Educational Bookshop

The Educational Bookshop opened in Jerusalem in 1984, through what its owners call a simple twist of fate. It has grown into a bookstore focused on Middle Eastern culture and the Arab-Israeli conflict. Its two shops face each other on Salah Eddin Street in East Jerusalem. Books & Coffee at number 19 is the flagship, three floors that also house the first Segafredo cafe in Jerusalem. The Stationer at number 22 handles paper goods and office supplies. The book stock is largely research-based work from established institutions and publishers worldwide, alongside Arabic literature. Guidebooks and dictionaries sit with Arabic teaching books. Maps and local and foreign magazines sit with the stationery, along with newspapers and a selection of DVDs and music. The shop offers photocopying and laminating as well as binding and a delivery service. Book launches and talks run through the year, as do film screenings and other cultural events, announced by a mailing list. The shop quotes writer Leyla Zuaiter on the resilience and generosity Palestinians carry from one era to the next, with an endless supply of stories that never make it into print. It calls that the real story of the Educational Bookshop. Titles on the front table range from Palestinian food to the history of Jerusalem's holy sites.