We never knew such a beautiful place existed till we went looking for it. Open three days a week (Mon, Tue, and Fri), Book Shop (it’s called that) is tucked in a corner of Lajpat Bhawan’s Sisters of the People NGO building and stocks up books people have lovingly donated over the years.
If Malgudi Days were to be shot again, we’d nominate this lush campus for all the idyllic school scenes. It’s mysteriously hidden close to the Moolchand flyover, and the place wears a charm that’s reminiscent of the hills for some reason. We can’t really figure out if it’s the smiley, saree-wearing book shop volunteers, or the fact that we saw school children buy books for INR 10, or the thought that they were warm and comforting like a thukpa that made us go all gooey-hearted. Maybe it was a bit of everything. It doesn’t really matter, anyway.
Everything in this cosy cubbyhole was filled with books. Steel cabinets, cartons, and haphazardly placed wooden side tables were overflowing with titles we either knew or wanted to know. Cookery books, spiritual reads, classics, crime thrillers, coffee table books, comics and a whole section of children’s literature…name your genre and they have it. The best part: They’re slightly yellowed, slightly pre-loved and pure adorable. You can also buy all these at 40 – 50% less than the printed price. Smiles, smiles?