How a new bookstore can come out of anywhere and become anything: an interview with the staff of the Booksmith (and the Bindery)
Christin Evans bought the historic San Francisco bookstore The Booksmith in 2007. In the ensuing decade, both the demise and the triumph of the indie bookstore scene have been frequently touted. And… Read more »
A Q&A with Dave Lucey, co-owner of North Carolina’s Page 158 Books, on moving a bookstore
Dave and Sue Lucey are members of that dedicated and time-honored lineage known as bookstore owners. Their current shop, Page 158 Books, is in downtown Wake Forest, North Carolina, beside… Read more »
These Viennese teens will crush Amazon using their moxie and bicycles
Look, as a grumpy late-twenty-something, I don’t really like teenagers very much. They really like tablets. Their shoes are cool and make me insecure about my shoes. Their muscles and… Read more »
The first Barnes & Noble of the Future opens in Eastchester, NY
Between losing its new CEO, Ron Boire, after less than a year of employment (and subsequently paying him $4.8 million in severance) and posting a six-point loss for the first… Read more »
Open your mind, child, let me have a look, for I am The Bibliotherapist, and I know what you need… a colorful book about potty training
While there are still some doubts about whether or not reading a book automatically makes you a better person, there’s very little contention over the idea that dipping into a good… Read more »
In California, sell that signed Neil Gaiman at your own risk!
A new California law prohibiting the sales of autographed memorabilia without a certificate of authenticity may have unintended repercussions for booksellers in the state. Rebecca Rego Barry at Fine Books &… Read more »
So you want to be a serious Amazon idea
So, you’ve got this idea. This crazy idea that, you think, is pretty cool. Well, do yourself a favor, kid: before presenting it to the boss-man, Jeff Bezos, have a… Read more »
Otto’s—one of the country’s oldest bookstores—is up for sale
One of the nation’s five oldest bookstores, Otto Bookstore (or as patrons refer to it: Otto’s), is up for sale. Publishers Weekly’s Judith Rosen reports that the announcement comes from Betsy Rider, the… Read more »
Who’s behind Waterstone’s miraculous financial recovery?
The quick and easy answer is an increasingly common one: a Russian oligarch. Last month, we covered Waterstone’s surprisingly profitable turn in 2015, and have previously discussed the company’s restructuring under new… Read more »
British bookstores respond to Black Friday with “Civilised Saturday”
Every year, Black Friday sales remind us that to be American is to love a good deal. (Indeed, here at Melville House, we’ve got our very own Black Friday sale… Read more »