The new, local, independent bookstore, Parade’s End Books, delivers a resurgence for our struggling community spirit, amidst a ‘raging’ pandemic and a world dominated by Amazon.
Parade’s End Books opened to wide arms on the 2nd of December, after a month of national lockdown. The bookshop opened on Ham Parade, serving as the new, local ‘community hub’. However, in recent years, this spirit has been suppressed by the many estate agents, funeral parlours and betting shops on Ham Parade. As Rachel Thomas, the owner of Parade’s End Books said, the bookshop aims to ‘[replace] our lost community centres’. Taking the place of Curchods Estate Agents, this bookshop marks a new spark against the chains that over-shadow Ham’s community spirit.
The bookshop also opens to a market dominated by Amazon. Due to the ‘convenient’ nature of Amazon, independent bookshops have struggled massively. This bookshop, however, offers people the chance to turn away from screens and to make more connections within their community.
The bookshop also promises to serve as a resurgence in one other important area: the pandemic. Parade’s End Books’ website describes the opening amidst the pandemic as a ‘hopeful small action against the storm’. Although it may make business difficult, the pandemic is just another theatre in which Parade’s End Books seeks to respark the community nature of Ham Parade and the local area.
The community has embraced this news with wide arms, eagerly awaiting this renewal. A local book club enthusiast, Nicole Umemoto, admitted that she was ‘so pleased’ and that ‘aside from the convenient location, it’s nice to have an independent bookstore to support’. She described the source of this excitement as ‘nothing beats the feeling of picking up a book to read the description on the back and being able to explore the tables and shelves in person’. Parade’s End Books will respond to this excitement by offering the ‘best, curated section of books that you will not be able to find in giant corporations’.
In a world dominated by ‘faceless computer algorithms’ (as Parade’s End Books’ website described it), many are eagerly anticipating the ‘Grand Opening’ and the ability to discover new books and authors. Rachel Thomas, the owner of Parade’s End Books said that she hoped people could use the shop ‘to come to chat’, in a world where we’re ‘not making enough face to face connections and being part of a neighbourhood [and a] community’. Parade’s End Books’ website promises to ‘act against the electronic age back into a shared love for the printed page and a common love of words’.
The opening of Parade’s End Books will also greatly benefit local businesses. By drawing people to Ham Parade because of this revival and despite the pandemic, local shops will have an increased chance of holding onto their businesses. With Christmas approaching, the bookshop provides a motivation for people to revisit the local parade, and, in doing so, support other shops in their community.
As the online goliath, Amazon, and ‘faceless computer algorithms’ dominate book sales, and the pandemic cracks down upon community spirit, the local community will greatly welcome Parade’s End Books’ opening. And Ham and Kingston’s communities are impatiently awaiting their resurgence and the chance to reconnect with this local haven at their doorsteps.
