Bookstores may be everywhere (and this is a good thing), but Book Lion is not just a bookstore. It has become the third place. Something important between home and work. The place where you fill up intellectually, emotionally and aesthetically. The place where you feel you belong.

This year we have dreamed of working on the Art Books section. In fact, we wanted to present it during last year’s Book Arsenal as well, thus, as you can see, some things have remained unchanged…

So what do we plan to do in the Art Books section?

We will compile a range of editions not at the top level that we currently observe in the vast majority of bookstores. We plan to fuss a bit and introduce one-book publishing houses (that is what we call them among ourselves—the publishing houses that have published 1-2 books, but these are very important books in their category!), because we work with them anyway, no matter how difficult it is. We are constantly in search of the niche masterpieces that will surprise not only guests of Book Arsenal, but also our colleagues in the market.

Let us tell you about the Top Comics comic store. We have been working in Kyiv since 2019. Since the opening day, our main task has been the popularization of the Ukrainian language among readers of manga, comics and books. Therefore, we can proudly state that over these five years we have not sold a single printed word in Russian.

In addition, Top Comics is a large space that unites all publishers of geek literature, from major publishing houses to self-publishing. On our shelves, you can find author’s comics, world-famous comics and popular manga. Our sellers can always help choose what the reader will like the most. Due to this approach, we have received the Country’s Choice Award for 2 years in a row.

As for our stand at Book Arsenal, we want to completely recreate the appearance of a comic book store. On the shelves, visitors will be able to find large editions of art books, comics, books and manga, and on the tables— to look through comic magazines (just like in popular American series). Board games, collectible figurines, stickers and other items associated with geek culture will complement the appearance of the stand. The main advantage is that our customers will be able to find the rare and little-known editions which are definitely not available in other stores. We would like to draw attention to the fact that all our products are official, manufactured or licensed in Ukraine.

The Sens bookstore stand at the 12th Book Arsenal is about a dialog. A varied and so necessary dialog: between military servicemen/servicewomen and civilians, between those who have undergone different traumatic experiences of the war, between adults and children, representatives of various communities and professions, between authors, booksellers and publishers.

The war has made us more sensitive and vulnerable. This year, Sens helps visitors learn to communicate, encourages them to share experiences and find something in common, in particular, something literary.

Readeat is a chain of bookstores in Kyiv and an online book service. Here, people fall in love with books and bring their children to readings. They meet their favorite authors and recite their own poems during open mics. They drink coffee and listen to live music. They invite their loved ones on dates and are inspired to make book discoveries.

Thus we bring not only top fiction books from Ukrainian and foreign publishing houses to Book Arsenal. We also pack THE VERY atmosphere of Readeat bookstores with us. In our lounge area, book lovers will be able to take photos with the books they like, and if the book lovers are agile enough—with their authors. 🙂 And publishers will be able to discuss business and plan cooperation. It will be atmospheric and, as always, bookishly cozy. Cat’s honor!

Our mission:
• To cultivate a new format of leisure—spending time and reading in bookstores-cafés. We strive this to be available to Ukrainians not only in big cities, but also in small towns across the country.

Our values:
• We believe that books make life more interesting and conscious, raise its quality. In every book you choose, we see not only the cover and words, but also a contribution to the history and future of our country.
• Friendship, respect, transparency, openness, care and service. This is the basis around which we build our culture, relations with our guests, partners and colleagues on the book market.

At our stand, we will convey a part of the atmosphere of book.ua bookstores.

This year’s Book Arsenal is the first one for our team. We will present books in English from leading publishers and their imprints: Penguin Random House, Hachette, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Simon Schuster and others. The range consists of books mainly for an adult audience: fiction from world literature classics to trendy romantic fantasy; biographies of famous personalities and contemporary history (in particular, books about the war in Ukraine); non-fiction and books on self-development.

In addition to books, you can taste the best drinks from our baristas and buy something delicious at our stand.