When the Magic Gets Better

From time to time the Bookshop can seem a dream, that we haven’t quite woken from yet. I can’t believe it is 6 years old and sometimes it is hard to believe we have made it. Owning and operating the shop is not only a dream, but a labor of love. It is the product of our passion for books and the hard work we continue to foster in our dream, our “baby”—our bit of magic.

As with most business endeavors you want to see growth and change—bad change need not apply *wink*-- both can be a combination of crazy, exciting, and even scary. The Bookshop is a place for Freddy and I to spread the love for the written word to our small-town and to the surrounding communities. We want to reach more and more people because that is growth AND that is how it gets better and better!

Over time we have made the transition, in name only, from ‘Used Bookstore’ to ‘Small-Town Bookstore’. It was a subtle way of bestowing more love and fondness into the shop, that and it sounds better. Am I right? We are pleased to announce it is no longer in name only! As of today we can now offer more to our customers—our regulars who have become a second family—we can offer the luxury of stocking AND ordering new books.

It is very exciting and has been a dream/desire for a long time. The change can also bring about questions and concerns from you, our Customer Family, and this post is to put you at ease.

What does this mean for the “used” books?
We will continue to primarily stock used inventory. It is not going anywhere! Freddy and I will not be changing our shopping habits for the Shop. The boxes of books we bring every week will not end and the current stock will not dwindle (well unless you come in and buy it all!).

So what DOES this MEAN?

It means the next necessary step in growth for reaching a bigger audience/community is to expand in what we offer, what we bring to the reading table so to speak. You will see, over time, more books of the “out now” variety, the “must reads”, and you will have the availability to request/order more readily said books. It is still your choice whether you order used or new, but the added luxury is yours for the “taking”!

What does this represent to Pete & Freddy’s?
GROWTH, GROWTH, GROWTH! It is exciting to offer more and to align ourselves further with the book buying world. There are not many Indie bookstores “in the neighborhood” and it has long been a faraway dream to join the ranks of Indie Brick and Mortars! The more opportunities we have to expand our endeavors, the more people we can reach with our love of the written word. (Am I saying ‘more’ enough? *wink*) We have been staunch proclaimers of “Shop Local!” and giving our customers this service is icing on the cake, giving you more reasons to practice what we preach!


Now for your orders, oh yes and questions *wink*! Help us make the magic better and see what the Lord has in store for the Shop’s future as we grow. Thank you to our Customer Family, without you the bibliophile madness would only be two young ladies surrounded silently (and madly) by stacks of books.

Books from the man in the trench coat anyone?

Where do you get all your books? 

This is the question most asked by customers or curious friends and family. It is also the question we struggle the most to understand the curiosity/motive behind the question. A loaded question? The foremost mode of action for a bookseller (at least here at Pete & Freddy's) is to present an enthusiastic front for our customers, after all giving people a little smack isn't widely/socially accepted...or so it would seem. *wink*

Freddy and I have been collectors of books rare, wild, and wonderful for so many years I often can’t pinpoint a day or time when we didn't read or buy books. To date, our combine libraries would be in the realm of 5,000 or more. This does not take into account that Freddy's library was joined in matrimony to Yeti's; nor that Mum shelves many of our books for us until that fateful day when book friends will say goodbye to their neighbors as one moves out and the other stays behind.

So as this question is asked time and again, it is easy to find ourselves scratching our heads,

wondering why does it matter? However, curiosity being what it is, people want the scoop, the juicy gossip, or what have you. Our job as booksellers is to foster within our community the love of books and reading, to establish new readers, to give people the book-touchdown moment we all long for. When we look for books for the shop we are nurturing our inner book collector, but more importantly for OTHER PEOPLE with the widest, most diverse taste, and with the goal in mind to bring to the people what the people demand…books with a side of more books please. I mean we’re not buying books from the guy down the street in the trench coat. He is kinda creepy and do we really want to buy, or read for that matter, books from under someone’s trench coat? *wink* We bring passion to the game and then we dish it out in the form of customers’ delight at finding that gem. Our endeavor has been, from the get-go, to keep our prices affordable and people wanting more. We didn’t start the shop with the notion of becoming wealthy, well unless you mean wealthy in experience and memories. Our dream was being realized and we grabbed at the chance to share it with you.

So where do we get ALL our books? Here, there, yes everywhere! It is fair to say we’re experts at what we do AND we are always learning…still. Our ‘talent’, the knack for the job came about long before we unlocked the door and hung the ‘Open’ sign, only now we are using our abilities for you too...it’s nice to share or isn’t that what our mothers teach from our youth?

"I cannot sleep unless I am surrounded by books."

~Jorge Luis Borges