The King’s English Bookshop

The Kings English is one of my favorite places in all of salt lake. It is a charming local book shop with the friendliest and most helpful staff. The staff actually reads and can make personalized recommendations. They have so many events here and authors come to do book signings and readings. Every Friday at 11 we take our daughter to story time with Linda and she just loves it and it’s FREE!!!

This indy bookstore has many author book readings and signings – mostly local authors! Sometimes they host discussions in their store. Or next door at the art gallery. Or at libraries. They have a good newsletter, email notification system, and newspaper calendaring. They offer customer rewards for frequent buyers. Their children’s section is charming. The employees are usually very helpful. Parking and personal space are at a premium during big events, so plan accordingly.

Great bookstore full of charm and heart. The booksellers are all friendly and love to help out customers. Hosts many author readings and also a children’s story time as well. It is cozy and a great place to sit down with your favorite book for a couple hours, or stop in on your way to the local art gallery. They offer a wide selection of books and if they don’t have what you are looking for, they will happily order it for you and almost all books I have ordered arrived in 1 – 2 days. Buy local!

I have lived many literary places – New York, Madison, etc – but this is my favorite bookstore o have ever been in. It is not huge, but that is to its advantage; it targets excellent books without making u slog through twilight, etc. they have great author events as well: local authors and then bigger writers on book tour. But most of all it is the feeling of the space and the staff, who are so knowledgeable, that make this place so great. It is so great, u should check it out!

My favorite little bookshop in Salt Lake City! Every time I go into the city, I must visit here. A little house renovated as a bookshop, it’s comfy, cozy and has the best selection in SLC (in my opinion.) The shop is a lot of fun to explore with little couches, chairs and seating areas strewn about for when you get distracted by a good book. They also have fun bookish accessories like postcards, stationary and other trinkets. Really nice booksellers work there and there is a frequent buyer program that will earn you money off your purchases if you’re a regular. They also have pretty darn good taste in books! The recommendations by those who work there haven’t disappointed me yet :)

I’m a fan of small bookshops like this one. So I’ll admit to being a bit biased. They carry a unique and peculiar smell that brings back the nostalgia of my childhood.
The King’s English was, I’m ashamed to say, a bookshop I stumbled upon completely by accident. I discovered them due to their achievement of bringing Chuck Palahniuk (my favorite author) here to Salt Lake City.
My daughter and I went to buy the tickets for the Chuck Palahniuk event there and spent about an hour just perusing the books in their children’s section. We had so much fun reading some of the stories there but it’s more than that. They give off a pleasant feeling of peace, the kind you’d expect from a bookstore — almost a reverence toward reading, if you will.
If I were to say something negative it would be that their staff give terrible directions. When I asked how to get to the location of their event, the young lady helping me seemed almost as unfamiliar with the University of Utah’s layout as I was.
All in all, however, the staff were kind and courteous, the selection of books is excellent for such a small store, and the location is absolutely charming.

Went there this weekend. It was a great experience. Had the obscure book I was looking for in a charming atmosphere. Staff was responsive and helpful. One of the best bookstores I have been to anywhere.

Great shop that has a nice selection of books. Hard to find these days. Enjoy the cozy feel of the shop. Make it a regular when you’re in the area. There is something there f or everyone

One of my favorite places in Salt Lake. It’s the perfect place to go on a rainy day and wander around. It is quite small and doesn’t have the largest selection, but the staff is super friendly and I’ve ordered books with them. They normally ship really quickly and cost the same or less as other big bookstore chains.
Definitely stop in and check it out, even if you don’t buy anything. They also do the occasional book signing, which can be pretty neat.

Great, knowledgeable staff, good selection, and they hold wonderful events for the community with local and national authors. Don’t expect discount prices, but if you are looking for a book and can only give a vague description of it, they will know, nine times out of ten, what you’re looking for. You can also special order autographed copies, which make great gifts!

I must first say the staff was a dream… so friendly and delightful… One staff member was originally from our neck of the woods in the bay area… She was so interesting to speak with. Additionally, her co-​worker was just as fantastic in that she gave us a tour of the store and showed us the various selections that the store had to offer.
I am no bookstore connoisseur but I know when a place feels friendly and inviting and this place was just so cozy and warm. In my opinion, they had a good selection of books so much so that my son found a book that he just loves. It’s not Powell’s in Portland, but hey, I don’t think they are trying to compete with such a large store or on that level… It’s located in what appears to be a well to do neighborhood, therefore I think the prices reflect as such. If you are a veracious reader than paying full price for books may not be for you. but IF you are just passing through town and need one for the road, then to me. this place is a must see… It’s also located near a couple cute restaurants…
IF I ever return to SLC. I will definitely return to this bookstore and neighborhood.
My son and I just had a really great experience.

I love The King’s English. All the employees are helpful and love to read almost as much as I do and are always willing to help me find something new to read. The fact that they are independent is just an added bonus.

Thanks to the Shop Local Pledge I decided to try out King’s English instead of the slightly closer chain bookstore. I have to say that I was far from disappointed. Before I even went in, I called to make sure they had what I was looking for. They found it quickly had had it ready for me at the desk when I walked in the door. And the best part is that the prices were the same or lower than the chain bookstore.
From the first moment I walked in the door I was greeted with friendly faces ready to help me with all my reading needs. The whole bookstore has a friendly, cozy feeling with several places to sit and get started reading that next big book. As I was walking through I kept finding groups of people excitedly talking about great books they were reading and what was up and coming.
Before I left I made sure that I asked one of the employees what books they had been reading and what they would recommend. I got some amazing book recommendations that I had not heard anything about yet. So excited to go back and get more recommendations.

Great, local bookshop! This place has a lot of charm. Be prepared to be groped as other customers try to get around you, though (tight space)! The book selection is decent for the amount of square footage this «house» has. They attract a lot of great authors to come for book readings/​signings. You can tell the staff are in the book business and seem quite knowledgeable. The only reason why I did not give them 5 stars is because of the staff actually. I’ve found them to be hit or miss as far as their customer service/​friendliness skills go. Some booksellers are better than others. Overall, though, it’s a nice shop.

I don’t like reading. This place makes me want to read.

This is by far my favorite bookstore. The atmosphere is cozy and great. I love the various rooms and the different feel for each genre area.
The staff is super friendly and helpful, not to mention very knowledgeable and passionate.
They have a great selection of small press and local authors as well as your standard fair. They also have great recommendations for excellent reading you might not know about otherwise. Furthermore, they host great author and book events every single week.
Parking can sometimes be problematic if there are events going on, so plan to come early.
The pricing is a bit higher than your chain stores, but that’s to be expected at a small independent bookstore. I still purchase from the chains just because it allows me to get more books for the money, but for the experience, King’s English can’t be beat.
I am always one to recommend King’s English to anybody in the area. The first time you go, it may be a little tricky to find (it’s tucked up in a residential area), but once you’ve gone once, you’ll want to go back. :)

Quaint but nice bookshop located in Salt Lake City. Despite its small size the King’s English Bookshop has a good selection of quality books. They also boast frequent readings by noted authors. They are the epitome of the neighborhood bookstore.

As good as it gets, and one of the last of its breed. I worked here once upon a time, long before The Paris or Mazza existed. I worked here when Agatha, the venerable cat who became my life model for shunning annoying people, roamed the stacks. From the inside, I know the depth of caring these folks have for books. Betsy has kept the independent fire burning despite the deluge of Dan Brown-​Sarah Palin-Amazon.BarnesIgNoble-Mart soullessness.
A reviewer below complained about paying $ 14 for Steinbeck. Welcome to the dumbening, when we’ll pay $ 14 for coffee at the Starbucks next door but will drive to Costco to buy books artificially priced according to the theory of language-​in-​bulk (there are two ironies and a mouthful of jokes in there somewhere).
Steinbeck … in deliciously tangible print … found on a shelf in a place with character and history … staffed by people who will enlighten you with serious knowledge about all manner of books from the old to the contemporary to the children’s … is worth the coin.
Plus, they sponsor great events and double as a wine-​in-​hand waiting area for a lovely Italian restaurant. Just don’t ask the male clerk to do your gift wrapping (which, as a matter of course, TKE does gleefully); I was that boy once, and lord help me I sucked.

Yes, I love independent bookstores and believe in supporting them. And, this one sure is cute and friendly, but it’s nothing but list prices as far as the eye can see. Which isn’t far due to all the nooks and crannies and twists and turns of this teensy shop. If it were my neighborhood bookshop, I would be happy to give them my business regularly, but when I’m just passing through, I can’t justify paying full price. Their fiction section has most of the usual suspects, so you will probably find what you are looking for. But $ 14 for a slim Penguin paperback John Steinbeck? Not going to happen.
I found their history section to be anemic, but they have a whole attached storefront for children’s books. Also, they were highlighting some New York Review of Books editions in a special display, and I love that collection. Too bad that they didn’t have the Simenon for which I’ve been looking. It’s next-​door to Mazza, which seems great, except that they are both out in the boonies of Salt Lake City.
On the upside, I’m still a little bit in love with the adorable brunette, Harvard-​tshirted clerk who asked me if I was finding everything okay. If anyone knows her, tell her that I’m sorry for responding in babbles and grunts, but it’s really her fault after all.

I’m sure this is a very lovely neighborhood bookstore, but like many such bookstores it is kind of small. They do have book-​clubs, a good selection of favored new fiction, and so on, but it will neither fulfill your craving for a well-​stocked chain bookstore nor for, say, Chicago’s Seminary Co-​Op.
If I lived within walking distance, I might find myself strolling through here frequently.