The Bookish Mindset

Continuing on our bookshop tour, we find ourselves in the first ever bookshop town, Hay-on-Wye.

Gay on Wye is one of many (and I mean MANY!) bookshops in the beautiful Hay-on-Wye and is also one of it’s newest. I also have to admit it was one of my favourites to visit too!

Tom opened the shop in August 2023 and it has been thriving ever since. As the name suggests, the shop focuses on queer authors and representation and it’s great to see so much representation and queer joy.

The shelves are beautifully presented and split into genres for easy browsing. I really enjoyed how thorough each section was, I could have stayed in there for hours looking through their collections and tables full of books too. There’s also a great children’s section and queer history too.

Gay on Wye also stock a number of gifts including their own branded totes and lots of pieces from local businesses too. I couldn’t walk away with nothing when I visited last year so I picked up Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree (a cosy fantasy with queer MC’s) and I’m so glad I have a memento from the place.

If you’re visiting Hay-on-Wye then I thoroughly recommend you visit Gay-on-Wye and picking up something for yourself, I already can’t wait to go back!

You can find out more about them here on their website or on their instagram here.