Welcome to the Nomadic Books Van

Nomadic Books is a new independent mobile bookshop and the only operating bookshop van in the UK.

Browse our online shop or head over to our events calendar to see where we'll be.

We can't wait to meet you!

Some of our latest stock


Our Most Popular Merchandise

Our Greeting Card Selection

What we offer

Book orders

Order books we don't have in stock by sending us an email or pop into our shop and we'll order it for you.

Pick up in our van is free, postage to your home might apply.

Pop Up Requests

If you have a suggestion of request for a pop-up event of festival, please get in contact. We would love to be involved in whatever ideas you have!

Different to Waterstones 

We want to offer an alternative to the big chains and offer a hand-selected range of books that varies from but complements the selection in Waterstones, Foyles, et. Our selection, therefore, consists of few mainstream bestsellers, but rather of a selection of translated books, indie publishers, books addressing gender or culture, as well as underrated books that deserve more attention.

Our careful selection also means we can provide tailored book suggestions for readers of different ages and with different preferences.



Frequently Asked Questions

Apart from the local markets, where do you pop up?

We hold regular pop-up events at various locations around the Lake District especially for seasonally events (Christmas events, Octoberfest, school holidays et.). And we travel all around the UK mainland for bigger events - book fairs, book festivals, music festivals, et. Follow us on social media or check our website for event announcements.

If you've got any recommendations or requests where we could go, please don't hesitate to get in contact - but bear in mind, we need a large outdoor space to set up our van (2.2x6m).

Can you order books for customers?

Yes! We can order them for pickup into the shop and you can collect it whenever it is easiest for you, or you can have them delivered to your home. Just pop us an email or fill in our contact form and we'll get it sorted.

Why did you start a van business rather than a normal bookshop?

We couldn't really afford to set up a physical brick and mortar shop, so decidin between the two business types was never really an option for us. But we love being able to travel to customers and places that don't have an indie bookshop or just anywhere where we can bring our a little unusual selection of books.

How do you keep the books on the shelves when driving?

A lot of our shelves are angled which you might be able to spot on our pictures or when you pop by and have a look in the van. Those shelves are usually fine when driving. The straight shelves, we have to empty. And pack the books down in boxes. And on top of that, it takes a lot of slow and careful driving (and occasionally annoying some cars that get stuck behind us if we're on a windy road).

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Comments

Otto
3 months ago

So lovely and brilliant 😄👍

About us

We are an independent, new mobile bookshop located in the heart of the Lake District. Our mission is to bring the joy of reading to everyone by travelling to our customers with a carefully curated selection of books. We are especially passionate about translated books, gender and cultural diversity across all our genres, and about niche and less well known gems of literature. Fostering a love for literature and creating a unique shopping experience that caters to book lovers of all kinds.