British Heart Foundation Books & Music

I’m a sucker for second hand books. Charity shops are always a danger to me, particularly ones that specialise mainly in paper and words. I always promise myself that I’m just going to to browse, but I usually come out with an armful of books to clutter up my shelves at home.
The have a good array here of popular fiction, classics, autobiography and reference books. Obviously, you have to rifle through the tat to find the hidden gems, but they are always there. The only thing missing on this occasion were Dicken’s books, but I’m guessing I was just unlucky.
The staff are also friendly in this branch, not something you always find in charity shops for some strange reason.
This has to be guilt free spending — donating to charity and broadening my mind at the same time — the perfect way to spend my pennies.

Most charity shops try and sell you anything, but this British Heart Foundation (BHF) specialises in music and books. They’ll still try and sell you anything, I mean seriously, do I look like the kind of man who’d buy a Milles and Boon, or a CD by Mannfred Mann, or any of the other tosh in here? I respect their mission, but there’s nothing in here I want! If you like trashy books and rubbish oldies, this may be the place for you, otherwise just put money in the buckets those guys carry around: it’s better spent.
I feel bad ribbing a charity shop for their selection, as they are dependent on donations, but this BHF branch probably should have thought their concept through before organising the whole shop as such. People will only give away things they don’t like, which is the principle behind all charity shops, but when it comes to clothes, one man’s disaster is another’s wardrobe set-​piece. However, with music and books tastes do seem to streamline a little more: this certainly doesn’t work for me, there’s never anything I want.
And yes, before you say it, I know it’s a charity shop, and no decent human being would criticise them, would buy things they don’t like just to give the charity some cash… Well, that’s why we have people calling us up and charity muggers, people! If you like old fashioned music and books, go here, otherwise save your pennies for the next time BHF call. I’m not telling you to NOT give to charity, just don’t do it through buying things you don’t want. Unless you like Mills and Boon…

This place is good because it’s a book and record shop foremost and a charity shop second. In a way, that could be argued in the other direction, but if you ignore for a moment the fact that it’s meant to be a charity shop, it’s a good second hand record shop with a wide selection and some really interesting things. Perhaps because it gets the pick of book and music donations to British Heart Foundation stores across Brighton, it really does come up with the cream — there are collector’s items in here most of the time, and not just in the window. There are enough books on every subject to have it properly categorised like a bookshop, instead of two shelves amongst the handbags. There is a good selection of vinyls, which is nothing new for a charity shop, but there are also CDs that you might actually consider listening to — there is, of course, the obligatory drift of Steps and doomed S Club 7 members’ solo efforts but there is also a fair selection of 70s rock and more classical CDs than you might expect. I found the real joy was in the tape section, because here you find real rock bottom charity shop prices for albums you wouldn’t normally buy, but can afford to try out at 20p a pop. Then again, the rest of the shop is a lottery of pricing. There are bargains, but you have to look hard for them. Some hard backs are over £5, some CDs the same. It feels somehow unethical criticising a charity shop on price grounds — but it is more expensive than you’d expect. However, it’s still only on a level with independent second hand book shops, and it does have a good selection.

I like books and I like music, so the name of the store appealed to me. The selection of books isn’t too great. There are a couple of shelves dedicated to mainstream fiction, and a small shelf dedicated solely to the classics. They have a small selection of poetry and plays, a few shelves dedicated to cooking, a small selection of film and music (included biographies) and a larger section dedicated to history. But the titles on the shelf weren’t too interesting, nor were they being sold at prices that promoted impulsive spending (for example, like a 20p tarot book I bought at a pawn shop).
What’s impressive about the music section is the selection of vinyls and cassette tapes. There is a load of classic cassette tapes for sale, and by classic I mean albums by Twisted Sister, Whitesnake and Poison. But if you like The Grateful Dead, Bob Dylan or John Lennon, they sell those too.
If your music tastes are wide and varied, it would be worth it to check the store out.

I love it when charity shops dedicate whole splinter stores to books and records… its as if they’re saying «Were not messing around here, we know what you want: good tunes and a great read.» And I head in thinking «Amen to that». And for some reason, when people know they’re donating to a specialist charity bookshop, the quality of their donation seems to skyrocket! The shelves of BHF are not stuffed with Joanna Trollops and Jackie Collins (sure there might be a few), oh no, here you will find vintage classics (think Austen, Dickens and Bronte) alongside contemporary writers (such as Alice Walker, Carson McCullers and Salman Rushdie). Seriously, this shop is very satisfying for its abundance of really good literature– I often find myself torn between a few potential purchases.
They often have very new books that have obviously been flicked through and cast aside… they are great for political biographies– my flat mate found Obama’s ‘Dreams From My Father’ soon after it came out in paperback. There is a comprehensive spiritual section and a wonderful travel section– so if you need a moment of escapism and fancy getting lost in a guidebook, you’ve found the place. And at their prices, you can afford to take the fantasy home…
Make sure you check out the records too, they have a good selection and often have a couple of rare collectibles in the window. Bargain books are outside, but in my experience you’ll have to head inside for the good stuff.