An Oregon shop trashes 'Portlandia;' an African-American bookstore preps to open in Texas; SIBA plans its Pat Conroy celebration; and more.
African-American Bookstore to Open in Killeen, Tex.: Maeva Jackson is planning an October 15 opening for Black World Books, after running an online bookstore with the same name for the past two years. In addition to books by black authors, the store will carry incense and oils, coffee and tea, and African art and artifacts. And it will hold storytimes and workshops for children.
Her Bookshop Opens in Nashville: Writer and long-time publishing veteran Joelle Herr opened a 400 sq. ft. “nook for people who love beautiful books” earlier this week. She wants the bookstore to be a place where people can discover “interesting” books. That doesn’t include bestsellers, which she has no plans to stock.
Feminist Bookstore Says No to 'Portlandia': In Other Words in Portland, Ore., posted a “F@#k Portlandia!” sign in its window earlier this week. The bookstore followed up with a blog post today about why they are discontinuing their relationship with the show, which they said has not earned them enough money be closed for the filming. Hence the Indiegogo campaign announced earlier this week. The catalyst was a filming that left the store a mess and forced neighboring businesses to close for the day.
The Espresso Bar Becomes Part of Literati: Earlier this week two customers got engaged at the Ann Arbor, Mich., bookstore. And yesterday the bookstore tied the knot with its Espresso Bar, which had been independently run. Owners Hilary and Mike Gustafson plan to unify the two businesses.
SIBA Booksellers Celebrate Pat Conroy Week Next Month: During the week of October 24, Southern booksellers are planning to hold fund drives and promotions to raise money for a literary center http://patconroyliterarycenter.org in Conroy’s home town of Beaufort, S.C. The idea is to do for Conroy what he did for booksellers, said SIBA executive director Wanda Jewell. The timing coincides with Conroy’s birthday and the release of a collection of his speeches and interviews, Lowcountry Heart. SIBA is sponsoring a contest for those who donate $41 or more to be entered into a drawing to win the 41 new books that were the finalists and winners of the new Pat Conroy Southern Book Prize (formerly known as the SIBA Book Awards).
