{Edinburgh} Argonaut Books
Earlier this month, my youngest and I visited the Trinity House Maritime Museum in Leith for the first time. But that’s not the only new discovery we made in Leith. We also spotted a new (to us) bookshop, so of course we had to check it out and we’re glad we did.
Argonaut Books is a bright and welcoming community bookshop and café, located inside the old Leith Central Train Station at the foot of Leith Walk, which opened in December 2021. The space is filled with lots of natural light and plants, creating a calming oasis among the bustle of Leith – one of Scotland’s most densely populated neighbourhoods.
The bookshop offers a selection of books across all genres, stocking both new releases and a backlist of old favourites. As they say on their website, “we are proud to only stock the books that we are genuinely passionate about.” The staff are always available for chat too, if you are looking for recommendations.
They also stock children’s books and in relation to the size of the shop the children’s section is quite generous, ranging from picture books for the little ones through to Young Adult books for teenagers, and everything from chapter books and children’s graphic novels, to non fiction books for young explorers in between. My little bookworm happily settled in to the reading corner, to decide which of the books that caught his eye to spend his pocket money on, while I browsed the rest of the bookshop.
The bookshop is located at ground level and fully accessible, and also includes gender neutral toilets. The café sells drinks and tray bakes, and there is a huge window to sit in and watch the world go by, as well as a grouping of other tables, for those that can’t manage the bar stools. There’s free WiFi too. It’s a bit of a trek across town for us, but for those closer by you should also check out their programme of book launches, reading groups, and evening events.
How to get there
Argonaut Books is located at 15-17 Leith Walk. There a plenty of Lothian buses that stop nearby, with the closest bus stop right outside, and further buses stopping round the corner on Duke Street and at the Kirkgate Centre. The Foot of the Walk tram stop is also just a short walk away.
