I find it very difficult to pick a favourite independent bookshop. I love them all. The places you find them are the places where you live, and the people who work in them are people who care. So, I want to shine a light on two very different shops. Newham Bookshop on Barking Road in east London is a bookshop that has a place in the hearts of local people. It is a real example of what a community bookshop should be, and writers hang out there. Then I have to mention a very small secondhand bookshop in Holbeach, Lincolnshire. Every book in this shop has been donated, and all the money they make helps local charities. Every worker is a volunteer, and they were supporting key workers long before the pandemic. These are just two of the bookshops I love, run by the people I love. Love is lovely. — Benjamin Zephaniah, BAFTA 2021 winner, Entertainment Programme, for Life & Rhymes (Sky Arts).
