In May 2015, New York City’s Revolution Books was forced to close its long-time Chelsea location and relocate to new digs in Harlem. Although the bookstore store raised over $100,000 last November to fund the move to a 1,450 sq. ft. space, it is now facing new financial difficulties.
Spokesperson Andy Zee said, in an email sent to the bookstore's membership list, that it needs money to stay open. He wrote: “The simple and brute fact is that Revolution Books, the bookstore about the world for a radically different world, cannot survive and grow by selling books alone.”
Revolution Books launched a $25,000 Indiegogo campaign for capital improvements earlier this month. The money is intended to enable it to stock more books, add an air conditioning system, and build a stage for author events.
Despite the situation, Zee told PW that the bookstore’s doors are not about to close and that it continues to forge ahead. Homegoing author Yaa Gyasi is speaking at the store on August 19, and it is planning to host two events as part of the Brooklyn Book Festival in September.
