How did you discover Persephone?

I'll admit that my introduction to Persephone came through InStyle magazine, not usually the place I go to for literary recommendations! I fell in love immediately. Since then, I've accumulated 16 Persephone books, plus a few different editions of books in Persephone's catalogue (books I wouldn't even have known about if Persephone hadn't brought them back to life).

I discovered Persephone through a fellow LThinger, who recommended it to me. I checked the website and signed up for the catalogue, which I have been receiving for a while but that they will stop sending if I do not buy any books. It appears that I will have to order a couple (no twisting my arm, here).
I have one of the books they publish in another, first edition. It is The Priory by Dorothy Whipple, and I enjoyed it a lot.
The only Persephone I own is Gardener's nightcap by Muriel Stuart.

A friend of mine told me about them, and she described them so enthusiasticaly that I jumped straight online and checked them out, and ordered a couple.

Erm... that would be me!

Now, where on earth did I hear about them? I really can't remember. But I recall going to the shop early on, and that got me hooked. In fact, I make an annual pilgrimage there to get Christmas and Birthday presents, and it's about my only reason to go to London these days!

I have introduced quite a lot of people to them too!

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day was my introduction Radio 4 Serialised it so I got a copy.

LyzzyBee, I've never been to the shop, but would love to go sometime. Pity I'm not really that close to London. At last year's Cheltenham Literary Festival, Nicola Beauman spoke about Persephone and the mince pies they have at Christmas. It all sounded so wonderful!

Thanks to another Lthinger, Byzanne, I ordered the latest catalogue through their website. I love it!! Now, I'm just trying to figure out how I can afford them since I live in the US!

I think I'll begin my collection with Journal by Katherine Mansfield.

I can't remember how I discovered Persephone but I love their books. I think the first one I read was Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day. Now that I live in the US it's more of a decision to buy them, because of the expense, so I know what you mean, bleuroses. I have to say, take the plunge - the books are worth every cent.

I can't remember how I first heard of Persephone either, probably in the book review pages of a newspaper a few years ago. I don't have any books myself but I bought some for my mother who enjoyed them. Glad I was able to pass on the word to Bleuroses.

What I particularly love about them is their design - the plain, dove-grey covers; the endpapers; the overall feel of them. I also love reading the newsletter about the different books and their histories.

I'm not in much form for fiction-reading at the moment, but I go through phases and I know I will get back into it sooner or later. I rarely buy fiction new, preferring to borrow from the library or buy second-hand in charity shops. No surprise that not many Persephone books end up in charity shops! I'll buy some new for myself eventually.

I discovered Persephone through LT, and a recommendation from someone in the Virago Modern Classics group. Whoever it was, thank you!

I am lucky enough to live in London, and to have an excuse to visit the area of the shop on a semi-regular basis. So far, I have bought for myself Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, The Making of a Marchioness and Mariana as well as finding it a great source for gifts for book loving friends! I'm planning a trip there again next Monday to stock up the unread book pile....

I found out about Persephone years ago on the chicklit forums but only bought my first batch a month ago. I hope it will be a regular treat for me!

I discovered Persephone Books when someone on Readerville mentioned them. The name instantly attracted me since it was the name of my feline soulmate who passed way about three years ago. I went to their web site and fell in love. The prices are horrendous giving the shipping cost and dollar-to-pound ratio, but I plan to buy a few every three months or so. Eventually I'll get them all.

I was looking for more information about Sarah Waters, because she's one of the very few contemporary authors I'd buy anything by and I found a great interview of her in which she mentioned Dorothy Whipple as being a source of inspiration for The Night Watch.

I admit I would have bought anything by Persephone just to be a member of a publishing company which actually cares for its readers : I was over the moon when I read how people loved their books, I finally had a good reason to buy ! Not only did they look beautiful and buying them made me feel as if I were part of an exclusive book club but they were apparently very good too. I placed an order the same day :)

I read about Persephones in the Virago Modern Classic group, but I didn't know much about them until a lovely LTer gave me a gift card, which came with their most recent catalogue.

Cariola I had the same experience someone mentioned it on the Virago group and I was curious. My first was Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day since it is easily available in the States but I am hoping to visit England later this year and was thinking of making a pilgrimage. .

Maren, I will definitely make it a must the next time I get to London (which is usually about every other year).

Maren—Do try to visit the Persephone shop if you're in London later this year. One of my regrets about my year in England is that I only made it there once, and only bought two books (Saplings and The Fortnight in September). Such heroic restraint! Such foolishness! There's a nice café next door where you can pore over your purchases, and the British Museum is a short walk away. Definitely pilgrimage-worthy!

Thanks rbhardy3rd. Nice to know how close it is to the British Museum as well. I have been eyeing some of the R.C. Sheriff titles and I would love to have the luxury of browsing and readining the opening lines before deciding.

I already decided to throw away heroic restraint and ship myself a box if I my purchases exceed my suitcase.

Has anyone been to Hay on Wye? That is another tempting stop, if my husband is patient.

>18 Marensr:

Marensr, you will need at least a couple of days, I would say more likely a week at Hay-on-Wye if you like browsing in bookstores!

Definitely go to Hay if you can, Marensr! I go a few times a year and it's a fabulous place!

There is the new shop in Kensington, too!

Hay-on-Wye... well we (Heaven-Ali, me and 2 other friends) are only allowed to go there every other year. We brought back a car bootful last time. But this is the year we get to go again!

Stop the madness! Oh, this fainting heart.....

From LibraryThing - I picked up on the Group talk - and thought they looked interesting.

I must have passed the Lambs Conduit Street shop dozens of times, so yesterday when down in London for a meeting a made a side trip and bought my first Persephone - Gardener's nightcap

I say first, because settling down for a four hour train journey back to Edinburgh, with my new book, a catalogue and a glass or two of wine, I'm hooked and I've already picked out several more.

It's all LibraryThing's fault!

antisyzygy, there are 6 things I love best about your post....

1. Your train ride
2. TO Edinburgh!
3. With your new book and
4. The new catalogue!
5. Purchased FROM the Persephone shop and
6. Your glass of wine!

Yes, I first heard about Persephone through LT also. I think it was on the "What are You Reading Now" threads - someone mentioned their current Persephone book and I then went hunting around in Google and on LT to see what it was.

Its probably just as well that I don't live anywhere even remotely near the Persephone shops!! I have requested a catalogue, though, since they do ship to overseas destinations.

antisyzygy, I am utterly envious!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I want to go to Edinburgh too!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I don't want to be in New York!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
UAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

>26 aluvalibri: What's wrong with New York? Apart from the fact they don't have a Persephone shop? ;D

Too chaotic, digifish.....and I also want to be in Australia!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
(not my day, today, it seems)

Blueroses

you have to take into account that for me a train journey TO Edinburgh means one FROM Edinburgh at at 05:50 that morning, and so getting up at 04:30.

So I think I deserve a good book and a glass of wine.

The shop's lovely, totally unprepossessing from the outside, and such delights inside, with piles of books and wartime posters and bolts of cloth of the patterns from the end papers.

But of course, dear antisyzygy! I was just sitting here totally envious of you!!

When I moved to New York City in 2003, there was a great bookstore on Lexington Ave. called the Lenox Hill Book Store, which carried about a dozen Persephone books. I think the first one I bought was THE MAKING OF A MARCHIONESS, which I brought with me on a cruise, and I ended up buying several other Persephone titles when I returned.

After LHBS closed, I ordered other copies via the website, and I bought some from the Lamb's Conduit store when I went to London a few years ago, but it would be nice if a local Manhattan bookstore carried some of the dove gray books. I see the Persephone Classics line displayed well at some Barnes and Noble branches, but I've already read those.

I found out about Persephone Classics through bleuroses after laytonwoman3rd had invited me to join the Virago group. By the end of the day I had ordered my first 10 books from their website. I am sure it will take quite a while for them to arrive due to the fact that I am in the US but I anxiously await them.
So thank you bleuroses (and laytonwoman3rd).
belva

I first came across Persephone when I was about 12 and an older friend told me that her favourite book outside the writings of Jane Austen was Mariana, and so I had to get a copy. I loved it and treasured it, but didn't get any more until fairly recently. I now have 12 of my own (6 of which were found in charity shops), and I've read a few others from the library. I'm slowly getting closer to my dream of having an entire bookshelf of Persephones and Viragos.

I discovered Persephone through the Virago Modern Classics group. So far I have 12.

I also discovered Persephones through the Virago group. I own 6 actual Persephones and 4 of their titles in other editions. I notice that Amazon here in America has recently put their Persephone prices up quite a lot. Very annoying.

Hello everyone! I discovered Persephone by browsing LT. I am excited to have found this group. After watching the group for a while and reading your lovely comments I recently picked up Miss Pettigrew Lives for a day, Mariana, and Saplings. Hope you don't mind if I tag along!

Welcome, noodlejet22! We are very happy to have you here.
:-))

I discovered Persephone a few years ago when I was a university student and studying Jane Eyre. I googled 'Mr Rochester' and up came a picture of Persephone's 'Tea with Mr Rochester'. I clicked through to the website and got so excited I ordered books straight away. I still remember how charmed and utterly delighted I was to find such a beautiful publishing house. I've visited the shop a few times and actually met Nicola at a business meeting (I was meeting her to discuss a charity donation; I'm a fundraiser) when she gave me a free grey bookbag (I was skipping all the way back to the office!) and so now I am even more of a firm devotee and believe 100% in the ethos behind the company. So much so that even though I can get the books half price through my job (I work at a major museum with a publishing arm, which entitles me to a 50% discount to all books published by and distributed by the company who publishes our books), I still buy them full price from the shop because I don't want them to lose out. Discounts are what kill independent booksellers after all!

I have well over 20 grey Persephones and probably about 10ish in original editions. My favourite is The Homemaker but I also adore all of Dorothy Whipple.

I look forward to getting to know some more lovers of Persephone!

I haven't read a bad Persephone yet!

Hello BigPink and Noodlejet welcome here are well.

In 2007, I read Diary of a Provincial Lady by EM Delafield and knew instantly that this was a genre of books that I needed more of. A Google search led me to Persephone. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry as my husband and I had just returned from an overseas trip to London - and had stayed in Bloomsbury. Ack! Not to worry, I was back there this May and finally, got to visit the shop.

Thanks for the welcome! I have not been disappointed with my first Persephone. Mariana is splendid. I've already ordered a few more thanks to everyone's recommendations here.

>41 noodlejet22: You won't be disasppointed with any Persephone. I've read ten and they are all good...some more than others of course.

I don't remember really how I discovered Persephone. I think I just kept coming across them whenever I tried to look for books that were similar to the ones I liked in Amazon so I finally ordered Miss Pettigrew which was my first one.

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day was my first... came across it in that list of 1001 Books You Should Read Before You Die. Later on I bought The Priory online, and now I've just bought a bunch more from the shop wile I'm on vacation here in London. I'm collecting the books in the gray covers, and I absolutely love the bookmarks that come with them.

Hi! This is my first post in this group although I've been a long- time lurker. I discovered Persephone when one of my co-workers mentioned the book she was reading. About a week later I saw a mention in a magazine (Domino?) that gave the website.
I actually discovered Library Thing because of Persephone. At the Persephone tea in NYC in 2007 people kept asking me if I was on Library Thing.(People from this group I'm sure) I went home after the tea and started looking around LT.

Welcome VioletBramble! I had noticed you before because we share many books and your name popped out to me after I read Little,Big. I am jealous you got to go to the Persephone tea in NYC.

VioletBramble, I might have asked you a I was at the Persephone tea, as well as our friends bleuroses and framheim (who at the time used to be fabrile_heart).
Be as it may, welcome among us!!

Thank you both, Marensr and aluvalibri, for the welcome. And thank you very much for the mention of Library Thing aluvalibri. My TBR pile and wishlist grow every time I log onto LT. I should be reading a few Persephone books from off the TBR pile within the next couple of months so I'll eventually have sometihing of substance to post here.

I just discovered Persephone a few days ago - through reading mrspenny's librarything collection. I'm very happy!

Welcome VioletBramble and mccardey! Wasn't that tea wonderful, violet! I only wished it had lasted longer!

bleuroses - thank you for the welcome. Sorry for the late response. I agree, the tea was wonderful. I wish that they'd have another in NY. I always seem to just miss the London events when I go on vacation.