The Thousands

Amidst Little Italy’s grinding espressos, warm trattorias and Soprano-style suits, lies the quiet pages of Shearer’s Bookshop. It would seem like your av-er-age purveyor of fine paperbacks, with a languid mix of the latest release fiction and DIY guiding you through the kitchen to the computer, but like all good Italians, Shearer’s has a few cards up its sleeve.

The in-store coffee shop with its short macchiato and strong cappuccino (no ‘mac’ or ‘cap’) takes the bucket-sized bathwater out of bookstore-come-coffee-shop browsing. Wireless internet allows you to "work from home" next to the comforting whir of a peculator. And when stuck for inspiration, the Palace Verona cinema is just one floor up – you don’t even need to go outside. So next time Sydney decides to squall itself, we know where we’re headed.