Waterstones Bedford

Don't forget to grab your tickets for our evening with Ruth Hogan to celebrate the release of this gorgeous paperback version of Queenie Malone's Paradise Hotel. Tuesday 9th July 6.30pm.

We are in love with our June children's book of the month! THE UMBRELLA MOUSE by ANNA FARGHER is delightful and utterly charming. An enchanting tale of bravery, hope and courage. Perfect for all readers, not just the young ones!
1944, and London is under attack. Young mouse Pip Hanway's safe and quiet world is turned upside down when her home, umbrella shop James Smith & Sons, is destroyed by a bomb. Orphaned and alone, she must begin a perilous quest to find a new home.
But the only way to get there is by joining Noah's Ark, a secret gang of animals fighting the resistance in France, operating beneath the feet of the human soldiers. Danger is everywhere and as the enemy closes in, Pip must risk everything to save her new friends.

Our non-fiction pick for June is HOW TO BE RIGHT by JAMES O'BRIEN. A funny, clever and intelligent read. O'Brien is a sane voice in today's increasingly toxic world.
In How To Be Right, James provides a hilarious and invigorating guide to talking to people with faulty opinions. With chapters on every lightning-rod issue, James shows how people have been fooled into thinking the way they do, and in each case outlines the key questions to ask to reveal fallacies, inconsistencies and double standards.
If you ever get cornered by ardent Brexiteers, Daily Mail disciples or little England patriots, this book is your conversation survival guide.

A LONG NIGHT IN PARIS by DOV ALFON is our thriller of the month. An exciting, chilling, pacey read with splashes of humour. A superb thriller that we couldn't put down.
When an Israeli tech entrepreneur disappears from Charles de Gaulle airport with a woman in red, logic dictates youthful indiscretion. But Israel is on a state of high alert nonetheless. Colonel Zeev Abadi, the new head of Unit 8200's autonomous Special Section, who just happens to be in Paris, also just happe...ns to have arrived on the same flight.
For Commissaire Leger of the Paris Police coincidences have their reasons, and most are suspect. When a second young Israeli is kidnapped soon after arriving on the same flight, this time at gunpoint from his hotel room, his suspicions are confirmed - and a diplomatic incident looms.
Back in Tel Aviv, Lieutenant Oriana Talmor, Abadi's deputy, is his only ally, applying her sharp wits to the race to identify the victims and the reasons behind their abduction. In Paris a covert Chinese commando team listens to the investigation unfurl and watches from the rooftops. While by the hour the morgue receives more bodies from the river and the city's arrondissements.
The clock has been set. And this could be a long night in the City of Lights.
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Our June fiction book of the month is AND NOW WE SHALL BE ENTIRELY FREE by ANDREW MILLER. An engrossing tale that's a joy to read. Beautifully written, enthralling and rich in detail.
Somerset , 1809: a ravaged soldier drags himself across the threshold of his home, destined to perish were it not the efforts of his housekeeper to save him. This is Captain John Lacroix, a combatant of the Peninsular War, a man shattered by something so unspeakable his only instinct is to flee ...from himself. With his healing comes command to return to his regiment: instead, Lacroix chooses the Hebrides.
Meanwhile, across the moors and fields follow his possible nemesis: the English corporal Calley and a Spanish officer by the name of Medina, under secret orders. An atrocity was committed on the British retreat to Corunna, and justice must be delivered. Lacroix is unaware of this fresh danger, consumed only by his blighted past and his current action of treason. Soon, the paths of these men must converge, and the moment of reckoning will be upon them all.
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The Rapture is coming on the 6th of June.
Don't panic - it's a book, not us predicting the end of the world! The Rapture by Claire McGlasson is a superb fictional account of Bedford's Panacea Society. It is a fascinating read, full of local history and local land marks. Bookseller Emma loved it!
Welcome to the Panacea Society, a terribly English cult... Dilys is a devoted member of The Panacea Society, populated almost entirely by virtuous single ladies. When she strikes up... a friendship with Grace, a new recruit, God finally seems to be smiling upon her. The friends become closer as they wait for the Lord to return to their very own Garden of Eden, and Dilys feels she has found the right path at last.
But Dilys is wary of their leader's zealotry and suspicious of those who would seem to influence her for their own ends. As her feelings for Grace bud and bloom, the Society around her begins to crumble. Faith is supplanted by doubt as both women come to question what is true and fear what is real.
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Local bestselling author Ruth Hogan will be with us on the 9th July from 6.30pm to celebrate the paperback release of her wonderful novel Queenie Malone's Paradise Hotel. Get your tickets in store now!

Don't forget we have another Elmer Day storytime at 3.30pm today! And our Elmer elephant hunt is on all day!

TODAY!

Elmer is ready for his big day and so are we! Story time is at 11.00 and 3.30, Elmer activities will be avaliable all day including our superb elephant hunt! Can you find the herd of famous elephants hidden around the store? We look forward to seeing you all!

We'll have to very patient BUT very exciting news this week with the announcement that Hilary Mantel's new Cromwell novel - The Mirror & The Light - is to be published early 2020 (like we said, we'll have to be patient!) Even though it's a long way off, you can pre-order in store now!

Preparations are underway for our exciting Elmer Day celebrations! Don't forget to join us on Saturday for all kinds of Elmer fun - we have storytime at 11am and 3.30pm, an elephant hunt and Elmer activties. We'll see you there!

Thank you to everyone who joined us for our Very Hungry Caterpillar Day! We had great fun seeing you all and sharing the story with you. Bookseller Emma loved hearing what your favourite treats are!
Don't forget you can join us for Elmer Day on the 25th of May!

We're having a great time celebrating the Very Hungry Caterpillar today. Activities will be on all day, including our treat hunt and story time is at 3.30pm!

The treats have been hidden. The activities are ready. The story teller chair has been dusted off. We are ready for the Very Hungry Caterpillar Day! Story time is at 11.00am and 3.30pm.

How cool is this?!? We now have a balloon Very Hungry Caterpillar ready for our celebrations on Saturday. He's been made by Twisted Jon, who can create a vast menagerie of balloon creatures. Check him out on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/twistedjon83