After collecting thousands of titles, woman fulfills her dream of opening a bookstore

Ten years ago, Carole-Ann Warburton quit her job in order to fulfill her dream of opening a bookstore — and she hasn't looked back.

Her shop in Somerset, England, called The Book Rest, is now celebrating a decade in business. Warburton took the leap after becoming ill in 2010 and having to learn how to walk again. Her daughter suggested she retire from her desk job and move into a new home. One of the places that Warburton saw for sale was an old store with an apartment on top. It had been available for years and "was a godawful place," she told The Guardian, but Warburton "fell in love with it" anyway.

She immediately put in her notice at work, and just 12 weeks later and right before Warburton's 65th birthday, The Book Rest was open. She's always loved to read, and over the years amassed quite a collection of books — about 9,000, which now line her store's shelves. At first, Warburton told The Guardian, it was hard to let go of her beloved books, but her motto now is, "Let someone else learn from it. It's a growing up, if you like, an acceptance."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

The shop doesn't make or lose any money, but Warburton has found a few things are priceless — the friendships she's made, being able to spend all day surrounded by books, and hearing from customers who say they found exactly what they were looking for.