A not-for-profit company publishing important and untold stories about lives, communities, places and events with significance and interest in the Bristol
Bristol Books, a not-for-profit Community Interest Company was formed by four people with a passion for Bristol to meet the huge demand for local stories about the city and the South West through the years. There is a huge appetite for stories about Bristol and the surrounding area. Bristol has been the home of some fascinating characters and the venue for some amazing events. Our aim is to capture these untold stories and help enrich the culture of the city.
08/08/2025
Out Now: Days Out Around Bristol, Bath & Somerset
A guidebook packed with great inspiration for days out within an hour or so’s drive. The easy to use book is divided into key areas of local interest featuring location maps and plenty of images.
Includes: Around Bristol • Around Bath • The Coast • The Mendip Hills • Frome & Around • Bridgwater & Around • Somerset Levels & Glastonbury • Bruton & Shepton Mallet • South Wales • South Cotswolds
04/08/2025
Bristol Books are proud to be supporting Darran McLaughlin in his crowdfunding campaign to become the new owner of bookhaus when the current owners retire.
Darran says, “Since we opened four years ago bookhaus has always ensured that we stock a wide range of books on Bristol from local authors and publishers like Bristol Books. We are part of the cultural fabric of the city, and we want to continue to be so for years to come. Please support our Crowdfunder to allow us to continue to serve the local community, and thanks very much to Bristol Books CIC for their support.”
Darran has managed bookhaus since the beginning but lacks the funds to enable him to buy the bookshop. He says, “I am determined to do this, but I lack the money to buy it. I am a working class, black man who grew up in a single parent household on a council estate, so I am not able to ask my family for money, and banks aren't keen to fund independent bookshops.”
We've produced a special edition of our Louise Brown biography "My Life as the World's First IVF Baby" for those attending the 61st Congress of the Mexican Association for Reproductive Medicine in Tulum, Mexico.
The book was updated and designed by Bristol Books with the support of South American fertility sector sponsors and printed in Mexico.
Louise attended the congress spending many hours signing books with doctors, embryologists and professors queueing to meet her and pick up their copy.
20/07/2025
Poets’ Walk Book Launch
Friday 25 July, from 6:30pm
Waterstones, Clifton, Bristol
Free entry
This is the second event to launch the new Poets’ Walk poetry book, this time in Bristol at Waterstones in Clifton. Starting at 6:30pm, there will be poetry readings from the various contributors to the book.
The book features poems by 32 contemporary poets, who have responded to themes inspired by Alfred Lord Tennyson and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, associated with Clevedon’s Poets' Walk.
16/07/2025
Days Out Around Bristol, Bath & Somerset
Including South Wales & South Cotswolds
Price: £14.99. (Pre-order now: Available 31st July)
Where shall we go today? Crook Peak, the Avalon Marshes, the Wye Valley? Or perhaps Bruton, Glastonbury or Clevedon? This book is packed with ideas for great days out within around an hour or so’s drive, with suggestions to suit your mood, schedule and starting point. From the Mendip Hills and Somerset Levels, to South Wales, the southern Cotswolds, the Coast and its resorts. Quirky facts and background information provide context, while divided into micro-regions, maps provide orientation.
The official launch of Luke Jerram: Of Earth and Sky at Arnolfini.
Great to hear from Luke talking about some of his earlier work like Play Me, I'm Yours and Park and Slide alongside more recent projects like Helios and A Good Yarn and the outcomes and impact his art has had around the world.
If you missed the event then copies of the book are available to purchase from Arnolfini bookshop or online from bristolbooks.org
04/07/2025
Luke Jerram: Of Earth and Sky
Wednesday 9 July, 6:30-8pm
Arnolfini, Bristol
£10 full price, £5 concession
Arnolfini will host Bristol-based international artist Luke Jerram to discuss his new book ‘Luke Jerram: Of Earth and Sky’, published by Bristol Books.
Of Earth and Sky describes 30 projects created by international artist Luke Jerram from 2019 to 2025. As well as providing updates on the staggeringly popular Museum of the Moon and Gaia, it also features the very latest artworks including Helios, charitable creative projects from the new Jerram Foundation, and many more, most recently relating to planetary health.
A specialist in creating visual artwork which often attracts large audiences and publicity, Jerram gives an insight into how he works in collaboration with other artists, performers, scientists, anthropologists and members of the public, right around the world, to create these astonishing projects.
Copies of the book will be available to purchase, and Luke will be available for book signing.
01/07/2025
Enjoy summer paperbacks from Bristol Books!
Looking for a great book to take with you on holiday this summer? Why not explore our range of paperbacks and discover something new about Bristol life.
Browse our shop where you will find remarkable stories, fascinating biographies and historical fiction, all with a Bristol theme.
Arnolfini will host Bristol-based international artist Luke Jerram to discuss his new book ‘Luke Jerram: Of Earth and Sky’, published by Bristol Books.
Of Earth and Sky describes 30 projects created by international artist Luke Jerram from 2019 to 2025. As well as providing updates on the staggeringly popular Museum of the Moon and Gaia, it also features the very latest artworks including Helios, charitable creative projects from the new Jerram Foundation, and many more, most recently relating to planetary health.
A specialist in creating visual artwork which often attracts large audiences and publicity, Jerram gives an insight into how he works in collaboration with other artists, performers, scientists, anthropologists and members of the public, right around the world, to create these astonishing projects.
Copies of the book will be available to purchase, and Luke will be available for book signing.
13/06/2025
Celebrating Independent Bookshop Week 2025: Saturday 14 – Saturday 21 June.
Support your local independent Bristol bookshop in this annual celebration highlighting the vital role independent bookshops play in our communities.
04/06/2025
The Poets’ Walk poetry book is available now from Bristol Books.
The book features poems by 32 contemporary poets, who have responded to themes inspired by Alfred Lord Tennyson and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, associated with Clevedon’s Poets' Walk.
The poems have also been commissioned to accompany a permanent audio walk, accessed through your smartphone. The walk follows the Poets’ Walk path and provides accompanying audio, triggered by GPS. Details are included in the book.
27/05/2025
'Transport Through the Ages' History Day
Saturday, 31 May, 9:30am-4pm
Little Stoke Community Hall, South Gloucestershire
Bristol Books author, Clive Burlton, will be giving a talk about Whitchurch Airport as part of an event being organised by Bristol and Gloucestershire Archaeological Society in association with Avon Local History and Archaeology. Other talks on the day will cover Roman roads, inland waterways, trams, buses, and trains.
Address
The Courtyard, Wraxall Hill, Wraxall Bristol BS481NA
Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Bristol Books posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.
Bristol Books is a not-for-profit Community Interest Company formed in 2012 by four people with a passion for Bristol and an ambition to enrich the culture of the city through book publishing.
We pride ourselves on high publishing standards – investing in quality writing, research and design to ensure all our books are a success. We place a real value on books as physical objects and the important role they play in chronicling and recording the rich heritage and culture of the city, both past and present.
As well as commissioning our own books we also produce books on behalf of many local businesses, organisations and individuals.
The Bristol Books team is author and social historian Clive Burlton; publisher Richard Jones; book designer Joe Burt and Martin Powell, publicist and marketing professional.
Our company logo incorporates the “B” from the “Bristol scroll”. First introduced to the city 100 years ago and familiar to older Bristolians as it was used on the side of Bristol buses. The logo represents the pride we share for the city and its heritage.
