About Bookstores

The uniqueness of American Booksellers Association member stores is reflected in April's openings, which include La Casa Azul Bookstore, an online seller of new and used books in English and Spanish, with plans to open a future storefront location; Idlewild Books, which features literature, guide books, books about politics and culture, and so on, all arranged by country; and Retro Cinema & Books, offering books, movies, and vintage wines.

Here's the complete list of April ABA member openings:

When Julie Swayze was exploring places in Southern California to open a bookstore, a friend suggested she check out the historic core of Los Angeles. In December 2006, Metropolis Books became a part of the revitalization of Skid Row. "What people wanted most was a bookstore," Swayze said. "I originally wanted to open in Pasadena or Altadena, but that really is a market that has plenty of bookstores.

Murder By The Book Wins PageTurner Award

In approximately four weeks, Fern Jaffe, the owner of Paperbacks Plus in the Bronx, New York, will conclude an almost 40-year career in bookselling.

San Diego's Mysterious Galaxy has issued an invitation to all "fellow lovers of Martians, Murder, Magic, Mayhem, as well as those who devour [the store's] more recent genres of Metro Mythos and Munchkins," to join in a 15th anniversary celebration. The party on Saturday, May 10, will feature author signings, birthday cake, and an auction to benefit local nonprofits.

Indie booksellers are waging the green revolution on several fronts -- developing and expanding Green Living/Environmental sections, offering green sidelines, reducing waste, and increasing energy efficiency. Related green issues of particular interest, as evidenced by discussions at recent ABA Booksellers Forums, are how to reduce the use of merchandise bags and what to provide as an eco-friendly alternative.

The river's end bookstore to Celebrate 10th Anniversary

On Tuesday, May 6, the Women's National Book Association named Kepler's Books and Magazines in Menlo Park, California, and The Flying Pig Bookstore in Shelburne, Vermont, the winners of the 2008 Lucile Micheels Pannell Awards.

La Casa Azul Launches Online Bookstore

On April 28, La Casa Azul Bookstore hosted a launch party in East Harlem for its web store, www.lacasaazulbookstore.com. La Casa Azul's Aurora Anaya-Cerda said the store "online, and later this year at our own shop, offers shoppers an opportunity to share the richness of the Latino experience in writing, art, and culture."

"It's an oasis in a rather frenzied beach environment," said Small World Books' Mary Goodfader of her Venice Beach, California, bookstore. In 1976, she and her husband, Bob Goodfader, bought a historic building where they relocated Small World Books and opened a restaurant, The Sidewalk Cafe. "So, we are lucky," she said.

Last week's profile of Changing Hands' Gayle Shanks, who is up for approval by ABA membership to serve a one-year term as president, incorrectly stated the size of the store and misidentified the current members of the business' ownership group. Changing Hands, which was founded by Shanks and her husband, Bob Sommer in 1974, is currently 13,000 square feet. In January 2008, Cindy Dach, the store's general manager, became part of Changing Hands' ownership group.

Recession Hitting Chains Hard

In an April 15 article by Michael Barbaro, the New York Times reported on a growing wave of bankruptcies among America's chain retailers. Noting that eight mostly midsize chains, including Sharper Image and the furniture store Levitz, have filed for bankruptcy since last fall, the Times observed that "the troubles are quickly spreading to bigger national companies." In addition, a number of businesses, including Foot Locker, Ann Taylor, and Zales, are planning to close stores to preserve cash.

Arches Book Company is part of a Moab, Utah, bookstore triumvirate co-owned by Andy Nettell, a former National Park Service Ranger. The two other bookstores are nearby -- Back of Beyond Books is across the street, and ABC & Beyond Used Books is a couple of blocks south -- creating a mini southwestern Hay-on-Wye in downtown Moab.

Eight ABA member bookstores opened for business in March 2008: