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Address: Calle Sevilla 5
A guide to Valencia’s bookshops: 12 places with English-language books
It is easy to buy books in major European languages in Valencia, especially in English. Most bookshops specialising in foreign-language literature sell both new and second-hand books; almost all of them are located in the city centre. There are a couple of shops that focus exclusively on English, including educational literature. Most of these places were created by passionate bibliophiles and quickly became hubs of Valencia’s cultural life, combining books with other aspects of living: gastronomy, music, or art.
An oasis of English-language literature in Valencia and the only shop that sells books exclusively in this foreign language. The selection includes more than 10,000 new and second-hand titles, with a dedicated shelf for Nobel and Booker Prize winners, as well as a strong range of books on psychology, sociology, history and the natural sciences. The owners, admirers of Scandinavian noir, have also curated a solid collection of science fiction and fantasy.
Books can be ordered on request, with delivery available; there is also an online shop. A large selection of books is priced at €1. Events are held for writers, readers and book lovers of all kinds. Second-hand English-language books can be donated, sometimes in exchange for discounts or books from the shop’s stock.
This tiny vintage shop sells second-hand and new books in English, French, Italian and Spanish, along with periodicals, a large selection of music formats from vinyl records to CDs, and various related items. Ultra-modern and alternative in spirit, the shop somehow manages to envelop visitors in the cosy atmosphere of a private library from a bygone era, inviting them to browse at leisure, from world literature classics to science fiction and fantasy. The owner, Italian-born Gabriele Nero, is friendly, open and highly knowledgeable. Kraftwerk may well be playing in the background.
“Doctor Sax” is the title of a novel by Jack Kerouac. According to Nero, the shop “is and must be a countercultural project, exaggerated and necessarily extravagant”, adding that “all the authors I love were opposed to the accepted morality of their time”.
Perhaps the best-known bookshop chain in Spain has two branches in Valencia. English-language books are given a dedicated section, offering titles in literature, science and health, as well as books for children and teenagers. The website allows users to browse leading English-language authors and select books by genre.
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Ubik Café
Address: C/Literat Azorín, 13
This bookshop-café in the fashionable Ruzafa neighbourhood consistently ranks among the ten best cafés and bars in Valencia. It is no coincidence: the space brings together everything people value — good food and drinks, books, music, art and attention to children. The owners drew inspiration from bars and cafés around the world, from unconventional venues in Berlin to places in New York and Mexico. In the 2010s, the café was the epicentre of cultural events and meetings in the area, and Ubik was often credited with bringing gentrification to Ruzafa.
The book selection is small but thoughtful, and in the morning hours it is easy to sit in silence with a favourite book. The shelves feature contemporary fiction, a lot of poetry, books about music and children’s books, a second-hand section, and books in English. Concerts, exhibitions, beer and wine tastings take place here, and in the evenings it is possible to have dinner.
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La Batisfera в районе Эль-Кабаньяль: книжный магазин и кафе-бар
Addresses: Книжный – C/Carles Ros, 32
Кафе – C/la Reina, 167
El Cabanyal is a dynamic neighbourhood with a rich history and striking architecture, known for its low-rise fishermen’s houses and good food. La Batisfera opened here in 2018 and effectively became an extension of Ubik Café, with Argentine Santiago Lemoine and American Corey Eastwood joining the original team. In the same year, a café-bar of the same name opened around the corner, celebrating both reading and hedonism.
A bathysphere is a deep-sea spherical vessel, a predecessor of submarines, designed to explore the ocean depths. For the owners, it represents an ideal place: a secluded corner in the deep sea where one can fully immerse oneself in reading books in different languages while enjoying craft beer, wine or liqueurs.
La Batisfera fits the neighbourhood perfectly: an excellent book selection, a strong focus on contemporary literature, cultural studies and art, with a preference for independent publishers and essays. About 75% of the books are second-hand and 25% are new; half are in Spanish or Valencian, and the other half in English, French, Italian, Portuguese and German. The books displayed tend to reflect the tastes and preferences of the book-loving owners rather than global trends.
Concerts, book launches, lectures, film screenings, performances and more are held here regularly. “We do not work with bestsellers,” the owners say.
We can afford the luxury of not being a bookshop that operates merely to survive
La Batisfera
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Todos Contentos Y Yo También
Address: Plaça de Mossén Sorell, 10
Four years after La Batisfera opened, its owners launched this small 35 m² bookshop in the Old Town, in the El Carmen district opposite the Mossén Sorell market. The idea was based on the belief that the neighbourhood lacked cultural life beyond gastronomy.
The shop continues the general line of La Batisfera, with the difference that it focuses on rare and expensive antiquarian editions. Its name, which translates as “Everyone is happy, and so am I”, refers to the name of a canteen in Malcolm Lowry’s novel Under the Volcano. The shop offers a wide selection of books in English, French and Spanish, both new and second-hand, including fiction and non-fiction, graphic novels and a children’s section.
A bookshop, creative studio, publishing house and risograph self-publishing workshop. The owners meticulously reproduce manuscripts and all kinds of handwriting, returning to the artisanal printing traditions of Japan and skilfully combining this craft with expressive visual storytelling. The shelves feature collectible albums and illustrated books with unusual textures and graphics; postcards and constructivist-style prints are also sold. Some titles are available in English. The space is decorated with numerous colourful prints depicting ancient Japanese art.
Specialising in English-language teaching materials for teachers, children and their parents, this shop goes beyond that scope: it also sells fiction and non-fiction in English, games and a wide range of other materials. The company was founded by experienced teachers and imports the best educational resources from the United Kingdom and the United States. Materials in other European languages are also available, and language courses operate alongside the bookshop.
A cosy antiquarian bookshop in the Old Town, just a couple of minutes from Valencia Cathedral, created for bibliophiles and lovers of old and rare books, and considered one of the best in the city. Many people come here in search of books from their childhood or youth. There are editions in English, including bilingual classics (English and Spanish) such as Romeo and Juliet or Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. The shop also sells vinyl records, posters, magazines, prints, comics and second-hand books.
The first Re-Read second-hand bookshop opened in Barcelona in 2013, combining a love of reading with the idea of responsible consumption. Today it is a chain operating in Spain, France and Portugal, standing out for its distinctive design — recognised by LAUS Design Awards for branding and naming. All books are second-hand but carefully selected, in very good condition, and, notably, sold at fixed prices: one book costs €4, two cost €6, and five cost €12. There are books in foreign languages, including English.
A large two-storey shop with clear navigation and a wide range of literary new releases, including a substantial selection of new English-language titles, located in the heart of Valencia opposite the bullring. Often described as legendary and historic, the shop was opened by the Soriano family in 1947, long before large retail chains or hybrid formats combining bookshops with cafés, bars or concert venues existed. Having weathered many historical periods, it is rightly respected by both locals and tourists.
The shop offers a click-and-collect service for books purchased through platforms such as Todostuslibros.com.
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Addresses: Plaça d'Alfons el Magnànim, 13
Calle Pelayo 7
Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 74
Calle Navellos 8
A chain bookshop with four locations across the city, the best known of which is on Gran Vía Marqués del Turia. It offers books of all genres, both new and second-hand, as well as brochures and magazines. There is a large selection of children’s books, materials about the city, many paperbacks, and books in foreign languages.
