Welcome
Books Paper Scissors is an independent bookshop in leafy South Belfast, near to the Botanic Gardens, Queen’s University and the Ulster Museum.
We stock a curated selection of new fiction and non-fiction, plus classics, Irish writing and poetry. We also have a children's room, with choices from newborn to teenager. If you don't see the book you want in store or on-line, just ask via e-mail or telephone, we can source most books in just a few days.
Beyond books we stock high quality stationery, notebooks, pens, diaries and greetings cards. Plus gift wrap and of course, scissors. We also stock a small selection of non book gifts and accessories.
Covid Update, NI, June 2021
We are delighted to be able to be open again.
Normal store hours are back, 10am - 5pm, 6 days a week ( closed Sundays)
You can of course still order local Belfast deliveries, or postal deliveries for further afield.
New
Holding Her Breath, Eimear Ryan ( large pb, June 2021)
£12.99
A young woman comes of age in the shadow of her family's tragic past
When Beth Crowe starts university, she is shadowed by the ghost of her potential as a competitive swimmer. Free to create a fresh identity for herself, she finds herself among people who adore the poetry of her grandfather, Benjamin Crowe, who died tragically before she was born. She embarks on a secret relationship - and on a quest to discover the truth about Benjamin and his widow, her beloved grandmother Lydia.
The quest brings her into an archive that no scholar has ever seen, and to a person who knows things about her family that nobody else knows. Holding Her Breath is a razor-sharp, moving and seriously entertaining novel about complicated love stories, ambition and grief - and a young woman coming fully into her powers. __________'A beautiful coming-of-age story told with impressive skill and lightness of touch .
. . I absolutely loved it' LOUISE O'NEILL' Precise, sure, engaging, and a joy to read' RODDY DOYLE'
The Girl Who Died, Ragnar Jonasson ( hardback June 2021)
£14.99
One of the most astonishing plots of modern crime fiction' Sunday Times'
After her father's sudden, tragic suicide, Una spends her nights drinking alone in Reykjavik, stricken with thoughts that she might one day follow in his footsteps.
So when she sees an advert seeking a teacher for two girls in the tiny village of Skalar - population of ten - on the storm-battered north coast of the island, she sees it as a chance to escape. But once she arrives, Una quickly realises nothing in city life has prepared her for this. The villagers are unfriendly.
The weather is bleak. And, from the creaky attic bedroom of the old house where she's living, she's convinced she hears the ghostly sound of singing. Una worries that she's losing her mind.
And then, just before midwinter, a young girl from the village is found dead. Now there are only nine villagers left. And Una fears that one of them has blood on their hands .
'This is Icelandic noir of the highest order, with Jonasson's atmospheric sense of place, and his heroine's unerring humanity shining from every page' Daily Mail'
The Butchers, Ruth Gilligan (paperback June 2021)
£8.99
*WINNER of the 2021 RSL Ondaatje Prize***'
I binged it like a Netflix show... It's stunning' Luke Kennard, author of The Transition
A photograph is hung on a gallery wall for the very first time since it was taken two decades before. It shows a slaughter house in rural Ireland, a painting of the Virgin Mary on the wall, a meat hook suspended from the ceiling - and, from its sharp point, the lifeless body of a man hanging by his feet.
The story of who he is and how he got there casts back into Irish folklore, of widows cursing the land and of the men who slaughter its cattle by hand. But modern Ireland is distrustful of ancient traditions, and as the BSE crisis in England presents get-rich opportunities in Ireland, few care about The Butchers, the eight men who roam the country, slaughtering the cows of those who still have faith in the old ways. Few care, that is, except for Fionn, the husband of a dying woman who still believes; their son Davey, who has fallen in love with the youngest of the Butchers; Gra, the lonely wife of one of the eight; and her 12-year-old daughter, Una, a girl who will grow up to carry a knife like her father, and who will be the one finally to avenge the man in the photograph.
Crave : Recipes Arranged by Flavour, to Suit Your Mood and Appetite (hardback, June 2021)
£25.00
by Ed Smith
Over 100 recipes. Every craving covered. Why do we choose to cook the things we do, when we do? Most of the time, it is simply so we can eat what we really fancy; a subconscious response to a constantly fluctuating state of mind and appetite that's influenced by mood, season, weather, memory, occasion, outside events and internal feelings.
Ed Smith helps his readers home in on their cravings (whatever the reason for them) by organising his recipes within six cleverly conceived flavour profiles: fresh and fragrant chilli and heat tart and sour curried and spiced rich and savoury; and (best of all?) cheesy and creamy. There's also a directory of alternative cravings at the back, providing additional ways in. All bases are covered, from snacks through sides, to main courses and puddings.
Think of fermented and fresh tomato salad with feta for when both sun and cook are already smiling; or lamb chops with cacio e pepe white beans if in need of a re-set; the likes of 'nduja spatchcock chicken, should a tickle of chilli be in order; or curried brisket noodles to meet spice needs. Whether we want snap and crunch or velvet softness, sharp citrus or warming aromatics, or just something involving bubbling, molten cheese, CRAVE presents a fresh take on seasonal cookery, but goes beyond that too - acknowledging core instincts and base itches, and so delivering recipes you'll want to make every day of the week, whatever the weather or mood.
Leave The World Behind, Rumaan Alam (pb, June 1st 2021)
£8.99
Easily the best thing I have read all year' KILEY REID, AUTHOR OF SUCH A FUN AGE'
Intense, incisive, I loved this and have still not quite shaken off the unease' DAVID NICHOLS
A magnetic novel about two families, strangers to each other, who are forced together on a long weekend gone terribly wrong. Amanda and Clay head to a remote corner of Long Island expecting a holiday: a quiet reprieve from life in New York City, quality time with their teenage son and daughter and a taste of the good life in the luxurious home they've rented for the week. But with a late-night knock on the door, the spell is broken. Ruth and G.
H., an older couple who claim to own the home, have arrived there in a panic. These strangers say that a sudden power outage has swept the city, and - with nowhere else to turn - they have come to the country in search of shelter. But with the TV and internet down, and no phone service, the facts are unknowable.
Should Amanda and Clay trust this couple - and vice versa? What has happened back in New York? Is the holiday home, isolated from civilisation, a truly safe place for their families? And are they safe from one another?
Animal, Lisa Taddeo ( hardback 24th June 2021)
£16.99
'American Psycho for the #MeToo generation' The Times'
A raging, funny and fierce thriller with a protagonist whose life force, against extraordinary odds - always in the gaze and sometimes the grasp of predatory, abusive men - is a thing of wonder' Financial Times 'Joan is an unforgettable anti-heroine. I don't think I'll ever stop thinking about her' Elizabeth Day
I drove myself out of New York City where a man shot himself in front of me. He was a gluttonous man and when his blood came out it looked like the blood of a pig.
That's a cruel thing to think, I know. He did it in a restaurant where I was having dinner with another man, another married man. Do you see how this is going? But I wasn't always that way.
The Girl Who Died, Ragnar Jonasson ( hardback, June 2021)
£14.99
THE NAIL-BITING NEW STORY FROM THE MILLION COPY BESTSELLING AUTHOR
After her father's sudden, tragic suicide, Una spends her nights drinking alone in Reykjavik, stricken with thoughts that she might one day follow in his footsteps.
So when she sees an advert seeking a teacher for two girls in the tiny village of Skalar - population of ten - on the storm-battered north coast of the island, she sees it as a chance to escape. But once she arrives, Una quickly realises nothing in city life has prepared her for this. The villagers are unfriendly.
The weather is bleak. And, from the creaky attic bedroom of the old house where she's living, she's convinced she hears the ghostly sound of singing. Una worries that she's losing her mind.
And then, just before midwinter, a young girl from the village is found dead. Now there are only nine villagers left. And Una fears that one of them has blood on their hands .
'An intensely gripping mystery, Ragnar Jonasson is a poet of the "dark, wet and cold", of the "gloom, cold and rain".
One of our customer favourite ' scandi noir' writers
Something I Said, Ben Bailey Smith ( paperback, June 2021)
£6.99
Fantastically, gloriously funny' Katherine Rundell, author of The Explorer
''Fantastic! Pitch perfect comedic voice' Katie Tsang, author of Dragon Mountain
From comedian, actor, rapper and screenwriter Ben Bailey Smith comes a blazingly funny, big-hearted story about family, friendship and how far one boy will go to get a laugh. Perfect for fans of David Baddiel and Frank Cottrell-Boyce. For thirteen-year-old Carmichael Taylor, life is one big joke - in a good way.
He just can't understand why no one else seems to find everything as funny as he does. When Car is filmed stumbling into performing a piece of hilarious stand-up at the school talent show - targeting his family, school and friends - the footage ends up creating international infamy. But with the promise of fame and fortune comes trouble, and it's up to Car to decide what or who he's willing to risk to chase his comedy dream.
Get ready to laugh at life with this heart-warming, unashamedly honest and hilarious look at family, friendship and what really matters.
Leuchtturm Notebook / LAMY pens
£18.95
A lovely gift for Father's Day, or any other occasion. We have a range of LAMY pens, and Leuchtturm notebooks - some of which just happen to match beautifully.
Gift wrap and gift box options available for pens.
LAMY Pink Journal / Safari Pens / Ink
£18.95
Brighten up your desk with some matching writing accessories.
The End of Men, Christina Baird-Sweeney ( hardback, April 2021)
£14.99
GLASGOW, 2025.
Dr Amanda Maclean is called to treat a young man with a mild fever. Within three hours he dies. The mysterious illness sweeps through the hospital with deadly speed.
This is how it begins. The victims are all men. Dr Maclean raises the alarm, but the sickness spreads to every corner of the globe.
Threatening families. Governments. Countries.
Can they find a cure before it's too late? Will this be the story of the end of the world - or its salvation? Compelling, confronting and devastating, The End of Men is the novel that everyone is talking about.
'A POWERFUL, GRIPPING BOOK THAT HAS MADE ME FEEL A LITTLE BIT BETTER ABOUT THE WORLD WE ARE LIVING IN RIGHT NOW' BRYONY GORDON
We Are Not In the World, Conor O’Callaghan (hardback, Feb 2021)
£14.99
Powerful...compelling and profoundly moving' Irish Times'Heartbreaking, sweetly logical and tentatively hopeful' Spectator Heartbroken after a long, painful love affair, a man drives a haulage lorry from England to France. Travelling with him is a secret passenger - his daughter. Twenty-something, unkempt, off the rails.With a week on the road together, father and daughter must restore themselves and each other, and repair a relationship that is at once fiercely loving and deeply scarred. As they journey south, down the motorways, through the service stations, a devastating picture reveals itself: a story of grief, of shame, and of love in all its complex, dark and glorious manifestations. ______________What readers are saying: ***** 'The prose is sublime and deeply moving .
. . a stunning novel'***** 'Beautifully written, lyrical and unsettling in its exploration of human frailties, family, love, and loss, grief'MORE PRAISE FOR WE ARE NOT IN THE WORLD:'Unusual, utterly original and mysterious .
Last Days in Cleaver Square, Patrick McGrath (hardback, Feb 2021)
£16.99
Powerful...compelling and profoundly moving' Irish Times'
Heartbroken after a long, painful love affair, a man drives a haulage lorry from England to France. Travelling with him is a secret passenger - his daughter. Twenty-something, unkempt, off the rails.
With a week on the road together, father and daughter must restore themselves and each other, and repair a relationship that is at once fiercely loving and deeply scarred. As they journey south, down the motorways, through the service stations, a devastating picture reveals itself: a story of grief, of shame, and of love in all its complex, dark and glorious manifestations.
An Extra Pair of Hands, Kate Mosse ( hardback June 2021)
£12.99
A deeply moving story of what it means to care for those we love - by bestselling author Kate Mosse, writer of Labyrinth and The City of Tears'A truly beautiful book, shot through with honesty, heartbreak and joy. I loved it' Adam Kay
As our population ages, more and more of us find ourselves caring for parents and loved ones - some 8.8 million people in the UK. An invisible army of carers holding families together.
Here, Kate Mosse tells her personal story of finding herself as a carer in middle age: first, helping her mother look after her beloved father through Parkinson's, then supporting her mother in widowhood, and finally as 'an extra pair of hands' for her 90-year-old mother-in-law.
This is a story about the gentle heroism of our carers, about small everyday acts of tenderness, and finding joy in times of crisis. It's about juggling priorities, mind-numbing repetition, about guilt and powerlessness, about grief, and the solace of nature when we're exhausted or at a loss. It is also about celebrating older people, about learning to live differently - and think differently about ageing.
But most of all, it's a story about love.
The Maidens, Alex Michaelides ( hardback, June 2021)
£14.99
From the author of the global #1 bestselling debut The Silent Patient comes a spellbinding literary thriller weaving together Greek mythology, psychology, and murder...* * * * *
St Christopher's College, Cambridge, is a closed world to most.
For Mariana Andros - a group therapist struggling through her private grief - it's where she met her late husband. For her niece, Zoe, it's the tragic scene of her best friend's murder.
As memory and mystery entangle Mariana, she finds a society full of secrets, which has been shocked to its core by the murder of one of its own.
Because behind its idyllic beauty is a web of jealousy and rage which emanates from an exclusive set of students known only as The Maidens. A group under the sinister influence of the enigmatic professor Edward Fosca.
A man who seems to know more than anyone about the murders - and the victims. And the man who will become the prime suspect in Mariana's investigation - an obsession which will unravel everything...
The Maidens is a story of love, and of grief - of what makes us who we are, and what makes us kill.
Olive, Mabel & Me, Andrew Cotter ( paperback June 2021)
£9.99
OLIVE & MABEL: two of the internet's favourite dogs!
ANDREW COTTER: one of our best-loved commentators.
In a year like no other, the antics of two beautiful Labradors, Olive and Mabel - along with hilarious commentaries by Andrew Cotter - lightened the darkest days of lockdown. With nearly 90 million views on social media, Olive and Mabel’s videos have resonated with dog lovers around the world.
Now, OLIVE, MABEL & ME tells the heart-warming story of Andrew's two famous Labradors. Olive - sensible, measured but always keen to roll in something she shouldn't. Mabel - endearing, slightly scatty but game for any adventure. Their star quality has taken the internet by storm and continues to give us all a much-needed treat in tough times.
Beautifully written, touching and laugh-out-loud funny, this is not only the story of Olive and Mabel but also the story of the love we have for our dogs and the boundless joy they bring us each and every day.
I Am A Sensible Gibbon - Will Mabbitt ( paperback June 2021)
£6.99
A very sensible story with ABSOLUTELY NO SILLINESS! That is to say, a perfect story for your 2.5 years + kids who are a bit silly....
From the author of I Can Only Draw Worms! Gibbon would like to make it very clear that this is a sensible book for sensible people. Anything that looks like it might be FUN or SILLY is absolutely forbidden. A hilarious, rhyming animal party, with colourful illustrations by Claudia Boldt.
Collar and Elbow, Ruadhan MacFadden ( PB, June 2021)
£18.00
Collar and Elbow was once the national wrestling style of Ireland. Taking a firm grip on each other’s jackets, competitors would engage in intricate, lightning-fast battles of “footsparring” in which they would attempt to trip, throw, or otherwise send each other crashing to the ground.
This book explores the history of Collar and Elbow, its staggering popularity, its strategies and techniques, how it fit into wider sporting and combative contexts, and examines the causes behind the style’s precipitous disappearance. Given the modern resurgence of interest in grappling sports such as Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, might it now be possible to spark a revival of the tradition that was once known worldwide as “the Irish method” of wrestling?
About the author
Ruadhán MacFadden is an independent researcher in cultural anthropology, focusing on the history and traditions of folk wrestling styles around the world. He is a member of the special advisory group of UNESCO ICM, in which he represents the traditional Irish wrestling style of Collar and Elbow. Ruadhán has more than a decade of experience in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and has trained and taught grappling in over a dozen countries.
Please note this is not an instock item, so allow time for order to arrive.
Leuchtturm 2021-2022 Academic Planner (18m)
£19.95
July 2021 - December 2022• With extra booklet for anniversaries and addresses
• 3-year overview (2021, 2022 and 2023)
Formats: Medium (A5) 145 x 210 mm; Hardcover
Little Scratch, Rebecca Watson ( large paperback)
£12.99
~ Shortlisted for Desmond Elliott New Writer Award ~
little scratch tells the story of a day in the life of an unnamed woman, living in a lower-case world of demarcated fridge shelves and office politics; clock-watching and WhatsApp notifications. In a voice that is fiercely wry, touchingly delicate and increasingly neurotic, the protagonist relays what it takes to get through the quotidian detail of that single trajectory - from morning to night - while processing recent sexual violence. little scratch is about the coexistence of monotony with our waking, intelligent lives.
It is a powerful evocation of how the external and internal aspects of our lives exist in a helix, and what it means to live out the course of a single day consumed by trauma. 'little scratch is a story that is urgent. It is a story that needs to be told.' Meena Kandasamy' ... Reads like the cinders settling in the air after an explosion...
Book Club
The BPS Book Club meets in the last week of every month. We have two sessions, each one covering the same book so just pick the session that suits you. There is no need to book, just show up. It's a relaxed and unintimidating sharing of views and opinions.
Please contact us if you have any questions about the book club.
BOOKS as GIFTS
Perhaps you have a relative or friend who loves reading but you have no idea what to choose, or you just don't see them enough? We will make recommendations based on a few hints! We offer a monthly subscription gift service where the book(s) are chosen and dispatched by Books Paper Scissors with a gift message from the giver.
The recipient will receive an introductory letter allowing them to select genres and identify favourites - we do the rest!
For children or adults.
Hardback Subscription £20
Paperback Subscription £10
Please enquire if you would like more details.
Our Book Store
15 Stranmillis Rd, Belfast BT9 5AF
Phone: 028 9066 7815
Monday - Saturday- 10.00 - 17:00 *
'Post-Covid 19*
Daily 10 - 5 pm ex Sunday
