Topping & Company Booksellers of St Andrews

Whether you're questioning the relevance of Ancient Literature or travelling has you wondering about the first non-stop transatlantic flight, these books can quench your thirst for knowledge! Stop into the bookshop and you might just find your next summer holiday read...

Harry has recently found himself dazzled by the new paperback non-fiction titles arriving in the bookshop! 🕶️

A big congratulations to @VirginiaEwrites and @bbclysedoucet for winning the prestigious Women's Prize for Fiction and Non-Fiction. We've got plenty of copies of both for you to peruse this coming weekend!

Today, it is with a heavy heart that we say Aere rā to Julia as she jets off to the Cook Islands! Julia has been the cornerstone of the bookshop and has done a cracking job of booking some of the best authors in publishing as our events coordinator. We will miss you!

Last Sunday we welcomed the brilliant Douglas Stuart for his latest novel 'John of John'. With laughter and warmth, Douglas talked extensively about his new story, beguiling everyone in attendance. Thank you to Douglas for making the trip to see us!

As well as giving an excellent talk on his fantastic new book, Lachlan Goudie also did us the great honour of painting our window! Head down to the bookshop to see Lachlan's painted art utensils and why not pick up a copy of 'The Secrets of Painting'?

There are even some around St Andrews, so you can start from right outside the bookshop's door!

If you're planning on getting out and exploring the countryside this spring and summer, then look no further than these handy pocket-sized walking guides! They cover trails all over Britain, and have a range of meanders for all levels of hiker.

As the sun comes out, so do the walking boots! ☀️🥾

If you've been looking at our tables lately, you might have spied these sprayed edges on some recent releases. Here are a few of our favourites...

Maggie O'Farrell, author of 'Hamnet', and Oscar nominee, visits us in St Andrews for her new book, 'Land'. This will be one of the books of the year and to celebrate we have a special offer to 'bring a friend for free' 👇 toppingbooks.co.uk/events/st-andr…

We're wishing Sir David Attenborough, as seemingly the rest of the country is too, a very happy 100th birthday!

🌸 'Pink: The History of a Color' by Michel Pastoureau 🌸 'Japanese Prints in Transition' by Rhiannon Paget 🌸 'The Vanishing Cherry Blossom Bookshop' by Takuya Asakura

We are sad to see its season is coming to an end... but we have enjoyed watching all the petals fall to the ground. If you're going to miss the blossoms as much as we will, maybe some of these books will fill the gap.

"They blossom, and then We gaze, and then the blooms Scatter, and then…" – Uejima Onitsura We are very lucky to have a beautiful Japanese cherry tree just across the road, which has been in full bloom all April.

Participants looking to steel their nerves for the cold water might want to take a look at some of our wild swimming books, which assure there are many physical and mental benefits to cold-water dips (even if in the moment, you're only thinking about the pain!).

At sunrise tomorrow, the seas of St Andrews will flood with students for May Dip! A stand-out among the university's many traditions, students cleanse their academic sins (most famously incurred by stepping on Patrick Hamilton's 'PH') in the freezing waters of the North Sea.

Our east-facing windows have been bringing some beautiful late-April sunlight into the bookshop. Do drop by while you're out enjoying the beautiful weather – after all, what's better than reading a book outside in the sunshine?

📜 'When the Forest Breathes: Renewal and Resilience in the Natural World' by Suzanne Simard 📜 'Wilderlands: The Human History of Wild Britain' by Eloise Kane 📜 'Walking Shadow: Love, Loss and Shakespeare' by Gregory Doran

NON-FICTION 📜 'Famesick' by Lena Dunham 📜 'The Lost Folk' by Lally Macbeth (new in paperback!) 📜 'On Revolution' by Hannah Arendt (with a new foreword by David Runciman)

New publications round-up! April has been very fruitful for bookish folk – here are some of this month's new titles that we've had our eyes on.