Goldfinch Books

Goldfinch Books opened on Alton's High Street on 1 November 2022, started by self-published author Gary Clark with his wife Judith and her sister Andrea Sleney. New titles share shelf space with a bar pouring craft beer, wine and coffee, including keg lines from Hampshire brewers Siren and Triple fFF, so a browse for a book can turn into an evening drink without changing seats. The shop runs a full events calendar: poetry evenings, live acoustic sessions branded Bookshelf Sessions, book clubs and a regular writing group. The owners joined the Booksellers Association's New Futures scheme, an education programme for people setting up new independent shops, before opening. It trades as a single High Street shop rather than a franchise, built around the idea that a bookshop can double as a meeting place.