In London a Bookseller Feller / Wore One Glove Surprisingly Yeller

~The Left-Handed Booksellers
of London~
By Garth Nix
Amazon ~ Powell's

In a slightly alternate London in 1983, Susan Arkshaw is looking for her father, a man she has never met. Crime boss Frank Thringley might be able to help her, but Susan doesn’t get time to ask Frank any questions before he is turned to dust by the prick of a silver hatpin in the hands of the outrageously attractive Merlin.

Merlin is a young left-handed bookseller (one of the fighting ones), who with the right-handed booksellers (the intellectual ones), are an extended family of magical beings who police the mythic and legendary Old World when it intrudes on the modern world, in addition to running several bookshops.

Susan’s search for her father begins with her mother’s possibly misremembered or misspelt surnames, a reading room ticket, and a silver cigarette case engraved with something that might be a coat of arms.

Merlin has a quest of his own, to find the Old World entity who used ordinary criminals to kill his mother. As he and his sister, the right-handed bookseller Vivien, tread in the path of a botched or covered-up police investigation from years past, they find this quest strangely overlaps with Susan’s. Who or what was her father? Susan, Merlin, and Vivien must find out, as the Old World erupts dangerously into the New.


Garth Nix has been on my to-read list since the 90's. I've heard his Abhorsen series is great, his Keys to the Kingdom series even got my quasi-illiterate sibling to read a little, and I've drooled at the covers for the Seventh Tower series during many a bookstore visit. So when I saw this new book on my Facebook feed, with that cover and a title that promised to involve bookish characters, how could I put it off any longer?

Firstly, this is one of the few books I am greatly appreciative to have read the e-book over any other format. This is because I don't think I've ever used the dictionary tool as much as in this one book, and there were still more things I had to google for picture references. The first term I had to look up was in the first chapter: inimical. And before you ask, no, the terms weren't all inherently British or historical, though some were. Still, this is the first time in a long while that I've had to consult the dictionary so regularly, and in a YA book at that!

But aside from the regular vocabulary lessons, book nerds will find a lot to smile at in this story. As the title indicates most of the characters are booksellers, and when you enter into their bookstores you are treated to a wealth of titles and authors as well as some artwork inspired by their works. While I personally found the lengthy descriptions of the bookshops to kill the pacing a bit (though I think any future adaptations will appreciate the details) the detailed nods to literature and writers alike are sure to spark joy in fellow readers. I especially loved this playful jab:

“Children’s writers,” said Merlin. “Dangerous bunch. They cause us a lot of trouble.”
“How?” asked Susan.
“They don’t do it on purpose,” said Merlin. He opened the door. “But quite often they discover the key to raise some ancient myth, or release something that should have stayed imprisoned, and they share that knowledge via their writing. Stories aren’t always merely stories, you know.” [20%]

Which brings me to the characters; specifically Merlin. Merlin is easily my favorite, reminding me of a rogue-type with his fast-talking and nonchalant attitude. He's very mercurial, and not just when he's trying to skirt around Susan's questions. I guess I'd describe him as gender-fluid, or perhaps gender non-conforming? Perhaps I'll let him explain:

“I am human,” said Merlin. “A human male at the moment, as it happens.”
“At the moment?”
“We are somewhat . . . shape-shiftery . . . I guess you could say,” replied Merlin. “I was born male, but I have been pondering if I should change.”
Susan didn’t answer for a moment, digesting this. “You get to change that easily?”
“Oh, it’s not easy,” replied Merlin. “But much more possible for us than—” [6%]

The next time Susan and Merlin meet he is still male and stays that way for the rest of the book, though he does often wear dresses, skirts, or kilts. It's unclear whether this choice is due to his injuries, general busyness, or actual change-of-mind, but he also doesn't change his pronouns (though Susan does refer to him as she/her a couple times in her head). He is also extremely open to the possibility that Susan might have/had a girlfriend or boyfriend, even if the sentiment isn't brought up or shared by any of his family members. Still, I call that an overall win for LGBT+ inclusion.

Speaking of Merlin's family, his sister, Vivien, was a bit of a letdown for me. While it's cool to have kickass girls in the family of booksellers, and to be sure there are tons of them, Vivien didn't have nearly as much character to her as her outspoken, roguish brother. She was definitely the brains of the pair, but that really only helped in so much as she researched things, not that Merlin was stupid or impulsive. And that's really all I can say about her character: She was knowledgeable. Other than that...she was a bit bland for me.

Susan, our reader-stand-in, wasn't much better, but she at least had some goals for herself. Her plan is to settle down in the city before the school year starts, get a job, and start the search for her absentee father. She's not completely gung-ho about it, not running into situations stupidly or at risk of her own safety, but she is persistent throughout despite some supernatural interference. Of the main characters, Merlin definitely steals the show as a sort of Peter Pan to Susan's Wendy, but she's no pushover either, which was nice. I would have liked to see inside her head a bit more, since the book's written in 3rd person perspective, but that's probably just my own comfort bias.

The world-building on the whole was top-notch, and I'd love to know more about the Old World features. It's kinda like a lot of Japanese Anime, with the mystical Old World sitting just under and out-of-sight of the regular world, so normal folk rarely notice the weird creatures or magical happenings. But once you're exposed, the Old World tends to cling to you and draw you deeper. Unfortunately, most of this information is told rather than experienced, so while we "see" a few fantasy creatures and myths, there's very little interaction with most of them. As of this point, this is still a stand-alone novel, but the story hints at more that could come, and I hope that we can experience more of the Old World and the Booksellers' dealings with it.

Overall, this is a fun adventure in a fantastical modern-ish England. Though different from most of the YA I've read recently, being in 3rd person and including advanced vocabulary, it still has some of the staples we come to expect with coming-of-age, a hint of flirtation, and overcoming the expectations of one's elders. Like I said, I'm up for a return to this world if Nix decides to continue in the future, but I'm also content with the simple story we've got. If you've got a hankering for some British lit, or are looking for a new urban fantasy to get immersed in, definitely check out this bookish book for yourself.