Hello! Have you ever dreamed of running your own bookshop? We are cheerful to report that the book industry is smashing it at the moment, with the number of indie bookshops at their highest level in six years, and book sales above pre-pandemic levels. Ed and Geoff speak to Sian Bayley, news editor at The Bookseller, who tells us about what’s driving this upward trend. We hear from co-founders Rosie May and Sarah Scales of Juno Books in Sheffield about how they made their lockdown dreams a reality. Finally, Aimée Felone, children’s publisher and co-director of Round Table Books in Brixton, tells us about her journey into publishing and what it means to run an inclusive bookshop.

Plus: Buoyed up by his viral musical success, Ed's started learning an instrument...

Guests

Sian Bayley, News Editor, The Bookseller (@sleighbayley / @thebookseller)

Rosie May and Sarah Scales, Co-Founders of Juno Books (@junobookssheff)

Aimée Felone, Managing Director of children’s publisher Knights Of and Co-Director of Round Table Books (@aimeefelone / @roundtablebooks)

More information

BookBar in Finsbury Park, London

Learn more about the work of BookTrust and Lit in Colour

Visit the Bookseller's website - the trade magazine for the publishing industry

Visit Juno Books in Sheffield 

Visit Round Table Books in Brixton, London

Find out about Knights Of, Aimée’s publishing company

CLPE Survey of Ethnic Representation in Children's Literature. Read the most recent report here

Books Aimée recommends in the episode

Knights and Bikes by Gabrielle Kent

For Every One by Jason Reynolds

Small Worlds by Caleb Azumah Nelson 

Windward Family by Alexis Keir

Mind and Me by Sunita Chawdhary

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