Independent bookstores foster connections

In a time where companies like Barnes & Noble and Amazon make it more convenient to shop for books, going to a local bookstore has become less to do with being convenient and more to do with community, culture and connection.

That is where independent bookstores come in. They allow people to find like-minded people and build a community. Although Barnes & Noble and Amazon are technically in the same industry, their cultures differ from those of local bookstores.

The Little Book is an independent Highland Park bookstore on Euclid Ave. Its vibrant colors and warm atmosphere give it a child-like charm, appealing to its core demographic of children and young adults. 

As the owner of The Little Book,  Bethany Fast’s goal is to be much more than a place where people can just buy books, “We really want this to be a place where families of all different kinds feel comfortable coming in, sitting down, reading and playing in the back.” 

Fast added that supporting local businesses benefits not only the business but also the community around it. When you buy locally, you create jobs and bring money into the community.

“It’s so easy to hop online and go to Amazon, just click to your cart, and it shows up magically at your door. What you’re doing when you shop locally is you’re helping a small business owner pay our incredible employee, who also lives here. You help us be an employer in the community,” Fast said.

In return, these stores can invest back into the community. “[This helps us] spend the money that we make on things like health insurance for our employee. We try to spend as much money locally as we can. We also have some local books as well, but especially some sideline and stationery items are from local creators,” Fast said.

Fast also has an Artist of the Month, where a local artist can hang their art for free, and people can buy the art and pick it up at the end of the month.

The Des Moines area has many options for groups and events for book lovers. Finding ways to make book reading a group-based activity rather than something you do independently is appealing to people. 

The Silent Book Club of Des Moines is an open-to-the-public book club run by four women. The group reads silently for an hour, after which you can socialize or keep reading your book. They have hosted events at Little Book Store, Secret Admirer, and Slow Down DSM.

Erin Dohlman, one of the founders of SBC DSM, said via email, “Silent Book Club creates a community for book lovers by creating a space where we can get together in a public space, support our local community, and hang out with similar people. So often, reading is a private activity done at home, so this offers a more social alternative.”

DMACC English professor Marc Dickinson, the author of “Replacement Parts” and the coordinator for the Celebration of Literary Arts Festival, regularly collaborates with local bookstores.

“We’ve had, like, a 20-year relationship with Beaverdale Books, and now, in the last five years since [COVID-19], every time we have a reader coming through our literary festival, we usually have eight or ten a year, we always offer the reader a chance to either get, like pay, like a stipend or an honorarium, or to go for like a book buy,” Dickinson said.

A book buy occurs when the author forgoes payment to the school, allowing the school to buy the book in bulk and give it away for free. “They almost always go for the book buy,” he said.

 When asked why he doesn’t work with big corporation bookstores, Dickinson said he doesn’t know for sure; however, he doesn’t believe he can get the same experience with one.

“I feel like it would be so corporatized… I feel like that was a huge part of Beaverdale books is that you serve in a community, there’s a huge loyal fan base of Beaverdale books that we can depend on,” he said.

Dickerson said he has enjoyed his experience as an author as well. He believes that going to your local bookstore is a good starting point for newly published authors or niche authors. There is more flexibility for the sake of art.

“I don’t know about chains and what their value systems are, but I just know local people buy and run local independent bookstores because they are book lovers. They love the written word. They love writers. There’s something personal about that. When you talk to them, they’re pro writer,” he said.

Dickerson said a mutualistic relationship exists between the independent bookstore and the customer.

“There’s also this advocacy, I think, that works not just within the community, but also within artists itself.  You go to the local bookstore, and I’ll do a reading. I will come to your reading because you came to my reading. [Which creates] a self-made community that is a nucleus, is the local bookstore,” Dickerson said.

While the corporate stores don’t have that connection with their customers, it is more about accessibility, such as getting a book and going home. Dickerson believes both serve their purposes in society.

Dickerson said, “I love Barnes & Noble, it’s fine, but when you go there, nobody’s talking to each other… It’s like going to Walmart. Everyone is separate in separate aisles, and there are no conversations happening.”

Right now, store owner Fast said she doesn’t think the Des Moines metro is oversaturated with indie bookstores: “What’s unique about the book industry is that we all, even though technically they may be competing businesses, care about each other so much, and we all do touch base to make sure that we are all succeeding as a unit.”