Rob and Barb Sheppard opened their first bookshop in Rugby over forty years ago. The business is now based in Stroud, Gloucestershire, where their daughter Martha and her husband Ben have joined the team full time. The focus of the business has always been curating and presenting shelves filled with high quality, interesting books on a wide range of subjects. Whether you are looking for non-fiction, fiction, academic, vintage, antiquarian or just a good read, with over 30,000 books and counting we’re sure to have something you’ll love.
As trends have changed the business has become more focused on its online presence, the family however still consider having a space to buy and sell books in person to be a vital part of the business, as well as being essential to their enjoyment of the trade.
Martha, along with her brother and sister, grew up popping into the shop to see their Dad and were surrounded by books and stories at home so it seemed inevitable that they would share a great love of the written word and that one of them would want to step into the family business. Rob, Martha and Ben work together in the shop buying and selling the books while Barb who is a trained bookbinder repairs and readies stock, gets the parcels ready for delivery and helps care for Ben and Martha's two young sons Jed and Sam. A large part of Ben's role is focusing on the online side of the business and ensuring the business is moving with the times. It’s fair to say that the bookshop runs in the blood of this family with Rob, Barb, Martha, Ben, Sam and Jed representing three generations of booklovers.
'We've had a fantastic time since we moved to Stroud and feel really welcomed by the community. It has been really rewarding getting to know regular customers and meeting new visitors. There's so much we want to do in terms of events, collaborations and ideas there doesn't seem enough hours in the day, but we look forward to contributing towards the creative and independent spirit that makes Stroud and the surrounding areas such a fantastic place to be.'
CLICK HERE to contact or find out more about Route 49 Studio in Stroud. Music recording, mixing, composition and production for independent artists by our very own Ben.
Opening Hours
Monday - Closed
Tuesday - Closed
Wednesday - 10:00 - 5:00
Thursday - 10:00 - 5:00
Friday - 10:00 - 5:00
Saturday - 10:00 - 5:00
Sunday - Closed
On Mondays and Tuesdays we can arrange to be open by appointment.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you have a question about Fireside Bookshop please take a look at the information below. Just click on a question to reveal the answer. If you have any further questions or need any other information please feel free to contact us via the information on the contact page.
Whilst many of our books are listed online there are also a large number of books, particularly those that are £10 and under that aren't listed. So if you can't find what you want online, feel free to get in touch via our CONTACT PAGE to ask about books on specific subjects etc. as we may still have something of interest.
Some of our online stock is also on display in our physical shop. If not it will be in our storeroom upstairs. If there is only one of us in and it's busy it can be difficult to get books out of our stock rooms to view in the shop. If you'd like to come in to view a book you've seen online please CONTACT us in advance and we can ensure the book is available. We may also be able to find other books of interest that aren't listed or which you may have missed.
Not all of the books in the shop are listed online. Much of the cheaper fiction and non fiction is not economical for us to list and some we may have not yet got round to. So if you can't find what you're looking for online please drop us a line and we may still be able to find you the right book.
We are currently open
10:00am to 5:00pm Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
We are closed on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday.
On Monday and Tuesday we will often be in the shop working on our online business, so if our other hours are not convenient we are happy to open by appointment.
If you are unable to get into the shop and don't shop online please feel free to give us a call on 01453 764500.
All books are posted in plain packaging. If your book is a gift and you would like us to remove any pricing information you can let us know this at the time of ordering. We do not make money on postage.
We love receiving orders from our overseas customers and can post to most major markets, however due to Brexit and the complexity of world postal systems we cannot offer our standard postage to all destinations. Below is a list of countries and areas that we post to using our standard postage system organised in their price bands. If your country is not listed below and you'd like to make a purchase, please get in touch and we will try to arrange an appropriate delivery method:
1. United Kingdom -
Second class Royal Mail is £3.20 for the first item and £1.60 for each subsequent item.
Special delivery Royal Mail is £8.95 for the first item and £4.50 for each subsequent item.
2. Due to the complexity of managing post Brexit trade requirements we cannot currently sell to EU countries through our own website. If you are in an EU country you can purchase from our full inventory on Biblio.
3. United States - £23 per item.
4. Canada, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, China - £17.65 per item.
5. New Zealand and Australia - £20.85
We are located at 8 Rowcroft, Stroud, Gloucestershire, UK, GL5 3AZ.
We also regularly buy books and do business in Sussex as we have strong links to the area. If you have any books you are looking to sell, please get in touch.
We are always interested in buying good quality books in a wide range of subject areas regardless of whether it's a handful of books or a large collection. Depending on our current stock and the market, what we are interested in buying may change. The best and quickest way to contact us regarding buying books is via email or our contact form, photographs of the books you are looking to sell are always very helpful but please contact us first to arrange the best method of sending pictures. Alternatively feel free to contact us via phone for more information. CLICK HERE to go to our contact page.
We are happy to travel to view any collection that is of interest to us.
Like most online booksellers many of our book photos are automatically generated stock images. They are sometimes not the best quality and may, very rarely, show the wrong book or cover. We are currently working on having our own pictures available for all stock but with over 25,000 books and new stock coming in all the time this is a gradual process! When you look at a books details we clearly state whether the picture is our own or not. We are always happy to take a photograph and send it to you upon request.
So you know the condition of the book you're buying we use an internationally recognised system of grading which we explain below. Any major defects or details around annotation etc. are described in the notes section. We have 5* ratings on all the sites we list on so you can be sure the book you order will be as described.
Like New: an apparently unread copy in perfect condition. Dust cover is intact with no nicks or tears. Spine has no signs of creasing. Pages are clean and not marred by notes or folds of any kind. Books may contain a remainder mark on an outside edge, but this should be noted in the listing comments. Any accompanying CDs or DVDs must be present and any access codes relating to the same, or to other content, must be present and unredeemed.
Very Good: a copy that has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged. Any accompanying CDs or DVDs must be present and any access codes relating to the same, or to other content, must be present and unredeemed.
Good: a copy that has been read but remains in clean condition. All pages are intact and the cover is intact (including the dust cover, if applicable). The spine may show signs of wear. Pages can include limited notes and highlighting, and the copy can include "From the library of" labels. Books may have any accompanying access codes for additional or replacement content missing or redeemed.
Acceptable: a readable copy. All pages and the cover are intact (the dust cover may be missing). Pages can include considerable notes--in pen or highlighter--but notes cannot obscure the text. Books may have any accompanying access codes for additional or replacement content missing or redeemed.
We've had a busy year with the move etc. but we're hoping to announce some events in the next couple of months. Please signup to our mailing list (signup box at the bottom of this page) and follow us on social media for news on events.
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