Bookstore Guide: Panton's English Bookshop, Milan

Where? Milan, Italy

Recommended by: John Murphy

John said: "Apart from The US Bookstore, there is also Peter Panton's English Bookshop in via Mascheroni, 12 - 20145 Milano. It is well-stocked so it is a great place to browse. However, even if you can't make it to Milan, or to the shop, you can order on-line through Panton's website, which contains an internal search engine which allows you to search for books by author or by title."

Panton's English Bookshop (often referred to simply as 'The English Bookshop'), founded in 1979, is the oldest exclusively English bookstore in Milan. Its founder, Peter Panton, is a well known propagator of English language in Italy, active in several other fields besides bookselling, such as journalism or publishing and writing language books and materials. His bookstore has become a widely known spot for the locals who prefer to read the English original instead of waiting for the Italian translation, as well as for numerous expats and tourists.

The Panton's English Bookshop can be found in the center of the city at the corner of Via Ariosto and Via Mascheroni (entrance from Via Ariosto). It spreads over two floors which hold a very impressive stock of approximately thirty thousand titles. The offer of this bookstore covers a wide range of topics since its owner is very keen on giving the customers as complete a selection as possible in the available space. The underground floor is where you can find the children's section, a vast selection of titles on theater and cinema or rare first editions and antiquarian books. General fiction takes most of the space of the other floor, where you can find anything from paperback editions of the current bestsellers, to novels by lesser known authors which may surprise you in a positive way. Besides fiction, there are also separate sections dedicated to non-fiction categories such as visual arts, history, social sciences and even cooking or biographies.

The pricing system used in this bookstore is one of its specific features, appreciated by all the customers, as you can often find titles offered for lower prices than in the UK. It's also possible to order your books online and receive them by mail or come and pick them up at the bookstore. The store's website gives you the possibility to listen to an online English radio station, the tunes of which will also accompany you at the bookstore. If you wish to see more and you can't visit the bookstore personally at the moment, check out this short video.