Ruminator Books to Close in July

After a long and valiant battle, Ruminator Books of St. Paul, Minnesota, has come to the end of its existence. Owner and founder David Unowsky, a venerable voice for independent bookselling, has tilted at his last windmill: He plans to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy this week -- liquidating the business rather than reorganizing it. Unowsky told BTW that the final blow came when the store's landlord, Macalester College, withdrew from negotiations. Although the 62-year-old Unowsky is personally responsible for more than $1 million owed to creditors by Ruminator, he had been "lining up new financing, creating a new marketing plan, and trying to rebuild." The store is now selling off inventory at deeply discounted prices and is preparing to vacate the building by the July 31 deadline.

Unowsky attributes the decline of Ruminator, once one of the nation's most prominent independent bookstores, to his ill-conceived decision to open a second store in Minneapolis four years ago. That store lost money for its three-year existence. At about that time, Unowsky changed the name of the store from Hungry Mind to Ruminator, after selling the original name to another business. (For an earlier BTW article about Ruminator's financial troubles, click here.)

Writers, readers, Macalester College students and alumni, community leaders, and politicians all rallied to support the bookstore and all are mourning its demise. Last year, authors, including Oliver Sacks, Margaret Atwood, and Neil Gaiman, donated items for an eBay auction to benefit the store. Unowsky also sold stock in the company for $1 per share to many loyal supporters, but not enough money was raised to bail out the store. Recent city funding and major private backing gave Unowsky hope and affirmation for the store's future, but the debts were too great.

Quoted in the Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune, novelist Anne Ursu said, "What a tragedy. I really think this store is part of what defines us as a good literary community. It was interesting and quirky and wonderfully supportive of all local writers." Ursu also recalled the throngs of people attending Ruminator readings.

Unowsky spoke of those events with understandable pride. "We, and about 20 other independent bookstores, created the national author tour market," he said.

"I take a lot of pride in what we did here," Unowksy said of the store's 34-year existence. "We helped a lot of people in this community and taught a lot of people the book business. We've had a good run."

A "wake" for the store has been scheduled for July 25 to "celebrate our history and mourn our demise," said Unowsky.

The store's precarious situation has resulted in great staff attrition, but Unowsky is concerned about the fates of the remaining few. "Several of our people are getting jobs with the [Ruminator] Review," he told BTW, referring to the highly regarded independent book review magazine he cofounded in 1986 as the Hungry Mind Review. The Ruminator Review will be run by one of the store's two major secured creditors who has assumed ownership of the publication. Unowsky hopes that the remaining staff, in addition to unemployment insurance, will be eligible for a state-funded dislocated workers program through which they can receive training in a marketable trade while earning a stipend.

The future of Ruminator Press remains uncertain.

After the store's closing is finalized, Unowsky needs to find immediate employment. Most likely he will continue in the book business in some capacity, but he has entertained other career choices. "I could see becoming a cake decorator," Unowsky said wryly. "A good cake decorator can always find work." --Nomi Schwartz