The corner with the giveaways and souvenirs is still there, and as always, classics such as spinning tops, bags of fizzy powder and bouncy balls can be found there.

Apart from that, not a single book lies on top of another in the former "Tatzelwurm", which was an almost legendary children's book shop in Frankfurt's Nordend.

Legendary because it has been around since 1970, so children who once bought their Astrid Lindgren or Five Friends books there could come back as parents.

Above all, however, because its operators had assembled an enormous selection of books and toys here, which filled the small corner shop to the ceiling.

Inga Janovic

Editor in the regional section of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung and responsible editor of the business magazine Metropol.

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Nana Agić-Kunisch loved it in the same way, both as a child and later when she chose children's books for her daughter in Thomas Pauly's shop.

And yet, when she took over the business from him this spring and looked around alone in the three interconnecting rooms for the first time, she felt that her own style was different: "I'm not a Tatzelwurm," says the forty-three-year-old comes from a mixed family with roots in Bosnia and Venezuela and worked in marketing for fashion labels such as Affentor and Hess Natur before starting over as a bookseller.

Agić-Kunisch has renamed the business "Happy", which doesn't sound as special as the previous company name, but is associated with something special for her.

The name reminds her of the Stefan Sagmeister exhibition "The Happy Show", which inspired her to rethink her life, which had previously been determined by work, says the businesswoman.

"Without this experience I would not be here today."

Detail-loving interior

For the new start, Agić-Kunisch brought more light and air into the store, for the books, stationery and toys – all handpicked and mostly from small, sustainable manufacturers – instead of floor-to-ceiling shelves, she bought lower furniture and tables to make her goods easier to see to be able to exhibit.

The current trend towards a tidy but detailed interior sets the tone.

Since the renovation, the shop also has a small kitchen, so that coffee and cake are now also available in the bookshop or in the small garden in front of it.

Homemade by the boss.

On Saturdays, a beautician even invites you to take a break with a wellness massage and beauty tips.

And the books?

Yes, they still exist, and even if the store may seem empty at first glance in favor of beauty, the selection, especially for children, is actually large.

For adults there is a table with novels and a small selection of cookbooks and non-fiction books.

Agić-Kunisch and her colleague, a trained bookseller, sort the reading partly according to the right reading age, partly thematically: feelings, grief, body and enlightenment, racism, tolerance.

"The Three ???" and the "School of Magical Animals"

Behind the selection are conviction and program;

The career changer wants tolerance and diversity in the children's rooms, so she is looking for books in which protagonists of all skin colors and religions exemplify this attitude, in which disabled children can also play or topics such as transsexuality are addressed.

Of course, there are also classics such as the hidden object books by Rotraut Susanne Berner and popular children's book series such as "The Three ???" and the "School of Magical Animals".

However, Agić-Kunisch does not give books full of clichés like “Princess Lilifee” any shelf space.

If it's supposed to be pink, then she prefers to recommend books like Raffi and his pink tutu.

Bookshop "Happy", Glauburgstraße 20, Frankfurt, open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., on Mondays only from 2 p.m. and on Saturdays only until 4 p.m.

www.happy-frankfurt.com