5 remarkable book shops

1 Livraria Lello, Porto, Portugal

The dark-wood shelves, twisting iron staircases and stained glass in this shop, opened in 1881, certainly create a magical ambience – so it’s no surprise that it was a regular haunt of Harry Potter author JK Rowling. The €8 entrance fee (offset against purchases) does little to deter the wizarding masses.

2 Yangzhou Zhongshuge, Yangzhou, China

Imagine a bookshop that aims to transport you to another place in the same way literature does. A mirrored tunnel lined with books, arcing beams and an impossibly long reading room evoke a Lewis Carroll-esque sense of falling into another world – one far removed from the bustling city outside.

3 El Ateneo Grand Splendid, Buenos Aires, Argentina

A century ago this building opened as a grand theatre, later becoming a cinema – and this palatial bookshop’s past is evident throughout. Shelves line balconies, boxes and stalls – even the stage, complete with velvet red curtain, is now a reading area.

4 Boekhandel Dominicanen, Maastricht, Netherlands

For most of the two centuries since Napoleon’s invasion in 1794, this medieval Gothic church lay abandoned. Then, in 2006, it was turned into a unique bookshop. Shelves line the nave and transept, vinyl records are sold in the triforium, and a café even serves drinks where the altar once stood.

5 5 The Last Bookstore, Los Angeles, USA

With windows and tunnels sculpted from books, there’s a good reason why this is one of the most Instagrammed bookstores in the world. But there is substance, too, thanks to a vast selection of reads, vinyl and local art to pore over between selfies.