Opening hours Come in and browse! Your favourite BOOKSHOP New & used Browse collection Your favourite BOOKSHOP New & used Browse collection browse collection Come in and browse!

Welcome

Welcome to the Mayflower Bookshop, the only completely international bookshop in Leiden! Situated in the historical centre, you’ll find our bookshop at Breestraat 70.

Feel free to come in and browse our collection of both second-hand and new books and purchase our bargains, such as 3 = 2 (buy 3, pay 2), Top 50 and our special deals, and don’t hesitate to ask us for help and advice. We’re open 7 days a week!

Our second shop opened in November 2021 in The Hague. You’ll find our shop there at Lange Poten 35.

Starting from November 2022, the Dutch-language collection of Mayflower Bookshop can be found at Meibloem Boeken on Breestraat 72, which is located next to Mayflower Bookshop.

Hope to see you soon,

Team Mayflower Bookshop

Coming up: September 24th: Magnificent, scandalous, magnificently scandalous!

On Sunday September 24th, Coco Hoek will give the fourth lecture in Mayflower Bookshop’s Great Books series, featuring the famous novel Les Liaisons Dangereuses (In Dutch: Gevaarlijk spel met de […]

Looking Back (with videos): Pink Books

On the evening of Friday, September 1st, the Pride event ‘Pink Books’ took place at Mayflower Bookshop, featuring the renowned guest speaker Splinter Chabot. Chabot was interviewed by Mayflower Bookshop’s […]

Looking back (with video): The Government Inspector

For the third event in Mayflower Bookshop’s series Great Books, people flocked to hear Louis Smit’s fascinating lecture on the Russian author Nicolai Gogol and on his play The Government […]

Announcing Participants: Exploring LGBTQ+ Literature at the “Pink Books” Event

Mayflower Bookshop proudly reveals the names of the distinguished participants who will be joining us for the “Pink Books” event: Freek Bouricius, interviewer (Mayflower Bookshop)Splinter Chabot (author and television producer)Felix […]

Coming up: September 1st: ‘Pink Books’ with Splinter Chabot (in Dutch)

You are cordially invited to join us on Friday September 1st at 8:00 PM at Mayflower Bookshop, Breestraat 70, for an extraordinary Mayflower Special: “Pink Books,” marking the essence of […]

Coming up: August 27th: Hypocrisy and corruption unmasked

On Sunday August 27th, Mayflower Bookshop’s Great Books series will feature Nikolai Gogol’s play ‘The Government Inspector’ (In Dutch: De Revisor) as the third lecture in this series. Gogol (1809-1852), […]

Looking back: Moby Dick

On the sweltering afternoon of Sunday June 25, people flocked to Mayflower Bookshop, looking for the treat of an enlightening literary lecture in the soothing environment of a cool bookshop, […]

Coming up: ‘Call me Ishmael’: A Universal Epic

On June 25, Mayflower Bookshop presents the second lecture in the Great Books series: Herman Melville’s stylistic masterpiece Moby Dick, or, The Whale (1851). Guest-lecturer, anglicist and literary scholar Wim […]

Looking back: Dante’s La Divina Commedia

Despite the beckoning sun, people flocked this Whit Sunday to Mayflower Bookshop, where poet and performer Leo van Zanen gave the first lecture in the ‘Great Books’ series. Starting by […]

Coming up: May 28th: GREAT BOOKS – La Divina Commedia

Mayflower Bookshop presents a series of lectures on international masterpieces: GREAT BOOKS. Poet and performer Leo van Zanen kicks off this series on Sunday May 28th with his lecture “DOOR […]

Looking back – Shakespeare Festival

On April 23rd, Mayflower Bookshop commemorated 400 years since the first Folio was published, as well as the Bard’s death and (probable) birthday. The first Folio, the first time all […]

April 23rd: Mayflower Shakespeare Festival

2023 marks the fourth centennial of the publication of the ‘First Folio’, which was published in 1623, seven years after the death of William Shakespeare. This collection of 36 of […]

Looking back: The unruly world Winnie-the-Pooh

On a sunlit International Children’s Book Day, April 2, Mayflower Bookshop marked this special day with an event about the world and language of Winnie-the-Pooh and his friends, created by […]

Coming up: Sunday April 2nd – International Children’s Book Day: Winnie-the-Pooh

To celebrate International Children’s Book Day, Mayflower Bookshop organises a lecture on the famous Winnie-the-Pooh, hero of the books by A.A. Milne. Who hasn’t grown up with Winnie-the-Pooh and his […]

LOOKING BACK – MAXIM OSIPOV

On Sunday March 19, Mayflower Bookshop marked the Dutch Book Week with an interview with Maxim Osipov, Russian refugee, author and publisher. Osipov was interviewed by Mayflower’s Freek Bouricius in […]

Coming up: Sunday March 12th – Maxim Osipov in Mayflower Bookshop

To celebrate Bookweek 2023 (March 11 – 19) Mayflower Bookshop is proud to welcome Maxim Osipov on Sunday March 12 for an interview on his recently published book Kilometer 101, […]

Looking Back: Burns Night

Poetry Week in Leiden was given an international twist on February 29 with a tribute to Scottish poetry by Scottish Leiden resident Adrian Young. In full regalia with kilt, Young […]

Coming up: Burns’ Night in Poetry Week 2023

Sunday January 29th, 16h00 – Breestraat 70 Traditionally, Dutch Poetry Week is celebrated in Mayflower Bookshop with a poetry event on the last Sunday of January. This year, Mayflower Bookshop […]

Looking back: Dinner for one

After two years of COVID, Mayflower Bookshop reinitiated its tradition of performing  the comedy sketch ‘Dinner for One’ on Sunday December 18. Amidst the books in the treasury of Mayflower […]

Christmas classics at Mayflower Bookshop: ‘Dinner for One’ and ‘A Christmas Carol’

Finally, we can resume our Christmas traditions of ‘Dinner for One’ and ‘A Christmas Carol’! Dinner for One, a classic on German television for over 40 years (but less well […]

COMING UP:  Mayflower Masterclass: Madness in Literature*

On November 27th, Mayflower Bookshop presents a pilot: Mayflower Masterclass, a new format, in which an expert in a specific field leads the discussion on a theme in literature. Attendants […]

Looking back: Skinner in Noordwijk

Following a short interview, in which he explained how he became a dedicated bookhistorian, and talked about his interest in the printing press as a means of influencing politics, Anglo-Dutch relations […]

Looking back: ‘Now’s the Day and now’s the hour’ (Robert Burns)

Despite the rain, the Scots event taking place this afternoon was well frequented; a great many people came along who were very much interested in Scotland and its literature, culture, […]

September 18, 16h00: The Invention of Scotland – Scottish literature in a nutshell

Orignally hailing from Scotland himself, avid St Pieter’s Church guide and devoted Commissioner of the Leiden 3 October Vereeniging Adrian Young will give a talk (in Dutch) on Scots literature. […]

Looking back: ‘You know my methods, Watson’ – Sherlock Holmes event

Fictional detective Sherlock Holmes is one of the most popular detectives in the history of the English detective story. But just how popular, was shown on Sunday August 28th, 135 […]

August 28th 16h00: ‘You know my methods, Watson’ – Sherlock Holmes and the history of the British detective novel

On 28 August, Wim Tigges PhD, will give a lecture on Sherlock Holmes, legendary character from the history of the British detective, and on his creator, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. […]

Looking back: Nhã Thuyên’s rolling rivers of words

Nhã Thuyên, our guest on Sunday June 26th, is this year’s Poet-in-Residence at Poetry International, the Rotterdam-based poetry festival, one of the largest in Europe. During the interview at Mayflower […]

June 26th: Mayflower special – Writing from Viet Nam

Visiting poet: Nhã Thuyên  We are very happy to welcome to Mayflower Bookshop Vietnamese poet Nhã Thuyên, this year’s Poet in Residence at the 52nd edition of Poetry International (June […]

Looking back: Shakespeare

Picking up on her tradition of annually commemorating the passing (and probable date of birth) of William Shakespeare (also known as The Bard or the Swan of Avon) on April […]

April 24th: Annual Mayflower Bookshop Shakespeare Event

Op 24 april a.s. hervat Mayflower Bookshop haar jaarlijkse herdenking van de grootste Engelse dichter aller tijden, William Shakespeare, ook wel bekend als The Bard.Ter nagedachtenis aan zijn sterfdag op […]

Looking back: First love in poetry at Mayflower Bookshop

On a sunlit Easter Monday, Mayflower concluded the Boekenweek 2022 with a book presentation by Leo van Zanen on his volume of verse ‘De Bezoeker’ (the visitor), published in 2021 […]

Opening hours Easter Sunday and Easter Monday

On Easter Sunday and Easter Monday our shops are open from 13-17h.

Looking back: First love at Mayflower Bookshop

The ‘Boekenweek’ theme ‘First love’ was amply covered during the first activity of this week at Mayflower Bookshop. Wim Tigges’ talk on his book ‘Hartstocht achter de horren’ (passion behind […]

Mayflower Special: Boekenweek 2022

In the context of the Dutch Boekenweek (which actually lasts 10 days!), Mayflower Bookshop organizes two special Dutch events, relating to the theme of this week: Homage to first love! […]

Looking back: St. Patrick’s Day Event

To the sweet-voiced sounds of folk band Fiddle ’n Drum, Mayflower Bookshop’s new location, Mayflower XTRA, slowly filled up for our St. Patrick’s Day Event. The band, consisting of Martijn […]

March 20th: St. Patrick’s Day Celebration

an Irish afternoon at Mayflower Bookshop Lecture by dr. Wim Tigges Live music by ‘Fiddle ‘n Drum’ Don’t miss our celebration of St. Patrick’s Day with a talk by dr. […]

NEW: Mayflower Bookshop XTRA!

You find our XTRA shop right next to your familiar Mayflower Bookshop in Leiden, on the opposite side of the Catharinasteeg, in the venue formerly known as LVC. In this […]

Open again from January 15th!

We open our shops by January 15th. Welcome!

Open for click&collect

Mayflower Bookshop opened this week for click&collect every day 1200 -1700, so you can buy your presents in time for Xmas!

Sherlock Holmes event canceled

Due to the fact that once more we need preserve 1,5 metres distance at events, we have had to cancel our Sherlock Holmes event on November 28th. We are working […]

New Mayflower Bookshop in The Hague

Today, Mayflower Bookshop opened a new shop in The Hague! You find our shop at Lange Poten 35. Feel free to come in and browse our collection of both second-hand […]

We moved to Breestraat 70

Mayflower Bookshop celebrates move with historic lecture and skit

On 1 November 2021 Mayflower Bookshop will move from its current location at Breestraat 142 to a new venue: Breestraat 70 (corner Catharinasteeg). To add lustre to the move, Mayflower […]

50% discount on all books (Breestraat 142)

NOW: 50% discount on all books in our pre-move sale at Breestraat 142! Only 14 days to go to our move to Breestraat 70!

Looking back – Aug. 29: Shirley Valentine

A wonderful start of a new Mayflower Bookshop event season, in the new location! Played by our own Freek Bouricius under the direction of Sigrid de Zwart, Shirley Valentine is […]

Mayflower Bookshop moves to Breestraat 70

Mayflower Bookshop moves to Breestraat 70 After five years, it is time for a new chapter in the Mayflower Bookshop-adventure! On October 31st, we are leaving our premises at Breestraat […]

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