- Categories:About Bookstores [1]New Booksellers [2]
Around Indies [3]
Here’s what’s happening in the world of indie bookstores this week:
That Book Store [4] in Wethersfield, Connecticut, will open for business on July 15 [5], with a grand opening celebration to follow in August.
Skylark Bookshop [6] is opening this summer in Columbia, Missouri. To keep passers-by from seeing inside, they papered the windows with pages from old, falling-apart Harry Potter books.
Itinerant Literate [7], which has been operating as a bookmobile in the greater Charleston, South Carolina, area since early 2015, is opening a storefront [8].
Narrow Gauge Books [9] in Alamosa, Colorado, has raised enough funds [10] to reopen the store later this month as a cooperative comprised of 69 owners and 27 members.
Dan McDougall of Bookbrokers and Ian Kramer of Kramer’s Cafe opened Bookbrokers & Kramers Café [11] in Traverse City, Michigan, on June 1.
Little Bookworm [12], a new children’s bookstore, opened in Metairie [13], Louisiana, in June.
Montana Book and Toy Company [14] in Helena, Montana, welcomed a new owner [15], Chelsia Rice, on July 1.
The Book Table [16] in Oak Park, Illinois, is planning to expand into an adjacent space to grow its current 5,600-square-foot location.
Little Village [17] magazine profiled the Haunted Bookshop [18] in Iowa City, Iowa, which is turning 40.
The Sly Fox Bookstore [19] in Virden, Illinois, is celebrating its 20th anniversary this summer. “When I first opened, I didn’t know how long I would be here,” said owner George Rishel. “But here I am 20 years later still going.”
Zenith Bookstore [20] in Duluth, Minnesota, celebrated one year in business [21] on July 1. “People are looking for a place where they can see people, talk to people, get a friendly smile, and talk to people who have expertise in being able to recommend books,” said owner Bob Dobrow. “They can be part of a greater community, so I think the importance of our store goes way beyond just books.”
Bookmarks [22] bookstore in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, is celebrating its first year in business [23].
Miriam Sontz, CEO of Powell’s Books [24] in Portland, Oregon, is retiring [25] in 2019.
Angela Maria Spring, owner of Duende District Bookstore [26] in Washington, D.C., talked with the Washington Post [27] about her idea of a perfect day.
The Chicago Sun Times [28] explored the city’s Printers Row neighborhood, including Sandmeyer’s Bookstore [29].
In an article on the “second edition of independent bookstores,” the Utica Observer-Dispatch [30] talked with Joanna Robertson, owner of the Treehouse Reading and Arts Center [31] in New York Mills, New York.
The Jackson Hole Book Trader [32] in Jackson, Wyoming, was featured in the Jackson Hole News & Guide [33].
The Valley Advocate [34] detailed a number of thriving independent bookstores in New England, including Broadside Bookshop [35] in Northampton, Massachusetts, and Mystery on Main Street [36] in Brattleboro, Vermont.
After 20 years, Books on First [37] continues to be an integral part of the downtown Dixon [38], Illinois, community, said owner Larry Dunphy.
After more than 42 years, Book Passage [39] in Corte Madera, California, continues to serve as a literary landmark [40]. “What’s been crucial for our longevity are the partnerships we have,” said co-owner Elaine Petrocelli. “We nurture our customers, and they nurture us.”
The Moscow-Pullman Daily News [41] chatted with Carol Price, owner of BookPeople of Moscow [42] in Moscow, Idaho.
Waldo was spotted at Carmichael’s Bookstore [43] in Louisville, Kentucky, this week as part of Find Waldo Local [44].
Porter Square Books [45] in Boston, Massachusetts, launched a writers-in-residence program [46].
Tubby & Coo’s Publishing Company [47] will release its first three books, two children’s picture books and a young adult fantasy novel, on August 14. Last summer, the New Orleans indie bookstore announced plans to launch a publishing venture [48].
Bookshop Santa Cruz [49] in Santa Cruz, California, announced that Maxim Loskutoff is the winner of the store’s 2018 Writing Residency at The Wellstone Center. He is currently working on a novel, Spirits, to be published by W.W. Norton in 2020.
New Zealand booksellers Pene Whitty, manager of University Book Shop Canterbury [50], and Ruth Bruhin, manager of Poppies New Plymouth [51], will attend the 2019 Winter Institute in Albuquerque, New Mexico, as part of the Booksellers NZ Winter Institute Scholarship, sponsored by Book Tokens Ltd.
U.S. Senator Bob Menendez [52] visited Words Bookstore [53] in Maplewood, New Jersey, last week to talk about the reauthorization of the Autism CARES Act.
Downtown Books [54] in Manteo and Duck’s Cottage in Duck, North Carolina, hosted packed events over the weekend with Andrew Lawler, author of The Secret Token: Myth, Obsession and the Search for the Lost Colony of Roanoke (Doubleday).
Share your news in Around Indies! E-mail [email protected] [55] with photos and details of what’s new at your store, whether it’s opening for business, moving to a new location, expanding, changing ownership, hosting a special event, or celebrating a milestone anniversary.