A well-known independent bookshop in Bengaluru has lost thousands of books after heavy rainfall caused severe flooding on Wednesday, with water submerging much of the store's stock. The Bookworm, situated on Church Street, shared photographs on Instagram showing books floating in floodwater inside the shop. The images also showed hailstones covering the ground outside the premises. The store said between 4,000 and 5,000 books had been lost in the flooding.
The timing made the situation worse. Proprietor Krishna told the Deccan Herald that the shop had recently taken in extra stock ahead of the summer holidays, a traditionally busy period for the business. Much of that new stock was among the books damaged.
Krishna said the store would attempt to salvage some books by drying them in sunlight and selling them at a reduced price. However, a significant number are too badly damaged to be saved and will have to be discarded. He noted that modern publishing practices have contributed to the scale of the loss. Many publishers now use recycled paper, he said, which tends to be of poorer quality and offers little resistance to water damage. Certain titles, including illustrated comics such as Asterix and Obelix, which are printed on oil-based paper, had no chance of survival at all.
The photographs prompted an outpouring of sympathy on social media, with many followers expressing sadness and offering support. Several urged the reading community to help by purchasing damaged books from the store. One commenter drew a parallel with flooding that affected Kolkata's famous College Street booksellers last year, when a public event called a Wet Book Fair was organised, drawing large crowds who came to buy flood-damaged stock in a show of solidarity. Others offered to buy soiled books regardless of their condition, saying they were happy to contribute to the recovery of a shop that serves thousands of readers.
