I really liked this book. It got a little murky toward the middle, but ended well. I like Welch's voice and style. It's very much like you sat down with her and she told you a few stories over a pot of tea or coffee.It's a celebration and examination of the life of a used bookstore and all that surrounds its success or demise. (Aside: I think they should have stopped in Fayetteville and the Dickson Street Used Books on their tour.)I wouldn't mind owning this. Perhaps if I come across a 2nd-hand copy.... I accidentally read this last night in the midst of attempting to write a paper. It's that kind of book- you slip into it like a cozy conversation and wonder where the time has gone. Probably every bibliophile has dreamed of opening a bookstore, and this chronicle describes accurately but with charm the realities of opening and running a small bookstore in a small community. For me the quality of a memoir is generally determined by the voice of the author- in this case I was quite pleased. The prose reads the way a used bookstore feels- if you don't know what that means you don't read enough or need to get off Amazon once in awhile. I'd also like to thank the author for her Top Ten(ish) list towards the end of the book- the descriptions provided were enough for me to decide which I'd like to read and she gets bonus points for including C.S. Lewis's Till We Have Faces, which I wasn't sure anyone else in the world had read. I give it four stars instead of five only because I doubt I'd read it twice. But I encourage anyone to read it once- truly a lovely book.
I really enjoyed this book. But it is a book about a used bookstore.
—grays
Loved the first 2/3. After that is bogged down.
—Tumbleweed2
Delightful
—anaspita98
