Here at Atelier26, we
love shining a light on America's best independent booksellers. Independents
and their staff are in the business of knowing their neighborhoods, clientele,
and clientele's particular tastes (a far cry from the M.O. of Amazon or the
chains). Indies thereby do a profound service to their communities -- and, by
ripple effect, to the larger culture in our country. It's no stretch to say
that vitality of the indies means vitality for democratic culture itself, which
begins in and consists of (what else?) neighborhoods!
Our latest Featured Indie
is Books Inc, in the Bay Area.
What would
you do if you struck it rich? For us here at Ateler26 HQ, it’s a no-brainer. Open
a bookstore, of course! So we have an immediate trans-chronological fondness for
a fellow named Anton Roman, who, in the thick of the California Gold Rush back
in 1851, unearthed a fortune in Shasta City, then promptly hung out his
shingle as a bookseller. “That small bookstore,” as the keepers of the
history tell it nowadays, “was moved, bought, sold, burned, rebuilt, renamed
and became Books Inc., as we know it today, in 1946.”
Thus can Books Inc make its particular claim of honor as “The
West’s Oldest Independent Bookseller.” But today’s Books Inc diadem of twelve
precious Bay Area stores has far more going for it than historical lineage. To
wit,
Resiliency: In
1996, that apocalyptic season when “the national chain stores were discovering
and colonizing the West Coast,” Books Inc was driven to close ten of its twelve
locations and file Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Fear not, dear reader, for the
following year, thanks to new computerized inventories and loads of indie bookselling
savvy, the company was already growing again, with four stores back in
operation.
A Commitment to Real Bookselling: “The external focus of Books
Inc. is now and always has been customer service. The internal objective is to
train the next generation of booksellers.”
A Significant Regional
Presence: Did we mention that there are twelve
Books Inc locations, from Palo Alto to Berkeley and Alameda?
A Dynamite Events
Lineup (“The Experience You Can’t Download!”): A glance at a recent Books
Inc event calendar reveals as many as eight in-store author appearances occurring
simultaneously in a single day—not to mention each store’s regular book clubs.
(We were honored to have Books Inc Palo host our launch event for Harriet Scott
Chessman’s The Beauty of Ordinary Things.)
An Illustrated Love
Letter by Beloved Children’s Author Todd Parr:
Us too, Books Inc, us too!
Atelier26 is proud to report that Harriet Scott Chessman's The
Beauty of Ordinary Things is in stock at Books Inc.
A Commitment to Real Bookselling: “The external focus of Books
Inc. is now and always has been customer service. The internal objective is to
train the next generation of booksellers.”
