Lonely Planet Bookstore Tour -- Day 3

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Staff members at the UConn Co-op in Storrs, Connecticut, pose with the Lonely Planet road crew: (l. to r.) Tamara Barr (LP), Suzy Staubach, Julie Laumark, Ian Schlein, Gary Todoroff (LP), Marc Hanois, Claire Morosky (in back).

The first stop on Monday, May 10 -- day three of the Lonely Planet Independent Bookstore Tour -- was the UConn Co-op in Storrs, Connecticut, where some of the student staff were rumored to be recovering from the previous day's graduation festivities. ABA Board member Suzy Staubach (wielding a Freadom keychain advertising the Campaign for Reader Privacy) welcomed us to the 54,000-square-foot store and signed the trip's commemorative T-shirt. Bookseller Claire Morosky showed off UConn's sizable Book Sense Bestseller display, and then we headed for the Brown University Bookstore and College Hill Bookstore in Providence, Rhode Island (see photo below).

Staff and road crew at Tatnuck Bookseller in Worcester, Massachusetts: (l. to r.) Tamara Barr (LP), Ian White (LP), Gloria Abramoff, Sarah Demers, and Gary Todoroff (LP) in back.

After College Hill, the RV was moored in Worcester, Massachusetts, at Tatnuck Bookseller where we collectively admired the 24,000-square-foot space featuring hardwood floors and skylights. We had the pleasure of sitting down to lunch with owner Gloria Abramoff and bookseller Pat Gately amid Japanese maples and a small fish-pond in Tatnuck's outdoor patio. LP staffers raved about the Spicy Peanut Soup, which they kindly shared with this reporter, who concurred.

The RV motored on to Harvard Square's The Globe Corner Bookstore (see photo below), home of one of North America's largest selection of travel books and maps, where staff members chatted with the LP crew and expressed their appreciation for Lonely Planet's new road trip series. Tamara Barr (LP's associate marketing manager) told them about the upcoming LP New England road trip guide (July '04).

Staff at The Brookline Booksmith: (l. to r.) Thaya Saxby, Ethan Bassoff, Carlos Ascurra, Ryan Severenson, Rebecca Jablon.

We headed to the last stop of the night, driving over the Charles River, which featured a requisite sculler, to the 43-year-old Brookline Booksmith. Upon our arrival, one member of the rambunctious troupe announced, "We love you Lonely Planet guys!" a sentiment frequently voiced by the public-at-large during our road trip. Chatting commenced and night manager Thaya Saxby told BTW that Lonely Planet was "very nicely represented" in the travel section. Booksmith did a great job of displaying the Book Sense Best Seller May and June picks along with laminated bookseller quotes for each pick.

Staff and road crew at College Hill Bookstore in Providence, Rhode Island: (l. to r.) Mary Budz, Jessica Rosner, Karen Hallman, and Mike Katz, Tamara Barr (LP).
Booksellers Liz (left) and Natalia of the Globe Corner Bookstore in Harvard Square.
Book Sense displays at Brookline Booksmith (left) and UConn Co-op.

To read a report on days one and two of the tour, click here. --Karen Schechner