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Shelf Isolation: The Travel Collection With real life travel off the menu and all of us staying at home for the foreseeable future, we’ll have to settle for armchair travel for the moment. Here are some reads to airlift you beyond your living room. Spain Hot Milk by Deborah Levy No one writes quite like Deborah Levy, and this novel is seething with tension and interiority. Our protagonist Sofia’s life has been paused indefinitely while she cares for her unwell mother on the sun-bleached Spanish coast. Sofia’s relationship with her mother is just as intense and inescapable as the scorching sun. It’s an extraordinarily vivid story about the complxity of the human mind and our flawed relationships with one another. Germany The Lost Europeans by Emmanuel Litvanof Based on the author’s experiences of moving to Berlin ten years after the Second World War, The Lost Europeans follows two Jews who return to Berlin after the Holocaust. It is a sharp, lively and poignant depiction of post-war Germany, and a completely unforgettable read. £8. 99 Add to Basket £10.00 Add to Basket Italy The Neapolitan Quartet by Eleanor Ferrante Beginning in the 1950s with My Brilliant Friend, this series of four novels follows two friends, Lena and Lila, as they navigate their childhood, adolescence and adulthood in an impoverished part of Naples. Depicting the social workings of a small, poor community, and the joys, jealousies and evolutions of friendship, you’ll find yourself transported to Naples through Ferrante’s warm characters and addictive prose. £8. 99 Add to Basket Israel Waking Lions by Ayelet Gundar Goshen When a distinguished doctor runs over a man on the way home from a nineteen hour shift, he knows he has killed him. Weighing up the impact of reporting his crime, knowing the man cannot be saved, and leaving him in order to save himself, he makes a decision that will change his life forever. It’s full of moral complexity that cuts to the bone of the human condition, and the Israeli setting is fantastic. £9. 99 Add to Basket Nigeria Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimanda Ngoze Adichie There are many books that I could recommend that would transport you to the buzzing, scorching culture of Nigeria, from Ben Okri’s Booker Prize-winning novel The Famished Road, to the darkly comic My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite. Where The Famished Road is full of folklore and mysticism and Braithwaite’s novel pulsates with the modernity and heat of present day Lagos, Half of a Yellow Sun paints a portrait of Nigeria at its most turbulent time. Telling the story of three characters living through the Biafran War during the 1960s, it’s a transportive novel that ought to be read by anyone who wants to understand the evolution of Nigeria. Add to Basket £8. 99 Japan and Korea Pachinko by Min Jin Lee ‘History has failed us, but no matter.’ So opens this multi-generational epic, spanning eight decades and four generations of one Korean family living in Japan. It’s an incredibly heartfelt tale about family, immigration, and the impact of racial oppression on communities and individuals that also taught me a lot about the relationship between these two nations. £8. 99 Add to Basket Australia Red Dirt by E.M Reapy Nothing so accurately transports me to the dusty heat of rural Australia as E.M. Reapy’s Red Dirt. Set against the backdrop of the global financial crash in 2008, three young Irish backpackers relocate to Australia full of hope and a sense of adventure. It’s dark and thrilling, at times heartbreaking, and an amazing evocation of the loneliness, bravado and folly of youth. Anyone whose plans to backpack around Australia have been scuppered may be pleased they stayed at home after reading this. £8. 99 Add to Basket Columbia The Lucky Ones by Julianne Pachico One of my favourite short story collections, The Lucky Ones is a series of interconnected short stories that reveal the dark heart of Columbia. A young woman waits in an empty house whilst an insurgency rises outside, and an incarcerated teacher recites Shakespeare to a class of leaves and twigs as he descends into madness induced by his captivity. These stories are both bizarre and blisteringly real, a gasping, gritty collection that shocks and simmers. £8. 99 Add to Basket

The Coming-Down Time by Robert Selby Shadows on the Barley by Robert Selby (from 'The Coming-Down Time') When our train goes over the river sending all the bridge bats aquiver into the pink evening; when the poplar’s shadow on the barley is not wanting for company and the castle turret is gleaming, it’s time for that part of the day, a few hours at least, that we can say are ours. The train slows down into the freedom beyond the tunnel, into the redbrick commuter town where we can peel off our office flannel, excited like kids home from school, flinging windows wide, excitable for the kettle’s click, the shower, for the can’s nozzle in every flower; then you, in your PJs already, post-shower bob a glorious melee, feet up on the kitchen table reading the paper you didn’t get to on the morning train because, again, we had slumped together in sleep, in a jerking, dribbling heap, dreaming of shadows on the barley. Add to Basket Praise for The Coming-Down Time 'Vivid, precise and stamped with a very English restraint, these poems deftly connect people and place across the span of a long century. There are images, echoes and correspondences here that resound as truthfully and as poignantly as a village church bell.' Melissa Harrison '... a marvellous anatomy of English life over the past century, working outwards from its gripping evocation of a family centre in East Anglia by a writer who is at once poet, local historian and naturalist. The book focuses on the extraordinary development of war experience into the familiarity of the period which is 'now and England' showing in its final part how everyone's personal life is in direct descent from the personal lives of ancestors.' Bernard O'Donoghue 'War and peace, past and present, love and death: The Coming-Down Time has a large reach, but makes its themes feel intimate by catching them in language that is at once simple and capable of wonder. It's a striking achievement: moving and intelligent and memorable.' Andrew Motion

Choose a book, add a card and let us know what message you'd like to include and we'll send a parcel straight to your loved one. Cards Kinky CARDS Lockdown Love Make someone's day by sending them a card. Birthday Wishes Other Occasions Thank You Happy-Making Scenes Lazar by Nelio Biedermann Price £16.99 Jess's Pick Helen Of Nowhere Price £12.99 Chandler's Pick My Lover, the Rabbi by Wayne Koestenbaum Price £14.99 Strange Girls by Sarvat Hasi Price £20.00 Signed What Am I, a Deer? by Polly Barton (Author Edition) Price £16.99 Mare by Emily Haworth-Booth Price £16.99 Enough Said by Alan Bennett Price £25.00 Having Spent Life Seeking by Kae Tempest Price £18.99 The Wreck by Lizzy Stewart Price £25.00 Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke Price £16.99 The Beginning Comes After the End by Rebecca Solnit Price £14.99 Chandler's Pick Exit Party by Emily St John Mandel Price £18.99 The Daffodil Days by Helen Bain Price £18.99 Sisters in Yellow by Mieko Kawakami Price £16.99 On the Calculation of Volume IV by Solvej Balle Price £12.99 Baldwin: A Love Story by Nicholas Boggs Price £30.00 Minor Black Figures by Brandon Taylor Price £18.99 Trespasses by Louise Kennedy Price £9.99 Hagstone by Sinéad Gleeson Price £9.99 Kingfisher by Rozie Kelly Price £10.99 Picked your card? Now choose a book to send with it. Browse our book recommendations

The Books of the Year Prescription For most of us, 2020 hasn't brought much in the way of joy. But it has brought some exceptional books. Our Shelf Medicate Prescriptions bring you the best books out there, and these are some of our favourites from this year. Choose between a small bundle of three or four books or a large bundle of six or eight book to have delivered to your door and then sit back, relax and enjoy your books. *Titles pictured are sample titles only. Small Bundle 3-4 Books £45 Add to Basket Large Bundle 6-8 Books £90 Add to Basket See All Shelf Medicate Prescriptions Head back to our Christmas shop How does it work? Choose your prescription Choose between a small or large bundle Pay via the PayPal link on our website Our literary expert will put together a unique selection of books based on the prescription you have chosen and the size. If you'd like to make any specific requests, please email orders@bookbaruk.com

Shelf Isolation 13 Books to Keep You Happy and Healthy During Lockdown We read books for many reasons: to learn something about the world around us, to feel inspired or moved. In uncertain times, we turn to books for comfort and escape. So here are some of BookBar's picks to keep you happy and healthy these uncertain times. Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman Isolated and friendless - except for her imposing mother, Eleanor Oliphant’s life is a lonely one, until an act of kindness makes her see that life can be more than just fine. This story of an outsider who finds her place in the world urges you to see the bright side of life. £8.99 Add to Basket A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles Sentenced to a lifetime of house arrest in the attic of Moscow’s Hotel Metropol, accused of being an unrepentant aristocrat at a Bolshevik trial, Count Alexander Rostov must adapt to his new life sans luxury. A Gentleman in Moscow is a charming novel about one moment in Russian history from the eyes of a man in a unique observational position - and in lockdown. £8.99 Add to Basket Calypso by David Sedaris Known for his laugh-out loud wit, I’d recommend any of David Sedaris’ essay collections, but his most recent book, Calypso, feels well placed for our lockdown scenario. Set around the beach house he shares with his partner, it explores the ways that families come together and fall apart with a rare transparency that accompanies the humour. £8.99 Add to Basket The Salt Path by Raynor Winn A remarkable memoir about hope in the direst of situations, which turns a tragedy into an adventure. After losing their home and livelihood, Moth and Raynor discover that Moth is terminally ill. Bankrupt, homeless and in physical and emotional agony, the couple decide to walk England’s 630 mile south-west coastal footpath from Somerset to Dorset via Devon and Cornwall. The journey definitely isn’t an easy one, but what comes with it is cathartic and regenerative. Incredibly brave, moving and full of love, resilience and joy, this memoir will inspire you, post-lockdown, to slide on your walking boots in search of adventure - and also hope. £9.99 Add to Basket Factfulness by Hans Rosling Rich in data, but also joy, Factfulness argues that when we remove our biases and look at facts, we can see the world in a more positive light. Written pre-Pandemic, the world has changed hugely since the book was published in 2018, but its lessons remain the same. A book that will offer comfort to even the most cynical and inspire the most ignorant. £9.99 Add to Basket The Offing by Benjamin Myers ‘Poetry is mankind’s way of saying we are not entirely alone in the world’ says the wonderfully vivacious Dulcie in Benjamin Myers’ uplifting novel The Offing, which is set along the beautifully realised crags and cliffs of the North Yorkshire coast. When Robert sets off on a rambling adventure by foot, he stumbles upon the home of eccentric Dulcie and finds himself drawn to her unconventional lifestyle and her love of poetry. It’s a warm, wise and lyrically told novel about the sea, love, friendship, nature and poetry. £8.99 Add to Basket I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith The ultimate comfort read, from its first line (‘I write this sitting in the kitchen sink’) the joys of domesticity and family abound in this classic novel about an eccentric family who live in a dilapidated house in the English countryside. With wonderful characters, romance and a beautiful coming-of-age story, I Capture the Castle has everything you could want in an escapist read. Everything I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton This memoir of journalist and co-host of the podcast ‘The High Low’ is frank and funny. Charting the parties, dates, and follies of Dolly’s twenties - from her university days to her first job and the anticipation of turning thirty - this book is cringingly relatable, hilarious and beautifully wise. It’s a reminder of the value of friendship - and perhaps a warning to those who are already planning their post-isolation night out. £8.99 Add to Basket £8.99 Add to Basket Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig Billed as ‘a book about making the most of your time on earth’, Reasons to Stay Alive is one of the most joyful and accessible books about mental health I’ve read. Following novelist Matt Haig’s experience with depression, it’s a genuinely funny and incredibly truthful insight into the dark spectre of depression, and how it is possible to not only get your life back from this illness but live it to its fullest. £9.99 Add to Basket Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid Reminiscent of the story of Fleetwood Mac and told through revelatory interviews with fictional band members, friends, and producers, Daisy Jones and the Six charts the rise and mysterious fall of the world’s most popular band. It’s full of sex, drugs, and rock and roll, but it also interrogates the unhappiness behind the glamour and the people behind the icons. £8.99 Add to Basket The Examined Life by Stephen Grosz Written by a leading psychotherapist, The Examined Life shares Stephen Grosz’s personal encounters between a psychoanalyst and his patients, revealing how the art of insight can shed light on the most difficult and overwhelming experiences. A moving book about the nature of humanity and our extraordinary power for healing. £9.99 Add to Basket Notes from a Small Island by Bill Bryson There is much to be said for living room travel, and anything written by Bill Bryson is the perfect candidate for transporting you to new shores without even leaving your living room. In Notes From a Small Island, Bryson travels around the UK, uncovering the eccentricities of this island nation and the people who inhabit it. His witty observations about the cultures he visits will have you audibly chortling to yourself. Wherever you are in the world, Bryson is a superb travelling partner. £9.99 Add to Basket The Poetry Pharmacy by William Sieghart I have found poetry to be immensely helpful during these strange times and this book the most consolatory collection of them all. It’s a book I love full of lots of different poems and beautifully insightful commentary that are prescribed for emotional ailments from heartbreak and bereavement to regret, lethargy and anxiety. There are some real gems here, including a poem by Seigfreid Sassoon, ‘Everyone Sang’, that feels like it was written for this very moment. £12.99 Add to Basket

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The Baby It's Cold Outside Prescription Knitted jumpers, mulled wine, woollen gloves, hot chocolate. Christmas is synonymous with warmth and comfort. So we've created the perfect prescription to match. We'll send a selection of the cosiest reads, designed to warm your cockles. Choose from a small prescription of three books or a large prescription of six books. *Titles pictured are sample titles only. Small Bundle Three Books £40 Add to Basket Large Bundle Six Books £70 Add to Basket See All Shelf Medicate Prescriptions Head back to our Christmas shop How does it work? Choose your prescription Choose between a small or large bundle Add it to your basket and purchase Our literary expert will put together a selection of books based on the prescription you have chosen and the size.

bookbar bookclub: faqS How does it work? 1) Sign up and receive a paperback book each month 2) Tune in to an event with the author (or catch up for 30 days after) 3) Join us for an in-shop discussion with other members What books can we expect to be reading? We read contemporary fiction and non-fiction, swaying towards fiction or non-fiction with a good narrative and lots of themes to discuss. Authors that have joined us for the BookBar BookClub so far have included Ann Patchett, Douglas Stuart, Brit Bennett, Elif Shafak, Maggie O'Farrell, Claire Keegan, Natasha Brown, Meg Mason, Miranda Cowley Heller, Torrey Peters, Raven Leilani, Min Jin Lee, Ingrid Persaud, Sunjeev Sahota, Curtis Sittenfeld, Clare Chambers, Fiona Mozley, Sophie Heyward, Emily Ratajkowski and Bryan Washington. What does the BookBar BookClub monthly membership include? Membership is £15/a month and includes the following: A paperback book chosen by our passionate team A virtual event with the author to watch live or on record for 30 days after the event 10% off our Hardback of the Month in store and online Exclusive discounts and promotions throughout the year A monthly in-person discussion group, to discuss the monthly paperback book with other members over a glass of wine or soft drink. Please note that postage is not included. When will I get my book? We will post your book to you four or five weeks before the event. As we pick the freshest paperbacks, the books get sent out at the same time each month to all subscribers, regardless of when the ticket was purchased, so the 3-5 day shipping window does not apply for BookClub purchases as in most cases the books have not yet been published when the programme is launched. You can opt to collect your book if you would prefer. We'll let you know when your book is ready to collect or on its way. If you subscribe to the BookClub after the books have gone out, we'll post yours as soon as we can. When will I receive the link to watch the BookClub event? You will receive a link via email a few days in advance of the event. Please ensure you are subscribed to BookBar's mailing list as you will not receive emails from us if you are not subscribed. You can also access all the information you need BookBar BookClub Members' Page at our website. On the Members' Page , you'll find the links to watch the live BookClubs and recordings and in-person discussion groups. Just head to the Members Page and type in the password printed on the card you receive with your book each month. Once have accessed the Members' Page, to access the link for the live virtual event and the recording, you'll need to type in a different password, unique to each month. How do I cancel my membership? You can cancel your membership at any time. Just email hello@bookbaruk.com and we'll make sure no further payments are made. If you have already received this month's book and payment has not been taken, we'll cancel your membership after we've received payment. What if I already have a copy of the book? We are unable to accept exchanges. If you have a copy of the book and don't want to pass it on to another reader, we can pause your membership for a month. How can I purchase a membership as a gift? Just fill in your details for now and email hello@bookbaruk.com with the details of the recipient when you are ready to update them. How do I update my card details? You'll need to call us to update your card details over the phone. Please note that if payment does not go through, your membership will be automatically cancelled. What happens if I move house? You can change your delivery address any time. Just email bookclub@bookbaruk.com with your new address and we'll update our system. Can I swap from collection to postage? Of course. You'll just need to get in touch so we can cancel your membership and re-subscribe you to include the postage fee. Just email bookclub@bookbaruk.com . Can I just join for one event? Absolutely! You can purchase a one-off event ticket for £18. This will include the paperback book and the virtual author event only. You will not have access to the in-person discussion group, MUBI membership, or any other discounts or perks. How does the the monthly discussion group work? The monthly discussion group is in person at our bookshop and social space on Blackstock Road, London. It is in addition to the virtual event that we host with the author. Space will be limited to just 10 people each month, and will be available to BookBar BookClub subscribers only on a first come, first served basis. We'll send out a date for the discussion and a link each month for members to sign up. You'll be charged £5 to secure your space, which will mean you can claim a free glass of house wine or soft drink on the evening. The in-person conversation will only be available to BookClub subscribers. Join the BookClub!

Order Books If you already have a book in mind, or have been inspired by one of our BookList recommendations, you can order directly with us. If you'd like advice or a personal recommendation we'd be delighted to help. Just email chrissy@bookbaruk.com , message via our Instagram @bookbaruk, or fill in the form below. Following your order, we'll be in touch with a link to payment. Once the payment is received, we'll dispatch your order. If the book is in stock, you can expect to receive the book within 48 hours of your payment. For our most recent recommendations and inspiration visit the BookList. Submit Your order has been sent. Someone will be in touch with a payment link. Give a BookBar Gift Voucher If you can't decide which ShelfMedicate Prescription to give someone you love, buy a BookBar voucher, and let them choose their prescription, book a consultation, or order their own books. Continue

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Shelf Isolation: 7 Historical Novels to Escape to in Lockdown When reading, I love nothing more immersing myself in another time or place I have never been, where I am propelled into the lives of characters whose world is so removed from my own. It's why I love historical fiction. Here are some of my favourites, that will, I hope, be the perfect escape. The Epics WolF Hall, Bring Up The Bodies and The Mirror and the Light by Hilary Mantel If you haven’t yet read these evocative novels, now is the time. Telling the story of the rise and fall of Henry VIII’s right hand man, Thomas Cromwell, every page seethes with the life of the Tudor court and the sounds, smells and sights of the sixteenth century. This is far more than just well-written historical fiction; this is vibrant world-building, biting and vivacious. £9. 99 Add to Basket Outside the Gates of Eden by Lewis Shiner Two teenagers meet in the summer of 1965 and, inspired by their hero, Bob Dylan, decide to form a band. The novel follows them through the next five decades, into the Summer of Love, the hope of those years, and the disillusion that followed. Described by George R.R. Martin as ‘a brilliant requiem for our generation and all our dreams’, it’s an epic about music and friendship, with a phenomenal soundtrack to boot. £25.00 Add to Basket Washington Black by Esi Edugyan When field slave Washington's plantation in Barbados is taken over by two Wilde brothers, he is taken on as the eccentric 'Titch' Wilde's personal servant. Titch is an eccentric scientist whose lofty ambition to build an aerial machine will take Washington on a life-changing - and perilous - adventure. Supreme adventure writing unlike any other that was deservedly shortlisted for the Booker Prize. £8.99 Add to Basket The Love Stories Everyone Brave is Forgiven by Chris Cleave An exquisite and unsentimental Second World War novel, which follows Mary, a debutante who leaves finishing school unfinished to join the war efforts. Although Mary is disappointed at the lack of glamour at being appointed a school teacher rather than a spy, what follows is a stunning love story set on the home front that so beautifully evokes the period. Love is Blind by William Boyd When conscientious piano tuner Brodie is offered a job in Paris, he jumps at the chance to leave Edinburgh to escape his puritanical father. When he falls in love with a rising opera singer, his passion takes him around Europe, and leads to devastating consequences. Set against the backdrop of the tumultuous change of nineteenth century Europe, Love is Blind is an extraordinary novel about love and fate, with such a rich setting, you can’t help but feel that you are travelling Europe with Brodie. £7. 99 Add to Basket £8. 99 Add to Basket The Summer House Party by Caro Fraser In 1936, a group of bright young things descend on the country house of an older family friend for a long weekend. There passions are lit, mistakes are made and when the weekend is marred by a sudden and tragic death, each leaves with secrets that will reverberate over the coming years. It’s a glorious period piece with brilliant characters that unravels the way that we often walk blindfolded towards political and personal crisis. £8. 99 Add to Basket The Thrillers Fingersmith by Sarah Waters Lesbian bodice ripper, twisting thriller, historical caper, Fingersmith defies genre. Sue Trinder, orphaned at birth, grows up among petty thieves – fingersmiths – under the rough care of Mrs Sucksby and her ‘family’. But when she is sent to be the companion to a wealthy young woman, her life changes forever. Fingersmith is a jaw-dropping, rip-roaring romp through Victorian England that wins BookBar’s award for most shocking plot twists. £8. 99 Add to Basket The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton Set amidst the New Zealand gold rush of the 19th century, Eleanor Catton’s novel is a superbly plotted, epic historical thriller. Over the course of this 800-page novel, thirteen men come together to solve three crimes: the disappearance of a wealthy man, the suicide attempt of a sex worker and the discovery of a huge fortune in a wastral’s home. A magnificent historical drama. £9. 99 Add to Basket This Lovely City by Louise Hare Lawrie has sailed across the ocean on the Empire Windrish to begin a new life of Blitz-wrought London, spending his days as a postman and his nights soaking up the jazz scene of Soho's music halls. But when he makes a terrible discovery and finds himself on the wrong end of a murder investigation he realises his new home isn't quite as lovely as he thought. This vibrant novel is so much more than a crime novel. It's an evocative story about prejudice, love and family that's full of heart and hope with a buzzing post-war London setting. £12.99 Add to Basket