The shop fits perfectly with the area’s intriguing literary history
Paper and Word in Bebington is “shaped like an open book” (Image: Ray Bonsall/Liverpool ECHO )
A shop in Bebington has become the UK’s first bricks and mortar fantasy bookshop after opening on Saturday (November 15). Selling everything from epic fantasy to magical realism the store has already been a hit with two and half hour queues down the street on its opening weekend.
“We’ve been constantly busy” says owner Abby Munro, 37, who quit her job in 2020 to pursue book selling full time. “I hoped it would do well but I absolutely did not expect the response had.”
Paper and Word was based online for seven years but Abby’s dreams of owning a physical store came true this year in part thanks to a Kickstarter which raised £26,000 from donations made by local authors and members of the community.
She said: “It was an incredible response. It’s been a whole journey that a lot of people have come along with us. We’ve got names on the ceiling of people who donated significant amounts. The bookish community is rooting for us”.
With kids’ picture books to adult novels, authors include some of the genre’s most trending with series from Sarah J Maas and Robin Hobbs.
Inside Paper and Word(Image: Folkstar Photography )
Abby said: “Fantasy is quite a broad genre which is why it works well as a bookshop because you can split into sub genres. There’s epic fantasy with fays, elves, magic and usually no technology. There‘s romantasy which has been big in the past few years then magical realism which is usually set in the world we know. We also have a small dark fantasy section with more adult themes”.
Speaking of her own found love of the genre Abby said: “As a teenager I sought out the same joy I found in books as a child. It’s enjoyable to see kids starting to get into that and following adventures.”
Paper and Word owner Abby Munro (Image: Folkstar Photography)
Paper and Word also has its own membership scheme and a book club with 70 members so far plus 700 more on the waitlist. Future events will include author talks and midnight book releases where the shop will open in the middle of the night.
As well as a personal attachment to Bebington, where she lives with her husband and son, the area couldn’t be more perfect for fans of the fantasy genre.
As local legend has it, the lamppost in C.S Lewis’ Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe was inspired by one in the churchyard of St Andrew’s Church on Church Road, Bebington, with Lewis being friends with local aristocrat and fellow fantasy author Roger Lancelyn Green. It was Green who is believed to have persuaded Lewis to publish the now famous book.
Abby said: “The shop itself is shaped like an open book too, with the spine down the middle”.
Church Road where Paper and Word is based is also home to many other independents including fellow bookseller Kraken Comics and Bulwark Games.
“A lot of authors like Terry Pratchett transcend three genres” says Abby, explaining how some stories start as books and finish as graphic novels, also entering the world of role playing games.
Bored Now Ceramics in Paper and Word (Image: Folkstar Photography )
“We can send our customers to the other shops to fill out their experience of the stories. Everyone in the village lifts each other up.”
The store also sells small items from local traders including pottery from Bored Now Ceramics who are based at Make North Docks in Liverpool.
Paper and Word can be found at 20 Church Rd, Bebington, Wirral CH63 3DD.