Readers Gain at Food for Thought

Food for Thought Books in Amherst, Massachusetts, is a nonprofit bookstore, collectively owned and operated since the mid-1970s. The collective's five members lean distinctly to the left, stocking much of the 4,000-square-foot store with the latest in progressive politics -- global, domestic, multicultural, and radical; queer studies and women's issues; critical and avant-garde writings; 'zines; comix; and multicultural children's books.

Textbook sales, both new and used, are a very significant portion of Food for Thought's business -- particularly during the first week of the school term. That's when register lines of 100 people are possible, according to collective member Mitch Gaslin, who noted that roughly half of the historic Pioneer Valley town's 40,000 residents are between the ages of 18 and 24. An uber college town, Amherst is the home of many distinguished institutions of higher learning -- including Amherst College, Hampshire College, and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. In addition, students from nearby Mount Holyoke College and Smith College take classes at the Amherst institutions as part of a Five Colleges education consortium.

"It's a population eager for information," Gaslin stated.

With 21 years as a collective member, Gaslin has the longest tenure at the store. He explained to BTW that although the year of the store's birth is often listed as 1976, the truth is "kind of amorphous. Around that time, Food for Thought was just a table of books set up inside a pre-order food co-op warehouse." The table eventually moved into a tiny retail space, and then moved and expanded in several different locations all within about a block of the current store.

The store has always operated collectively, Gaslin said, and member turnover is infrequent. Most collective members have been there for at least four years, and there is no other staff. The members are all equally responsible for running the store. "We all run the register and all take out the recycling," he explained, but each handles specific areas such as bookkeeping or event planning.

Food for Thought hosts many events, including author visits, discussion groups, film screenings, and readings. When an audience greater than 100 is expected, an off-site venue is selected. Poetry readings are popular, befitting a store in the town where Emily Dickinson and Robert Frost lived.

Of the Book Sense Picks lists, Gaslin said, "We sell more nonfiction than fiction," adding that the store's customers are often looking for esoteric titles. He also noted that the store's BookSense.com Web site is essential to meet the needs of Food for Thought's key demographic -- college students and other young people who get most of their information online. Book Sense gift cards have been selling well, according to Gaslin, for use in the store and at bookstores around the country. --Nomi Schwartz