Around Indies

New Indie Opens in Eastern Illinois

Bob’s Bookstore opened on Wednesday in downtown Charleston, Illinois, with a celebratory reading of poetry and essays by writers from nearby Eastern Illinois University.

Store owner Joe Judd told Daily Eastern News that the readings were the beginning of the Readings at Bob’s Series, an outgrowth of a program that Judd hosted in his previous bookstore in Chicago.

“The series was a great hit in the first shop, so many people got involved with the readings and more than just poetry was read,” he said. “Even though I sold the shop and no longer own it, the current owners still keep the series going to this day.”

The new series will feature poets from the surrounding community and from Eastern Illinois University.

Elliott Bay Café to Become Little Oddfellows

Elliott Bay Café, run by Tamara Murphy since 2008, in Seattle’s The Elliott Bay Book Company is shutting down, and the space will be taken over by another local restaurateur, Linda Derschang, whose Oddfellows Cafe + Bar is adjacent to the bookstore, according to Seattle Eater.

The new café, to be named Little Oddfellows, will be completely remodeled and is expected to open in June. The menu will include sandwiches, grain salads, and baked goods, as well as wine and beer, house-made sodas, fresh juices, and espresso.

river’s end Welcomes Cash Mob

The river’s end bookstore in Oswego was recently the beneficiary of a student-run cash mob, the Oswegonian reported. The April 9 event brought a rush of approximately 150 writing students from nearby Oswego State University who flooded the store to show their support.

“The students get experience in planning an event, which is a really big thing for writers, because you plan your own readings,” Oswego State creative writing Assistant Professor Donna Steiner told the newspaper. “So these are all aspiring writers and creative people, so it pertains to what their future looks like and it’s just kind of a cool activity that benefits everyone. Everyone that’s involved gets something out of it.”

river’s end co-owner Bill Riley said serving as a conduit between the local and the collegiate communities has always been a priority for the store. “When we opened the store 17 years ago, we wanted to create a space that was conducive to everyone,” he said. “Inclusive, not exclusive, that would be a place where town and gown could meet. And we think that in over 17 years, we’ve accomplished that.”

Last year, a cash mob from the university was so successful that the store made its entire month’s earnings in one day. Riley said that, beyond the students of Oswego State, the success of cash mobs is due in large part to increased interest in independent businesses.

“The other thing that’s contributing to the viability of that is this whole ‘buy local, shop local’ movement that’s been very active for years now, but has really begun to take hold,” Riley said.

Common Good Books Celebrates Poetry Month With Contest Winners

Common Good Books in St. Paul, Minnesota, celebrated National Poetry Month by announcing the seven winners of its third annual poetry contest on April 19. The winners were chosen from almost 1,000 entries from across the U.S. by store owner Garrison Keillor.

The top prize winners of $1,000 each were Lisa Kundrat of Minneapolis for “Dear You”; Ethna McKiernan of Minneapolis “Leaving”; and Kari Castor of Arlington Heights, Illinois, for “Dear Roger.”

Thriving Indies Among Reasons to Love Missoula

Noting that Jon Krakauer’s latest book, Missoula: Rape and the Justice System in a College Town (Doubleday), may soon bring unwanted attention to the Montana city, the Missoula Independent chose to look at “12 reasons to love Missoula right now.” Number 10 on the list was “Because independent bookstores actually thrive here.”

The newspaper observed that the city’s literary scene is thriving, as evidenced by the substantial expansion of Shakespeare & Co. and its launch of a web-ordering system known as Garthazon. And though Humanities Montana decided it could no longer sponsor the annual Montana Festival of the Book, the three-days of readings, discussions, and parties will continue with support from Shakespeare & Co. owner Garth Whitson, Fact and Fiction owner Barbara Theroux, Missoula Public Library director Honore Bray, and Mountain Press publisher John Rimel, among others.

Theroux is also planning to donate a portion of Missoula sales to First Step and the University of Montana’s Student Advocacy Resource Center. “I am hoping that $2 per book can be donated,” Theroux told the newspaper. “I want it to be substantial.”