I love books. I love to read, and I love the coffee table books with beautiful pictures and curious subjects. So a book shop with both literature and a big selection of the thick coffee table books in a wide range of subjects is like a candy store to me.

When I discovered La Central in Raval, I got lost in the store for an hour. It has a huge offer of books. Art, photography, cinema, music, food, traveling, literature, comics… Every subject seems to be covered. And what a collection! If you can’t find a book you are looking for here, I wonder where you would. They have an English section as well, so no need to skip this shop with the excuse “I can’t read Spanish”.

La Central has several locations, but the one in Raval is the largest and my favourite. It has an English corner, a big children’s section with both books and original toys and a little accessory section with diaries, posters and magazines.

The best kept secret of this bookshop is the little bar and stunning garden. It became my favourite hidden oasis of the busy city centre to have a coffee, sandwich (fab bikini!) or ice cream from Natas Heladas. It’s like a little quiet paradise, full of plants and a small calming waterfall. By the way, the plants are for sale too! Isn’t that great?
If you just bought a book….you could spend all day reading in this idyllic garden!