Book Passage Celebrates 30 Years

Richard North Patterson speaks at Book Passage's 30th anniversary while (from left to right) Martin Cruz Smith, William Gordon, Isabel Allende, and Elaine Petrocelli look on.

It was 1976 when Book Passage first opened in Corte Madera, California, but back then it was called Lark Creek Books. The name wouldn't stick, but the bookstore certainly did, and it continues to thrive 30 years later. This past Sunday, November 5, the bookstore held a festive party to mark the occasion with some 30 authors and about 300 customers.

Elaine Petrocelli, who owns the store with her husband, Bill, recently spoke to BTW about the momentous day when she officially became a bookseller: She had prepared by attending the ABA convention the previous spring and had spent months poring through titles to decide on the ones she would carry. As opening day drew near, her children had helped her unpack boxes.

Then in early November 1976, Petrocelli opened the door to a bookstore "full of great books," she said. "The first customer came in, looked at the books, and then when they came to the register to buy one, I realized I didn't know how to make change!" she said with a laugh. "I know now."

Book Passage has come a long way since then. In its three decades, the store has moved twice and gone through three expansions. At one time, it included a travel annex, which lent the store its current name. And in 2003 the Petrocelli's opened a second store, in San Francisco's historic Ferry Building.

The Petrocellis calculate that over the years Book Passage has sold more than three million books and hosted more than 6,000 author events. In addition, more than 600 writing classes and conferences have been held at the bookstore, "introducing at least 5,000 students to the book business and helping them start on a writing career," according to the latest edition of the store's newsletter, Book Passage News & Reviews.

Just recently, the store hosted a packed event featuring Democratic rising star Sen. Barack Obama, who signed about 1,500 copies of his book, The Audacity of Hope (Crown).

Sunday's birthday bash, emceed by author Isabel Allende, featured short comments from authors Amy Tan, Dorothy Allison, Martin Cruz Smith, Richard North Patterson, and Anne Lamott, to name a few. Book Passage is donating a portion of the day's sales to the Marin Literacy Project.

Elaine Petrocelli told BTW, "It's been amazing. Thirty years of being an independent bookseller and [dealing with] the challenges that have come up.... It's been pretty emotional."

The store's next challenge is a Barnes & Noble bookstore that is opening nearby in mid-November. "We'll continue to try to do what we do," Petrocelli said, "and hope our community knows the difference. We hope publishers will continue to send us the authors." --David Grogan