A "Tornado" Sweeps Through Bangkok Bars: Hundreds of Books Rain Down from the Sky

Reported and photographed by You T-Ru / Thailand




▲What magical book display method is this? The books are “flying” everywhere.


▲This space, seemingly ravaged by various natural disasters like tornadoes, earthquakes, and tsunamis, has become a novel highlight in Bangkok over the past two months.

This space, which looks as if it has been swept by tornadoes, earthquakes, and tsunamis, has become a unique attraction in Bangkok over the past two months. In line with its book-filled decor, it is called “The Book Shop.” However, this “bookstore” doesn’t sell books — it offers a new spatial experience of environment and literature. Located on the first floor of a building in Bangkok’s Sukhumvit district, stepping into this “bookstore” feels like entering a magical realm. Amidst the scattered piles of books, you traverse reality and drift into a luxurious yet down-to-earth dream.


▲In keeping with its book-filled interior, it is named “The Book Shop.”

 
▲What appears to be a bookstore isn’t selling books, but rather a new spatial experience of environment and literature.


Founded out of a love for books, “The Book Shop” is a small bar that mainly serves light snacks and alcoholic beverages. Open for only two months, it has already attracted many locals to come specifically for photos, to admire the spectacle of this “book tornado.” As you enter “The Book Shop” through the front door, peering through the gaps in the floor-to-ceiling louvers, the books appear as if caught in a washing machine — a huge tangled mass of books frozen mid-air throughout the space. Once inside, bookshelves reminiscent of those from the Harry Potter films emerge before your eyes, installed across ceilings, walls, and seating areas. Dreamlike, distorted luxury designs pile up continuously, while half-open books descend from the sky, each delicately held by a thin thread.


▲Peering through the gaps in the floor-to-ceiling louvers, a giant tangled mass of books appears frozen in the middle of the space.


▲Bookshelves straight out of the Harry Potter movies come into view.


▲What appears to be a bookstore offers more than just reading.
 

Reflected through semi-mirrored walls, the entire “bookstore” feels wild and psychedelic. Order a cocktail, pair it with the shop’s signature basil-roasted mushrooms and crispy smoked salmon rolls, and let the jazzy tunes lull you into a deeper state of relaxation. In this one-of-a-kind “bookstore,” you’re less likely to find life lessons or academic insights within the pages of books — and more likely to lose yourself in a timeless, intoxicating dream you never want to wake up from.

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