Every book collection tells a story, and none more so than that of Christopher Priest, as Brian Hannan of Abbey Books has discovered It’s taken us the best part of a year to open all the 50 boxes containing about 2,000 books that were donated by the widow of novelist Christopher Priest who lived...
Read MoreBrian Hannan from Abbey Book reviews the Architecture of Thomas Coats Memorial Church Paisley, The Baptist Cathedral of Europe 1894 A new book celebrating one of Paisley’s most stunning buildings has been published by Paisley Publishing. With an astonishing 180 photographs, Architecture of Thomas Coats Memorial Church Paisley, The Baptist Cathedral of Europe 1894...
Read MoreBrian Hannan from Abbey Books in Paisley reviews The Paisley Thread by Matthew Blair The worst thing about running a preloved operation like Abbey Books is that once a book is gone it’s gone. Although we have 40,000 books in stock, we only usually have one copy of a particular item. This is especially...
Read MoreAcclaimed Lochwinnoch-based writer Alan Bissett takes us inside the creation and conception of Lads: A Guide to Respect and Consent for Teenage Boys and outlines the “man-to-man conversations” that are soon to hit Renfrewshire’s high schools In 2022, I was one of the writers who worked on a script for a Police Scotland video...
Read MoreCaledonian Road by Andrew O’Hagan, reviewed by local councillor Lisa-Marie Hughes Caledonian Road, penned by three times Booker Prize-nominated Andrew O’Hagan, is a literary giant destined to become a classic. Campbell Flynn is a middle-aged celebrity commentator and art historian. Coming from humble beginnings in Glasgow, he rises to the upper echelons of the...
Read MoreThe beloved Abbey Books is still going strong four decades into its existence, we find out more from shop manager Brian Hannan The phrase hidden gem is bandied about a lot in popular culture. It can be applicable to anything from a deep cut on a record to a little eatery that’s flown under...
Read MoreChristopher Priest, the author who is best-known for providing the source novel for The Prestige by Christopher Nolan donates 2,000 books Abbey Books manager Brian Hannan was astonished to see a giant delivery truck draw up outside the premises in Wellmeadow Street last week. He was even more surprised when the contents were unloaded....
Read MoreBrian Hannan, local author and manager of Abbey Books in Paisley, takes a look at the work of Paisley’s Thomas Barbour Thomas Barbour achieved local fame in unusual fashion. His poems were exclusively published during his lifetime by the Paisley Daily Express. And he wasn’t living in Paisley at the time, so his works...
Read MoreBrian Hannan from Abbey Books in Paisley reveals The Renfrewshire Election Scandal of 1874 thanks to a legal volume donated to the shop I wouldn’t be aware that Renfrewshire had an unsavoury anniversary to celebrate in March 2024 had it not been for the donation – in pristine condition I might add – of...
Read MoreBrian Hannan from Abbey Books in Paisley discovers another piece of local memorabilia, on this occasion, it’s an old programme from the Paisley Festival 1986 What falls out of books often provides a fascinating insight into the past and none more so than uncovering this amazing hive of creativity celebrated in the annual Paisley...
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