Around Indie Bookstores

The Learned Owl Celebrates Its 40th Anniversary

Hudson, Ohio's The Learned Owl Book Shop will celebrate its 40th anniversary this month. The bookstore and its owner for the past 25 years, Liz Murphy, were profiled on Wednesday, October 1, in the Hudson-Hub Times.

"During Murphy's 25 years of business ownership, The Learned Owl has grown from 1,500 square feet on one floor to a three-story, 2,300-square-foot business," noted the Times. And a staff of 21 full- and part-time employees "now grace shop floors, along with The Learned Owl's third 'book shop dog,' 7-year-old Ruby."

The number of independent bookstores in Northeast Ohio has declined significantly since 1983, when Murphy bought the store, but Carolyn Konefal, executive director of the Hudson Area Chamber of Commerce, said some of the credit for Learned Owl's longevity has to go to Murphy's people skills and business savvy. "Liz Murphy has always been very well respected," Konefal told the newspaper. "Her effort as a local owner has been equally as important as the store's presence on Main Street."

Learned Owl is hosting a month-long celebration, featuring author events, giveaways, drawings, face painting, and more.

Boulder Bookstore Turns 35

David Bolduc's Boulder Book Store in Boulder, Colorado, is celebrating its 35th anniversary with two weeks of promotions and special events, which began on Wednesday, October 1. Arsen Kashkashien, the store's head buyer and inventory manager, told the Daily Camera: "I think it's a good reflection of all the different kinds of things that we do and audiences that we relate to. It's a customer appreciation thing."

Boulder has changed a lot during the past 35 years, the newspaper noted. "Malls have come and gone, the economy has hit peaks and valleys -- but Bolduc's store remains the city's literary heart. The opening of the Boulder Book Store was the beginning of a resurrection of Boulder's downtown, and Bolduc, now 62, was active in the creation of the Pearl Street Mall," which breathed new life into the area.

Boulder Book Store now covers more than 20,000 square feet on three floors, includes more than 100,000 book titles, and has about 50 employees. The Camera noted that, in 1998, Bolduc was a founding member of the Boulder Independent Business Alliance, and he credits that connection with the community with making it possible for Boulder Book Store to celebrate its 35th birthday.

Annie Bloom's Is 30

Annie Bloom's Books of Portland, Oregon, will mark its 30th anniversary on Wednesday, October 29, and it's having a yearlong celebration, which culminates in a party on Saturday, October 25.The store is also announcing a favorite book on the 30th of each month that is discounted by 30 percent the following month.

In 2003, on the occasion of Annie Bloom's 25th anniversary, Bookselling This Week spoke to owner Bobby Tichenor about the store's origins and her plans for the future.

Moe's Books Named "Best of Berkeley"

The 45-year-old Berkeley, California, institution Moe's Books and its founder Moe Moskowitz, "the brilliant architect behind the store's success," are profiled as part of the San Francisco Examiner's Best Of Series.

"Moe's Books is a four-story paradise for any literary junkie," said the Examiner. "Since its opening in 1963, Moe's Books has been revolutionary in both maintaining a healthy inventory and providing the public with appealing and worthwhile literary events. The newspaper encourages readers to "set aside enough time to wander the four levels of literary Eden. Hunt for a new or used book. Get lost in their inventory. Relax in the pages of a random book. Moe would have liked that."

Subterranean Books Awarded "Best of St. Louis"

Subterranean Books was recently named Best Book Store (Independent) for 2008 by the Riverfront Times Times, St. Louis' alternative newsweekly. This is the seventh time Subterranean Books has won the "Best Of" designation in its eight years of existence, said owner Kelly von Plonski.

From the Riverfront: "It's one of life's greatest pleasures walking into Subterranean Books ... because this is a shop that caters to books and the people who love them. No ziggurats of one title loom on tables in the doorway, no racks of impulse buys, no movie tie-in toys, no cutouts of Dr. Phil hawking his latest 'tome' occlude your sight..... The upstairs is still an art gallery, but new shelves allow for a maximization of space so that expanded sections covering interior design, cooking, and the DIY movement offer inspiration. The erotica has been moved to the front of the shop for ease of access, a now-close neighbor to shelves devoted to ritual magic, the Beats, and an entire section devoted to Taschen Books' bizarre view of the world. Literature, one of the most evocative words in the English language, is the backbone of the store still, twin columns that run the length of the room. The journey of a thousand years begins here at Subterranean, as soon as you open your eyes."