I was walking by a chain bookstore in the local mall where I just relocated and I got hit with a ‘bookstore smell’ when I walked by it and it was just such a wonderful smell to me. It’s definitely a book smell, but not the same smell as you would smell in a used bookstore or a library. It’s the smell you only smell with new books.
Since it was just a quick hit as I walked by rather than me being distracted by the actual books, I realized how much I loved that smell, but I had never thought about it before. If I could make my home smell like that all the time, I absolutely would.
Now I’m only wondering if I love the smell because I love bookstores or if I love the smell independently of bookstores.
I’m actually the opposite. I love the smell of used bookstores/libraries and old books in general. That said, every bookstore I’ve been to that sells new books also has a coffee shop, so all I smell there is coffee and baked goods.
I think that’s part of why I noticed the smell too. Because the bookstore (Waterstones, a UK chain) didn’t have coffee inside it.
Very well could be. Now that I think about it, I can immediately imagine “old book” smell, but cannot think of what “new book” smell is. My only recollection is the year in middle school we got new textbooks, and the plastic covers had a weird chemical smell to them.
New book smell is a little plasticky and a little gluey. If it’s fresh enough maybe a little inky.