Attention book lovers yearning to get out of Dodge: a down-on-its-luck bookstore in the Welsh mining town of Blaenavon (population 6,055) is headed to (online) auction next week, with bidding to open at the low low price of £72,000.

Sure, it needs some work. But it comes with all the books, and sits below a three bedroom apartment, also included in the sale. It’s also, according to the listing, very close to the Blaenafon Cheddar Co, which “matures cheeses in an old mining pit.”

About 20 years ago, there was a push to turn Blaenavon into a “book town” like Hay-on-Wye, but the project failed, so I suspect this isn’t the only bookstore in the area in need of a new owner and a little rehab. Start with one, and soon you’ll have everything you need to become the book baron you’ve always wanted to be. What could go wrong?

[via TimeOut UK]

Emily Temple

Emily Temple

Emily Temple is the managing editor at Lit Hub. Her first novel, The Lightness, was published by William Morrow/HarperCollins in June 2020. You can buy it here.