Bookstores in Sunderland
If you judge a town by its bookshops, Sunderland, England gives you 59 to judge by. That's 59 bookshops mapped around Sunderland, each with its own shelves and specialties. The used sections are where the real bargains hide. Staff picks shelves are the fastest way to read a shop's personality.
This guide covers every bookstore we could verify in and around Sunderland (within about 40 km), built from OpenStreetMap's community-maintained data. Names you'll run into include TGJones and The Works, plus The Works. If a bookshop's missing from Sunderland's list, it probably just hasn't been mapped yet.
The Sunderland bookstore lineup
59 mapped within about 40 km:
TGJones
Bookstore
TGJones is Bookstore on Goodwood Square, Stockton-on-Tees. TGJones also notes on the map: it has a website with more detail.
Goodwood Square, Stockton-on-Tees, TS17 7BW
The Works
Bookstore
The Works — Bookstore, found on Goodwood Square in Stockton-on-Tees. Also worth knowing about The Works: it has a website with more detail.
Goodwood Square, Stockton-on-Tees, TS17 7BW
The Works
Bookstore
The Works — Bookstore, found on Hill Street Centre in Middlesbrough. Also worth knowing about The Works: it has a website with more detail.
Hill Street Centre, Middlesbrough, TS1 1TB
Books for Amnesty
Used bookstoreRun by Amnesty International UK
Run by Amnesty International UK, Books for Amnesty is Used bookstore, found on 92 Westgate Road in Newcastle upon Tyne. Also worth knowing about Books for Amnesty: the map lists its hours as Mo-Sa 10:00-17:00; it has a website with more detail.
92 Westgate Road, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4AF
Hours: Mo-Sa 10:00-17:00
Jimmy's Coffee & Convenience
Used bookstore
Jimmy's Coffee & Convenience — Used bookstore. Also worth knowing about Jimmy's Coffee & Convenience: the map lists its hours as Mo-Tu off; We-Fr 07:00-13:00; Sa-Su 07:00-15:00.
Hours: Mo-Tu off; We-Fr 07:00-13:00; Sa-Su 07:00-15:00
Waterstones
Bookstore
Waterstones — Bookstore. Also worth knowing about Waterstones: it has a website with more detail.
Morpeth
The Works
Bookstore
The Works — Bookstore.
Morpeth
Blackwells
Bookstore
Blackwells is Bookstore on 141 Percy Street, Newcastle upon Tyne. Blackwells also notes on the map: it has a website with more detail.
141 Percy Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RS
Collected Books
Bookstore
Collected Books is Bookstore.
Durham, DH1 4SL
Waterstones
Bookstore
Waterstones — Bookstore, found on The Bridges Shopping Centre in Sunderland. Also worth knowing about Waterstones: it has a website with more detail.
The Bridges Shopping Centre, Sunderland
The Works
Bookstore
The Works — Bookstore, found on The Bridges Shopping Centre in Sunderland. Also worth knowing about The Works: it has a website with more detail.
The Bridges Shopping Centre, Sunderland
Bargain Book Time
Bookstore
Bargain Book Time is Bookstore on The Galleries Shopping Mall, Washington.
The Galleries Shopping Mall, Washington
The Works
Bookstore
The Works — Bookstore, found on The Galleries Shopping Mall in Washington. Also worth knowing about The Works: it has a website with more detail.
The Galleries Shopping Mall, Washington
The Works
Bookstore
The Works — Bookstore, found on 5 Eldon Way in Newcastle upon Tyne. Also worth knowing about The Works: it has a website with more detail.
5 Eldon Way, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7XS
Forbidden Planet
Bookstore
Forbidden Planet — Bookstore, found on 49 Grainger Street in Newcastle upon Tyne. Also worth knowing about Forbidden Planet: it has a website with more detail.
49 Grainger Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 5JE
Keel Row Bookshop - Secondhand books
Bookstore
Keel Row Bookshop - Secondhand books is Bookstore. Keel Row Bookshop - Secondhand books also notes on the map: a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip; it has a website with more detail.
North Shields
Phone: +44 191 296 0664
Olivers Book Shop
Bookstore
Olivers Book Shop — Bookstore, found on 48A Whitley Road in Whitley Bay. Also worth knowing about Olivers Book Shop: the map lists its hours as Mo 11:00-16:00; Th-Sa 11:00-16:00.
48A Whitley Road, Whitley Bay
Hours: Mo 11:00-16:00; Th-Sa 11:00-16:00
The Bookshop
Bookstore
The Bookshop is Bookstore on Park View, Whitley Bay.
Park View, Whitley Bay
Bay Books
Bookstore
Bay Books is Bookstore on Norham Road, Whitley Bay.
Norham Road, Whitley Bay
Keel Row Books
Bookstore
Keel Row Books is Bookstore on Park View, Whitley Bay.
Park View, Whitley Bay
The Copy Shop
Bookstore
The Copy Shop is Bookstore.
The Works
Bookstore
The Works — Bookstore. Also worth knowing about The Works: the map lists its hours as Mo-Fr 09:00-19:00; Sa 09:00-19:00; Su 10:00-16:00; it has a website with more detail.
Hours: Mo-Fr 09:00-19:00; Sa 09:00-19:00; Su 10:00-16:00
Waterstones
Bookstore
Waterstones — Bookstore, found on 4 in Durham.
4, Durham, DH1 5GB
Waterstones
Bookstore
Waterstones — Bookstore. Also worth knowing about Waterstones: it has a website with more detail.
Pauline Books & Media
Bookstore
Pauline Books & Media — Bookstore. Also worth knowing about Pauline Books & Media: it has a website with more detail.
Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 5HH
DRAKE - The Bookshop
Bookstore
DRAKE - The Bookshop — Bookstore, found on 27 Silver Street in Stockton-on-Tees. Also worth knowing about DRAKE - The Bookshop: the map lists its hours as Mo-Sa 09:30-17:00.
27 Silver Street, Stockton-on-Tees, TS18 1SX
Hours: Mo-Sa 09:30-17:00
The Works
Bookstore
The Works — Bookstore. Also worth knowing about The Works: it has a website with more detail.
T and G Allan
Bookstore
T and G Allan — Bookstore.
The Works
Bookstore
The Works — Bookstore, found on High Street East in Redcar. Also worth knowing about The Works: it has a website with more detail.
High Street East, Redcar
WHSmith
Bookstore
WHSmith is Bookstore on High Street East, Redcar. WHSmith also notes on the map: it has a website with more detail.
High Street East, Redcar
The Works
Bookstore
The Works — Bookstore. Also worth knowing about The Works: it has a website with more detail.
BookWyrm
Bookstore
BookWyrm — Bookstore, found on Market Place in Durham. Also worth knowing about BookWyrm: it has a website with more detail.
Market Place, Durham, DH1 3NJ
the bound
Bookstore
the bound is Bookstore on 82a Park View. the bound also notes on the map: the map lists its hours as Mo-Sa 10:00-17:00; Su 11:00-16:00; a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip; it has a website with more detail.
82a Park View
Hours: Mo-Sa 10:00-17:00; Su 11:00-16:00
Phone: +44 191 422 1017
Book Emporium
Bookstore
Book Emporium is Bookstore on Market Place, Durham. Book Emporium also notes on the map: it has a website with more detail.
Market Place, Durham, DH1 3NJ
Get Free Books
Bookstore
Get Free Books is Bookstore on St Cuthberts Walk, Chester-le-Street. Get Free Books also notes on the map: the map lists its hours as Mo-Sa 10:00-14:00.
St Cuthberts Walk, Chester-le-Street, DH3 3YQ
Hours: Mo-Sa 10:00-14:00
TGJones
Bookstore
TGJones is Bookstore.
The Book Dragon
Bookstore
The Book Dragon — Bookstore. Also worth knowing about The Book Dragon: it has a website with more detail.
The Works
Bookstore
The Works — Bookstore, found on Dudley Court in Cramlington. Also worth knowing about The Works: it has a website with more detail.
Dudley Court, Cramlington, NE23 6QW
Secondhand Bookshop
Used bookstoreRun by National Trust
Secondhand Bookshop is Used bookstore run by National Trust. Secondhand Bookshop also notes on the map: the map lists its hours as Sa-We 11:00-15:00.
Hours: Sa-We 11:00-15:00
People's Bookshop
Used bookstore
People's Bookshop — Used bookstore, found on 18 High Street in Durham. Also worth knowing about People's Bookshop: it has a website with more detail.
18 High Street, Durham, DH1 3UJ
The Works
Bookstore
The Works — Bookstore. Also worth knowing about The Works: it has a website with more detail.
Us 4 Books
Bookstore
Us 4 Books is Bookstore.
WHSmith
Bookstore
WHSmith is Bookstore. WHSmith also notes on the map: the map lists its hours as Mo-Su,PH 04:00+; it has a website with more detail.
Newcastle upon Tyne, NE13 8BZ
Hours: Mo-Su,PH 04:00+
WHSmith
Bookstore
WHSmith is Bookstore.
The Works
Bookstore
The Works — Bookstore.
The NewBridge Project
BookstoreRun by Keano Anton
The NewBridge Project is Bookstore run by Keano Anton on 242 High Street, Gateshead. The NewBridge Project also notes on the map: the map lists its hours as We 13:00-17:00; Th-Sa 12:00-17:00; a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip; it has a website with more detail.
242 High Street, Gateshead, NE8 1AQ
Hours: We 13:00-17:00; Th-Sa 12:00-17:00
Phone: +44 7708 195800
Electric Beacon Books
Bookstore
Electric Beacon Books is Bookstore.
Featherbed Books
Bookstore
Featherbed Books — Bookstore.
Renwick's
BookstoreRun by National Trust
Run by National Trust, Renwick's is Bookstore.
The Works
Bookstore
The Works — Bookstore. Also worth knowing about The Works: it has a website with more detail.
Waterstones
BookstoreRun by Waterstones
Run by Waterstones, Waterstones is Bookstore, found on 55-57 Saddler Street in Durham. Also worth knowing about Waterstones: it has a website with more detail.
55-57 Saddler Street, Durham, DH1 3EJ
The Works
Bookstore
The Works — Bookstore, found on 7-8 Silver Street in Durham. Also worth knowing about The Works: it has a website with more detail.
7-8 Silver Street, Durham, DH1 3RB
Waterstones
Bookstore
Waterstones — Bookstore, found on Blackett Street in Newcastle upon Tyne. Also worth knowing about Waterstones: the map lists its hours as Mo-Sa 09:00-19:00; Th 09:00-20:00; Su 11:00-17:00; a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip; it has a website with more detail.
Blackett Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7JF
Hours: Mo-Sa 09:00-19:00; Th 09:00-20:00; Su 11:00-17:00
Phone: +44 191 2617757
The Works
Bookstore
The Works — Bookstore, found on Unit 7A3 Team Valley Shopping Park in Gateshead. Also worth knowing about The Works: the map lists its hours as Mo-Fr 09:00-20:00; Sa 09:00-19:00; Su 11:00-17:00; a phone number is listed — worth a call before a special trip; it has a website with more detail.
Unit 7A3 Team Valley Shopping Park, Gateshead, NE11 0BD
Hours: Mo-Fr 09:00-20:00; Sa 09:00-19:00; Su 11:00-17:00
Phone: +44 1914 871654
Waterstones
Bookstore
Waterstones — Bookstore, found on 69 Saddler Street in Durham. Also worth knowing about Waterstones: it has a website with more detail.
69 Saddler Street, Durham, DH1 3NP
Sound and Vision
Bookstore
Sound and Vision — Bookstore, found on 156D Front Street in Chester-le-Street.
156D Front Street, Chester-le-Street, DH3 3AY
Second hand bookshop
BookstoreRun by National Trust
Run by National Trust, Second hand bookshop is Bookstore.
Waterstones
BookstoreRun by WaterstonesHMV
Run by WaterstonesHMV, Waterstones is Bookstore. Also worth knowing about Waterstones: it has a website with more detail.
WHSmith
Bookstore
WHSmith is Bookstore. WHSmith also notes on the map: it has a website with more detail.
What the map tells us about bookstores in Sunderland
12 of the 59 list their opening hours on the map, which is genuinely useful — bookshops keep civilised hours, so the listed ones are usually reliable.
36 have websites listed. Worth a look for events — readings and signings get announced there first.
There's a cluster: 2 of them sit on Goodwood Square, so you can string those into one walk and drive between the rest.
4 of the shops are tagged as selling used books — the second-hand shelves are where out-of-print gems and first editions turn up for pocket change.
The Sunderland bookstore crawl
The efficient Sunderland bookstore crawl strings these together: TGJones on Goodwood Square, The Works on Goodwood Square, The Works on Hill Street Centre, Books for Amnesty on 92 Westgate Road, Jimmy's Coffee & Convenience, Waterstones, The Works, and Blackwells on 141 Percy Street — 59 stops, one logical order. 51 more are listed below.
Bookstore tips for Sunderland
The regulars' playbook for Sunderland's bookshops:
- Magazines and journals matter at TGJones. The little-magazine rack is where new writers appear first. Cheap, weird, and full of discoveries.
- Check the bargain carts outside at The Works. Sidewalk carts are the shop's clearance rack. A dollar a book, and the turnover is fast.
- Kids' sections are goldmines. Even without kids. The picture-book art alone is worth the browse, and the middle-grade shelves hold genuine classics.
- Come back seasonally. Stock turns over with the publishing seasons. The shop you browsed in spring is a different shop by autumn.
Good to know
We searched about 40 km around Sunderland — that covers the town itself plus the surrounding communities you'd reasonably drive to. Listings come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by local volunteers, so a brand-new bookstore in Sunderland can take a while to appear. If you spot one of the 59 that's closed, or a great bookstore we missed, the fix is to update the map itself — that's where this guide reads from.
We don't list prices — they change constantly and vary by edition. What we list is the where: real shops, verified by real mappers, in alphabetical order with no favourites.
If you run one of the 59 listed here and something's wrong — a closure, a move, new hours — the fix is the same: update the shop on OpenStreetMap and the correction flows through to this page on the next daily refresh.
Bookstore listings for Sunderland: 59 mapped from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Photos from Wikimedia Commons contributors; individual photo credits appear in captions. Listing data was last refreshed automatically — verify hours before visiting.