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A picture book set in Brixton’s Brockwell Park has proven to be a big hit at local indie bookshop Herne Hill Books, which is selling a copy of the title every week.
Park Life, by author Emmanuelle Smith and illustrator Cally Lathey, is aimed at children aged 2-7 and is about the people who use Brockwell Park, from children and parents to dog walkers and teenager lovers.
Herne Hill Books, which borders the park, is selling between one and 10 copies of the book every week and has so far sold nearly 100 in total, according to bookseller Barnaby Richards.
He said the shop has not promoted the book apart from putting it in the window, attracting attention from visitors to Brockwell’s park and lido.
The book is published by Fisherton Press, a small, independent operation based in London.
Ellie Levenson, who set up the publisher, said Park Life was a “love letter to the park”.
“Parks are used by all kinds of people for all kinds of reasons and are one of our greatest resources,” she said. “The illustrations clearly show the London and Brixton skyline, including the iconic buildings of the park’s lido, and show how parks are respite from urban jungle that surrounds them.”
The book was published in January this year and is priced £7.99.