‘We love our family bookshop’
With Independent Bookshop Week just around the corner, mum and daughter Jill and Sally Pettle chat about the delights of running a bookshop together
‘When we were talking about a name for the shop it was scary when we both said Far From the Madding Crowd at the same time‘
After years of listening to stories at her mother Jill’s knee, it was inevitable that daughter Sally would catch the reading bug. But little did mum or daughter realise that books would one day become a career for both of them. Far From the Madding Crowd, the award-winning bookshop they now run together, all came about when Jill was cutting down her hours as a nursery teacher and started doing shifts in the local bookshop. When the owner retired, Jill took over and moved the business to new, bigger premises on the high street. Daughter Sally started doing Saturday shifts while she studied for a Masters, having just returned from working in Spain. Sally fell in love with the bookshop, in Linlithgow, Scotland, and working with her mum, the pair began running the place together.
“I was quite surprised when Sally said she wanted to join me as she’d just had this amazing life in Spain, but I knew it would work,” says Jill. “Even when we were talking about a name for the shop it was scary when we both said Far From the Madding Crowd at the same time. But that’s what we wanted the shop to be – a place away from the crowd where people could browse and spend time.”
“It’s fantastic working alongside Mum,” says Sally. “And she’s such a good bookseller I’ve definitely learned everything
I know from her.” With mum and daughter each contributing their own ideas for stock, Sally has set up an annual book festival, the Further From Festival, and a free schools festival. They also run a storytelling session, featuring the bookshop bunny, BB. “I think I’ve been much braver to suggest crazy ideas because I work with my mum. For example, we regularly cater literary afternoon teas for 120 people. And I don’t know if I’d be comfortable saying to anyone else but my mum, ‘come on, we need 120 slices of coffee walnut cake, get to the kitchen’,” she laughs. “Even though there are times when we disagree, because we’re family it’s actually a lot easier to say how you feel,” says Jill. As well as family support, Jill and Sally say the backing of their local community has been invaluable. “Independent bookshops are so important because of what we can offer the community. We’re passionate about reading so want to take the time to recommend the perfect book for our customers. We also act as a community hub, handling tickets and information for other organisations and local events,” says Sally.
“We now want to do even more events, especially in schools as I think it’s so energising for children to be involved in things such as author talks,” says Jill. Sally adds, “Mum made me love books so much, I now just want to pass that on to others.”
Independent Bookshop Week runs from June 16-23 with events, author signings and literary lunches going on around the UK. For more information call
0207 421 4964, visit your local independent bookshop or visit indiebookshopweek.org.uk