's section was that it was next to the fire. As it was a cold day the fire was going, which was fine for me as a browsing adult. But if I'd gone in with a young child, I'd have been a bit worried about it.

While 100,000 books should be every reader's idea of heaven (hence the name, I guess!), I must confess I found having so many rooms of books a bit overwhelming. This, I am sure, was because we only had a few hours in Castlemaine, and couldn't spare the amount of time needed to delve properly into the delights this bookshop has to offer. So if you visit Castlemaine, be aware that you could easily devote an entire morning or afternoon to browsing at Book Heaven.

After leaving Book Heaven, we had lunch, then headed for the final bookshop on the Castlemaine trail: Soldier & Scholar. This bookshop's reputation precedes it: two years ago there was an article in a local newspaper about a sign the owner had put up asking people to enter the shop only if they wanted to buy a book. She didn't just want browsers.

I couldn't see the sign when we visited, though there were several others around the shop and in the window. And as soon as we entered, the owner asked us if there were any particular titles we were looking for. "No," I replied. "We're just browsing."

"Are there any particular genres you're looking for?" she pressed.

One of the signs at Soldier & Scholar

 
"Well, I usually like to look at the children's section..."

The children's section turned out to be right next to the counter, so while my husband disappeared further into the shop to check out the history shelves, I continued fielding questions about which authors I was interested in while trying to spot titles among the double-stacking. From what I could see, the children's section seemed to consist of more recent titles plus some Enid Blytons. Maybe if I'd asked, she might have told me exactly where among the mostly inaccessible books there was a rare Brent-Dyer, but I really prefer to do my own hunting. After all, if I didn't enjoy the hunt, I'd simply go to Abebooks for those rare titles and have them posted to me.

Anyway, my husband found a book he wanted in the history section, so we ended up buying a book and it was smiles all round. That he was left alone to browse and found something and I was put off browsing by the questioning makes me wonder how many other booklovers are put off by their experience.

Cookery books and celebrity titles

As you'd expect from the name of the bookshop, there are plenty of military history and academic books here. But there are lots of other sections too, including cookery books, celebrity autobiographies, and a good deal of non-military history. Bookworms will find much to look at here. But you'll be welcomed more if you know exactly what you're looking for.

So that was the trail done and I'm sure we'll head back there down the track! We didn't have much time to explore many of the town's other attractions, but enjoyed a delicious breakfast at Saffs Cafe in Mostyn Street, and went for a circuit walk at the nearby Goldfields Track.

The Castlemaine Bookshop Trail: Part 1

Over the weekend, we headed out to Castlemaine, a former gold-mining town north-west of Melbourne. There are plenty of bookshops in the goldfields region, but we only had time to explore Castlemaine on this visit. Castlemaine has its own bookshop trail, with a helpful map to help you find the bookshops.

Since the map was printed, Books Plus has closed (though it may now have a stall at the nearby Castlemaine Vintage Bazaar, which we didn't visit). Stoneman's Bookroom no longer has a second-hand section, the owner explaining that with so many second-hand bookshops close by, it was better to focus on selling contemporary books. It's a beautiful, well-stocked bookshop with an extensive children's section, so it's certainly worth checking out if you're looking for new or recent releases.

Our first stop on the bookshop trail was Mount of Alex, opened seven years ago by owner Andrew Long. This elegant and atmospheric bookshop contains a wide range of books in excellent condition. There are vintage children's paperbacks on the bookshelves to the right as you enter the shop (I found a copy of A Traveller in Time by Alison Uttley, which I'd been looking for forever), with hardbacks to the left (including, when I visited, a lovely copy of Louise Mack's Teens). Crime hardbacks, ranging from Golden Age to more recent, are in one of the alcoves further into the shop. The owner is extremely knowledgeable, and says his aim with the shop is to create an antiquarian feel. He's definitely succeeded in that. This is a bookshop we'll certainly return to.

From there, we walked up to Soldier & Scholar, but discovered it didn't open until 2pm. So it was back in the car and a quick drive to nearby Campbells Creek to visit Book Heaven.

To be continued...

A bookshop not just for a rainy day

Former school librarian Meryll Williams named her bookshop Rainy Day Books after a friend remarked on how much she liked reading on a rainy day.

Well, Rainy Day Books, in The Basin at the foot of Mount Dandenong, is worth a visit whatever the weather.

Meryll's speciality is children's books, particularly 'girlsown' books like the Chalet School, etc. But the bookshop also has a well-stocked crime section, including a bookcase devoted to cosy crime, along with romance, sci fi and general fiction. There's a very good history section too, including books and brochures on local history.

Rainy Day Books has been open since 2006 and is one of only two bookshops (the other one is Kallista Books) that still survive from the old Dandenong Ranges and Yarra Valley Book Trail that Meryll helped set up in around 2007.

Meryll also helped establish the annual Mountains of Books Book Fair that takes place in Ferny Creek over Melbourne Cup weekend.

There are a couple of local cafes and a playground across the road should you want coffee or lunch or somewhere to let the kids burn off energy. We always have coffee at the Chocolate Dragonfly, but the other local cafe always seems busy so it must be good too.

Organised chaos!

When I visit a second-hand bookshop, I'm on the hunt for specific books - usually a 'girlsown' or crime fiction title that's missing from my collection.

My husband, on the other hand, isn't looking for anything in particular, but likes to browse and see if he can turn up anything quirky.

Guess which one of us copes best with a visit to McLeods Books in Nunawading?

To be fair to the owner, if you ask her where something is, she can tell you. And there are signs around the shop informing you whereabouts you can find bestsellers like Nora Roberts and Jodi Picoult. But the piles of books cluttering the floor, the double-stacking of shelves and the lack of alphabetical order don't make me want to hang around.

My husband, though, was happy to settle in and rummage, and found an old book he was interested in buying. There was no price on it, and the owner did a quick internet search and decided she didn't want to sell it. She admitted she hadn't known it was in the shop, so lucky for her that he brought it to her attention.

Anyway, McLeods Books will be closing in a few weeks' time (most likely at the end of October) and the business is going online after 13 years as a bricks-and-mortar shop. The thousands of mostly paperback titles include a good range of crime fiction, and lots of romance and sci fi and fantasy. There are specific genre sales on at the moment, so it's well worth visiting if you're on the hunt for more reading material - as long as you can cope with the chaos!

Kallista Books

One thing that hasn't changed since when I started this blog in 2010 and when I revised it a few weeks ago is that the gorgeous Kallista Books in the Dandenong Ranges is still going strong.

There are a few reasons I can suggest for why this bookshop has survived while others have failed. The building itself is distinctive - it began life as a dairy in the 1930s. Inside, the shop has a cosy vibe that makes you want to settle in and browse. And the owner, Willie, is friendly, helpful, and hugely knowledgeable about books.

The bookshop boasts an extensive children's collection, plus shelves full of Australian history, including Dandenong Ranges history. There are gardening books, the classics, crime, and lots of quirky titles as well, including, when I visited, an old Foy and Gibson catalogue.

Willie knows his prices, so while the books aren't cheap, they also aren't excessive. And the quality of his stock is excellent.

There's book-related furniture and a particularly delightful and unusual rotating bookcase to be found within the shop as well.

Kallista Books is open on Saturdays and Sundays (follow the signs from the village roundabout). If there's a particular title you're looking for, ask, as not all of Willie's stock is on display (hard though that may be to believe, with so many books).

Other places to visit in Kallista include Grant's Picnic Ground, which has walking trails and birdlife, and the Kallista Tea Rooms, if you're looking for somewhere for coffee or lunch.