You know how it is - there's a book you'd like to buy, but you can't remember the publisher or the title or the author. Tricky. But good book shop assistants will hazard an educated guess, even with the most unlikely clues.

"An amazing number of people will recall the cover," says Sue Lake. "As soon as we call it up on the computer, they'll say That's it! I remember the colour!"

Running a book shop isn't always straightforward.

Running a privately owned bookshop is harder still. But while many small book shops are closing down, Thirsk, where they must be great readers, has three - Hambleton Books, Storyteller children's bookshop and, the newest, White Rose Books which Sue Lake opened with her father Steve Clements seven years ago.

In the same week they opened, a new ruling on book prices signalled the apparent death knell for small book shops.

It wasn't an ideal start.

But, in the best story book tradition, White Rose Books has flourished and earlier this year even extended the premises and opened a coffee bar.

Sue grew up in Thirsk and had always wanted a book shop there. So after a degree in English Literature and a job in marketing for Kelloggs she came home, took over a former estate agent's and completely gutted it.

"I had a dream of having the style of the large chains - lots of attention to the layout of the shop, decent shelving and lighting. I wanted to get away from the fusty atmosphere of a lot of small bookshops." And certainly the shop has all the polish and glitz of a multiple.

"But at the same time I wanted the personal service which is really the lifeblood of a small business."

The big chain bookshops have terrific clout in the business and can almost dictate their own terms with publishers, something on which small shops can never compete.

Also, the end of the net book agreement in that opening week meant that shops could fix their own prices. Big chains slashed many prices, offered three for the price of two bargains. Supermarkets started undercutting book shops and selling bestsellers the way they sold tins of beans, piling them high and selling them cheap, often more cheaply than small bookshops could buy them.

But Sue is philosophical. "It keeps us on our toes. We have to try harder. And it made books more accessible, made people realise they weren't always expensive. The more people reading books, the better.

"And supermarkets have only a very limited range. So if people had picked up one book by someone like Patricia Cornwell there and liked it , then they would possibly be encouraged to come in here and buy more."

The coffee bar was another way of making people feel at ease among the books. To get the proper coffee machines, Sue and her staff had to be trained as barristas - proper coffee makers.

"It's lovely when people come in just for a coffee, then start browsing through the books and find something that catches their interest."

There are children's books, designed to be read and looked at and played with, near the tables so parents can relax.

Sue, who has two young children herself, knows the problems. "And of course it's never too soon to show children that books are fun."

Throughout the shelves there are little notes, where staff have picked out some of their favourite books and listed brief descriptions and comments to entice readers.

"It's a way of picking out titles that people might like. And often we get into those lovely bookish conversations with customers, which we really enjoy."

Custom is divided pretty equally among visitors and locals. The shop recently had its first literary lunch and plan more events. They stock the latest novels, biographies, Booker contenders, lots of popular history and can - almost - guarantee next day delivery of any book ordered. But still, very appropriately considering the shop's name, its top sellers are local books.

"I was surprised at quite how clear cut that was. James Herriott's Yorkshire, James Herriott's biography. The Dalesman Calendar. Gervase Phinn. We also stock some of the smaller, more local publications. But that's part of our strength, our local knowledge. "

You can buy their local books over their website. Thirsk books regularly go to the USA and Germany and even to Botswana.

The extra space this year meant that as well as the coffee bar, they could increase their stock of local history and fiction. They also sell soft toys and have some unusual and funny cards.

The whole place has a buzz about it. If ever the business went bust, then Sue could always get a job in a coffee bar. But right now, that seems a very unlikely twist in the plot.

l White Rose Books, Market Place, Thirsk. Tel: 01845 524353. www.whiterosebooks.com

Sweet taste of success

Remember the Thorntons saga? The chocolates we ordered which never came, despite numerous phone calls and emails over a number of weeks?

Well, eventually they were delivered, along with another little box to say sorry. And Thorntons have been suitably apologetic. More usefully, they say they have taken a good look at their systems, their staff training and at the carriers who eventually deliver the parcels.

They have promised improvements, better training and closer monitoring. And by way of practical apology, they have also given us a Year of Chocolate to raffle for a good cause.

The Year of Chocolate means a different box of goodies is delivered to the winner every month. So Thorntons must be pretty confident that their systems have improved - but we'll be watching.