Books on the Rise

19/08/2026

Not read any books by French literary icon George Sand yet? This is a great summer read set in Venice and the islands thereabouts…

BLOG TOUR ANNOUNCEMENT!

We’re delighted to announce the blog tour for The Uskok by George Sand, in collaboration with .

From 18th–26th August, this fascinating book will be making its way across bookstagram, with lots of wonderful reviewers sharing their thoughts and reviews.

Keep an eye out for the tour stops and discover more about The Uskok.

Thank you to everyone taking part in the tour!

19/08/2026

More than 200 independent booksellers have called on the government to give small bookshops the same business rates relief as pubs as part of prime minister Andy Burnham’s plans to rid the high street of “vape shops, betting shops and rogue operators” and offer the “community spaces that people are crying out for” 👇

19/08/2026

Let us order in your special must read book or vinyl play.

19/08/2026

Buy this book in store now.

Aurora Metro is thrilled to launch the blog tour for Encounters with Marilyn Monroe, in partnership with . From the 6th–19th August, this captivating book will be touring bookstagram as reviewers share their thoughts and views.

Keep an eye on the tour stops to read reviews and learn more about Encounters with Marilyn Monroe: Celebrating 100 Years — a rich collection of essays, interviews, personal reflections, poems, photographs, and Monroe’s own words, introduced by Lucy Bolton. It’s a thoughtful, celebratory, and moving portrait of Marilyn as star, symbol, and enduring cultural force.

Thank you to everyone taking part in the tour!

18/08/2026

11/08/2026

Join us at Books on the Rise on August 30th at 3pm for a rare chance to see this Offie-award-winning play

CAN FIVE YOUNG WOMEN KEEP THEIR DREAMS ALIVE?
OR WILL EVERYTHING TURN TO ASHES?
1911. New York City is flooded with immigrants from all over Europe hoping for a new life. The Triangle Shirtwaist factory is one of the most coveted places to work. Some say that in America the streets are paved with gold, full of wealth and opportunities, but is this true for five young factory workers?

Based on a true event, taking place over the course of one Saturday in March, Paved with Gold and Ashes explores what it means to be a woman and an immigrant, each young woman daydreaming about the life she wishes to live once her promise of the American dream has been fulfilled. But battling poverty, capitalism, and unfair working conditions, their dreams may just turn to ashes.

CAST
Bridget Ochocka as Lucia
Hope Taylor Marsh as Rosaria
Jules Coyle as Ida
Eliza Harrison as Annie
Charlotte Scobie as Rose

Author Julia Thurston is a Canadian-born American actor and award-winning playwright. She is based in London, England on the Global Talent Visa.
Raised in New York City, she got her start as both an actor and a writer by creating and performing original work with the MCC Youth Company. She is a 2018 graduate of the BA (Hons.) Acting program at the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA) and is a 2022 graduate with a 1st-class MA in Acting from the Guildford School of Acting.

Director Maisie Johnson graduated from the University of Cambridge with a BA Hons in English Literature. Her early exposure to theatre began at Corpus Christi College Chapel, Cambridge, where she directed her first play, Twelfth Night, and later received critical praise for her adaptation of The Duchess of Malfi. She has since directed an international tour of Macbeth and is working as a theatre director and intimacy coordinator in London.

The play is performed in association with the free exhibition How We Lost America currently showing in the bookstore, created by Aurora Metro Arts and Media and financially supported by Heritage Lottery Fund.

Tickets can be purchased through the link in bio

06/08/2026

Join us this Saturday at 7 for a wonderful evening of performances from The Basement Door’s young solo artists!

Link to booking can be found through our bio

04/08/2026

Dive into a thought-provoking FREE exhibition that unpacks the story behind the creation of America called
‘How We Lost America’.

To mark the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, How We Lost America comes to Books on the Rise from Benjamin Franklin House.

This new exhibition explores the dawn of American Independence through a British lens. Drawing on contemporary satire, newspapers, pamphlets and little-known letters, it reveals how the American Revolutionary War was experienced on both sides of the Atlantic and examines the lasting impact of the revolutionary ideals of liberty and equality.

Alongside familiar historical figures, the exhibition uncovers lesser-known stories that challenge traditional narratives of the Revolution, including female revolutionaries, enslaved soldiers who fought for their freedom, and the dramatic arson attack on Portsmouth Harbour that brought the conflict directly to British shores.

By exploring these hidden histories, “How We Lost America” considers how revolutionary ideas transformed the modern world, established democratic precedents, and continue to shape political debate today.

Running until Sep 21st.

19/07/2026

For more about Lady Phyl read ‘50 LGbTQI+ who changed the world’ by Florent Manelli.

is a pioneering activist, and a co-founder and CEO of UK Black Pride ✨

Today’s is a photograph of Lady Phyll taken by Jesse Navarre Vos. UK Black Pride is an organisation which celebrates LGBTQ+ people of African, Asian, Caribbean, Middle Eastern and Latin American descent. The idea for it started during an organised coach trip for Black Le****ns UK to Southend on Sea, and has since taken off, creating huge events for thousands across the UK.

📸 Lady Phyll by Jesse Navarre Vos, 2025. Commissioned as part of the Taylor Wessing Photographic Commission Prize, 2024, 2025 © Jesse Navarre Vos