Around Indies

Utah to Welcome Booked on 25th in July

This July, Ogden, Utah, will welcome the new indie bookstore Booked on 25th, which is owned by Marcy Taylor Rizzi, reported the Standard Examiner. The 1,080-square-foot new and used bookstore will offer author readings, signings, and book clubs, as well as events during the town’s art strolls.

“What I’m offering is different,” Taylor Rizzi told the Standard Examiner. “It’s not just a used bookstore, it’s going to be a new and used bookstore. But more than that, it’s a gathering spot.”

Taylor Rizzi worked with Weber State University’s Small Business Development Center to write a business plan for the bookstore, and also sought the tutelage of Anne Holman, manager of The King’s English Bookshop in Salt Lake City.

“I want all of Ogden’s literary community, intellectual community, and people who just love books to have a place to go,” said Taylor Rizzi. “I think people want to feel a sense of community, and bookstores offer that. They bring about all sorts of different people in one location.”

Bel & Bunna’s Debuts in California

Bel & Bunna’s Books, which bills itself as “a literary wonderland for children and young adults,” officially opened on Saturday, May 28, in Lafayette, California.

Customers were encouraged to visit the store on opening day dressed as characters from their favorite books. Owner Clare McNeill, who shared details about the new bookstore with Bookselling This Week in April, dressed up as Alice from her own favorite book, Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.

This weekend, the bookstore will begin weekly Saturday morning story time sessions for kids, kicking off with Roald Dahl’s The BFG.

Stories Bookshop + Storytelling Lab Opens in Brooklyn

On May 29, Stories Bookshop + Storytelling Lab officially opened its doors in the neighborhood of Park Slope, Brooklyn, after hosting a well-attended sneak peek of the store on April 30, Independent Bookstore Day.

Owners Maggie Pouncey and Matt Miller launched a Kickstarter campaign in April that raised more than $25,000 for the 600-square-foot shop, which features new and classic children’s books as well as a workshop where children can learn writing and storytelling skills. Some of the funding raised is going toward scholarships for Storytelling Lab sessions for students who otherwise could not afford them.

Bookstore events on the docket for summer include a parenthood-themed launch party for Little Labors by Rivka Galchen (New Directions) and Falling by Elisha Cooper (Pantheon), as well as story times with authors Lucy Ruth Cummings (A Hungry Lion: Or a Dwindling Assortment of Animals, Atheneum), Thyra Heder (The Bear Report, Abrams), and Rowboat Watkins (Rude Cakes, Chronicle).

San Francisco’s Dog Eared Books Opens Second Location

Dog Eared Books opened a new location in San Francisco on Wednesday, June 1, reported Hoodline, in the former Castro Street storefront of LGBT bookstore A Different Light, which closed in 2011.

The new shop will be similar to Dog Eared Books’ Valencia Street location, which opened in 1992, but will be designed to provide what that particular neighborhood seeks, said owner Kate Rosenberger.

“Our job is to curate a culture that we believe in, and sell books that we wish were bestsellers — or maybe we can help them become bestsellers,” said Rosenberger. “The Internet has become the big, huge bookstore in the sky, and so we need to curate a selection, because what the Internet lacks is any kind of editorial anything.”

The store will feature LGBTQIA-themed books, books by local writers, classics, bestsellers, and more. An opening gala will be held on June 20. 

Devaney Doak & Garrett Marks 25 Years

DDG owner Kenny Brechner shares solutions to literary-themed puzzles at the bookstore's 25th anniversary party.

Farmington, Maine’s Devaney Doak & Garrett Booksellers celebrated 25 years in business on Friday, May 27, with an “Old Friends” themed party.

Festivities included literary-themed puzzles that challenged customers to match an object to its book, solve a mystery book title, and match an old friend to their quote. It also featured a “25 Years, 25 Books” table, with one store-favorite book selected for each of the 25 years DDG has served its community.

In addition, author Bill Roorbach was on hand to share the 25th anniversary edition of his debut novel, Summers with Juliet (Ohio State University Press).

BookBar Celebrates Three Years

In Denver, Colorado, BookBar bookstore and wine bar celebrated its third anniversary on May 28 with book raffles, a custom cake, an unveiling of the shop’s new garden, which will grow herbs and vegetables for the in-store restaurant, and food and wine samples from the store’s summer menu, including the new BookBar Blend signature wine.

Attendees included previous and current staff members, local authors, family, friends, neighbors, and the current guests at BookBed, BookBar’s literary-themed bed-and-breakfast located above the bookstore.

“In three years, we have doubled nearly everything: our store size, staff, events, inventory, seating, and (best of all) sales,” said owner Nicole Sullivan. “Going into year four, we feel like we are just getting started. While we want to take some time to enjoy our successes, we have many more big plans for the years to come.”

Redesigned BookHampton Reopens

East Hampton, New York’s BookHampton, which was purchased by Carolyn Brody in March, reopened on Saturday, May 28, after a substantial renovation, reported the East Hampton Star.

The store’s redesign removed the staircase and second floor to provide a more open space, and Brody added tables at the rear of the store and uncovered several windows. “It will look familiar, but it will also look new,” said Brody. The store’s revamped logo will appear on tote bags, T-shirts, and baseball caps for sale in the store.

Roxanne Coady, owner of R.J. Julia Booksellers in Madison, Connecticut, worked with Brody to relaunch the shop, which will remain a general-interest bookstore. “There’s something for everyone,” said Brody. “As time goes on, we’ll get to know the community and what they like to read.”

Auntie’s Bookstore Bought by Comic Shop Owner

John Waite, the owner of Merlyn’s Comic and Games, has purchased Spokane, Washington’s Auntie’s Bookstore from owners Shannon Ahern and Chris O’Harra, reported the Spokesman-Review. The bookstore, which opened in 1978, officially changed hands on Wednesday, June 1.

“I am excited to take on the legacy of Auntie’s and build it into a 21st century bookstore for Spokane,” said Waite. “While times are tough with Internet competition, I think of bookstores as cultural and creative centers for our community. I want Auntie’s and Merlyn’s to be places to dream about, create and explore the universe.”