Bookshops

Soho keeps the kind of bookshops that reward an afternoon of browsing. The shelves cover plenty of ground: thrillers and romance, biography and philosophy, children's books, and the classics where Austen, Dickens and Hardy still pull readers in. If you prefer something current, you'll find recent best-sellers near the front too.

Comics readers get proper sections of graphic novels and manga, and there's poetry for those who want it. Bookshops in Soho also stock academic texts, reference works and study material across plenty of subjects, so students and researchers are well served. Many host launches, signings and talks, which makes them a meeting point for readers as much as a place to buy.