Signed, sealed, and delivered

Many publishers offer bookshops the chance to order signed copies of new titles, writes Denise, hoping that this added extra tempts a potential reader into making a purchase.

Unsurprisingly, at Backstory, we like to go one better. We have a growing selection of books available to be pre-ordered online that are not only signed but also individually personalised to the recipient.

Once the pre-orders are in, authors come to sit at our bar in the bookshop. Fuelled by caffeine, alcohol, or in some cases both, they dedicate copies of their books to readers which we then post out across the UK and around the world (or you can choose to collect at the shop, as always).

I thought I’d share some of this autumn’s highlights, all of which can be personalised by the author. We’re very excited for Marina Hyde’s sideways look at the madness of the last few years in What A Time To Be Alive!, Jay Rayner’s recipes inspired by his visits to some of the finest restaurants in Nights Out In The Kitchen and Tim Spector’s new cookbook Good Mood Food.

Caitlin Moran tries to seek out the goodness in every day in her new book How To Be Hopeful, while (perhaps less hopefully) Anthony Scaramucci explores US politics in All The Wrong Moves. And bestselling author Victoria Hislop will be dedicating copies of her new novel, The Wine-Dark Sea.

Then there are authors whose dedicated online fanbase lap up their reels — and now, hopefully, their books. From self-styled ‘wine-wanker’ Tom Gilbey (Thirsty is out in paperback in September) to satirist Cody Dahler (The State of This! A Thicky Thicky Dumb Dumb’s Guide to British Politics) and the extraordinary Maclean brothers, who rowed the Pacific non-stop and unsupported (Three Brothers In A Boat), we’ve got you covered.

Step into the world of rituals and folklore in a seasonal guide from Serena Hawley-Plows (The Ancient Ways) or marvel as Dr Tom Crawford (How Many Pikachus Would It Take To Power A Lightbulb?) takes real world maths and applies it to fantasy universes from The Lord of the Rings to Star Wars.

Sky’s Economics Editor Ed Conway will be signing copies of his latest, Trade World, and Michael Cragg writes about all things Kylie in Can’t Get You Out Of My Head. And you can heal heartbreak with Ana Sampson’s poetry anthology You Can Do It With A Broken Heart.

We’ve got children covered, too. Jacqueline Wilson will personalise copies of her latest, Esme Pepper; Chloe Dalton will sign a children’s version of her hugely successful Raising Hare, with beautiful illustrations by Denise Nestor. And Balham-based debut kids author Steve Blackman is on hand to dedicate copies of his thrilling adventure featuring a group of young hackers, Zero Override.

Whatever you pick, a signed and personalised book makes for an extra special gift. When I left Backstory (albeit briefly) last summer, Tom and the team arranged for my favourite author, Curtis Sittenfeld, to sign and dedicate a copy of each of her books for me. It was great.

Scroll on for a reminder of our upcoming events. But for now — happy browsing!

Denise

A reminder that we’re making it very easy to pick your perfect holiday reads this summer. You can choose from 500,000 books on our website, for next-day delivery in the UK or click-and-collect from the bookshop.

And to make things even easier, why not browse our summer reads catalogue, with 48 books read and vouched for by our booksellers?

• 28th July, 7.30pm Antonia Hodgson, The Raven Scholar The author of The Raven Scholar will be delving into the world of epic fantasy novels in conversation with her fellow author Georgia Summers (The Bookshop Below, City of Stardust)

• 10th August, 2.15pm Jacqueline Wilson book signing The beloved children’s author will join us to sign copies of her latest book, Esme Pepper. Spots must be reserved in advance (no need to book a ticket for parents/guardians or siblings.)

• 1st September, 7.30pm Patrick Ryan, Buckeye This one was our Novel of the Year for 2025. We’re thrilled that Patrick is joining Darby, our bookshop manager, on paperback publication day.

• 2nd September, 7.30pm Cathy Rentzenbrink, The Agatha Christie Cure Finding herself feeling drained, novelist Cathy Rentzenbrink turns to Christie’s books for comfort and escape.

• 7th September, 7.30pm Jonn Elledge, 31 Inventions That Built Our World We’re thrilled to be joined once again by friend of Backstory Jonn Elledge, the bestselling author of A History of the World In 47 Borders, who has turned his trademark intelligence and wit to charting the most crucial inventions.

• 9th September, 7.30pm Hallie Rubenhold, Story of a Murder: The Wives, The Mistress and Dr Crippen The historian and bestselling author of The Five discusses the women in Dr Crippen’s story.

• 15th September, 7.30pm James Marriott, The New Dark Ages: The End of Reading and the Dawn of a Post-Literate Society We very much hope not! But can’t wait to chew over this meaty subject with the Times columnist and reviewer.

• 16th September, 7.30pm Frank Gardner, Ballistic The BBC’s Security Correspondent talks about his latest spy thriller, Ballistic, set in the Arctic.

• 22nd September, 7.30pm Joey D’Urso, More Than A Shirt: How Football Shirts Explain Global Politics, Money and Power The Tim Marshall of sports chews through what he reckons 20 shirts can tell you about geopolitics, in conversation with Patrick Maguire of The Times.

• 23rd September, 7.30pm Victoria Hislop, The Wine-Dark Sea The bestselling author of The Island and The Figurine joins us to discuss her latest.

• 30th September, 7.30pm Michael Cragg, Can’t Get You Out Of My Head: In Search of Kylie The music journalist chats all things Kylie Minogue with journalist and podcaster Miranda Sawyer

• 17th October, 11am Robert Harris book signing The bestselling thriller writer will be signing copies of his latest, Agrippa

• 25th October, 2.30pm Caitlin Moran book signing The journalist and writer will sign copies of How To Be Hopeful, her examination of whether it is possible to stay in the same house, in the same neighbourhood, but feel better about the frantic modern world by making better days.