Half Moon Books
Located in Kingston’s Stockade District, Half Moon Books has been owned by Jessica DuPont since 2009. She laughs, telling how that came about: “I bought a failing bookstore in an industry that was undergoing huge changes in not only a terrible economy, but a particularly difficult economy for retail. Everyone in business I talked to in ’08 and ’09 felt like they’d gone off a cliff. The benefit of starting out under these challenges is that you learn to hustle. It took me a full year just to organize the top floor.”
Offering used books of every genre, Half Moon also stocks current magazines, cards and gift items. “It’s very tempting to become a new bookseller, but I don’t. The only new books I carry are local history, ordered right from the local publishers.” DuPont and associate Carl Enriquez – he has been with the store since the beginning – also host poetry readings and a science fiction book group that meets monthly. She recently diversified by turning the basement storage space into a thrift shop. Check it out.
Half Moon Books, 35 North Front Street, Kingston; (845) 331-5439.
The Bohemian Book Bin
The Bohemian Book Bin, now owned by Linda Harrington and recently relocated, also has a long history in town. For 27 years the family-owned business, once called Annie’s Book Shop and later the Hudson Valley Book Stop, has served the community in various locations as a book recycling center. Harrington compares her eclectic selection – very organized and alphabetized – to the Strand in New York City; that’s 35 different sections crammed into a not-very-huge space.
Her formula for taking in used books and reselling them at half the cover price gives customers strong motivation to recycle their books here. “I believe in over-the-top customer service. I’ve offered to deliver to hospitals. If people come in and can’t get to the books, I’ll lay on the floor and reach them for people.” Pre-owned silver jewelry, cards and other odds and ends round out the merchandise at the Bohemian Book Bin.
Bohemian Book Bin, 592 Ulster Avenue, Kingston; (845) 336-6450, https://bohemianbookbin.com.
Barner Books
When Jim Barner, founder of Barner Books in New Paltz, passed on a few years back, his partner David Friedman took the helm of the store that has offered shoppers used books and unique gifts for 25 years. It continues to sell primarily used books, with new titles being brought in when in high demand. Friedman and store manager Abby Chance like nothing more than greeting customers and talking books: the classics, philosophy, social sciences, art, books written by local authors and small-press titles – an eccentric mix of everything, including antique typewriters. They are also very proud of their selection of handmade journals, custom-designed and imported from India.
Barner Books, 3 Church Street, New Paltz; (845) 255-2635, www.bibliotique.us.
Inquiring Minds Bookstore
Just across the street, Inquiring Minds Bookstore sells both used and new books. This and a sister store in Saugerties are known for their well-attended events, their comfortable spaces (Inquiring Minds in Saugerties has a great coffee bar/café in the back with lots of tables, chairs and couches) and their broad range of books, toys and cards. Both stores hold numerous author and poetry readings, book groups and children’s events.
According to events coordinator Deborah Engel-Dimauro, owner Brian Donoghue has developed a large selection of titles in education, psychology, therapy and trauma to augment the full spectrum of general offerings. Look into the Glaring Omissions Reading Series in the Saugerties location, and check out the Books We Read booklist on the Inquiring Minds website for recommendations from local professionals and regular residents.
Inquiring Minds Bookstore, 6 Church Street, New Paltz, (845) 255-8300; corner of Main and Partition Streets, Saugerties, (845) 246-5775; https://inquiringbooks.com.
Mirabai of Woodstock
Filling a special niche in a town steeped in countercultural uniqueness, Mirabai of Woodstock was founded by Anne Roberts in 1987. In 2000, husband-and-wife team Jeffrey Cuiule and Audrey Cusson bought the business, which has always been more of a spiritual center than simply a bookshop. “Often when you enter a ‘New Age’ store,” says Cuiule, “you’ll find a sort of slant of a particular teacher or path. Mirabai has taken a more ecumenical approach. You’ll find a breadth of information here. We try to provide people with a means to find their spiritual center.”
The merchandise inventory is not limited to books and audio. “You don’t get everything from books or media in general. We also have crystals, statuary, cards and many other things that help inform a spiritual lifestyle. In addition, we do workshops throughout the year, and the store comes to life in multidimensional, highly experiential form.” Cuiule lists the variety of workshops offered: group and one-on-one sessions with channelers, astrologists, shamanic journey work, herbologists.
“What’s challenging in this niche is that people come to you with issues and problems, and it’s our job to help them. But it’s challenging, because being therapists is not our training.” He explains that you have to know when to draw the line in making recommendations, just as sellers of medicinal herbs in a natural food store must. On the other hand, being an independent bookseller gives you the opportunity to curate an incredible selection of titles: ones that a big-box store might not carry on a regular basis.
Mirabai of Woodstock, 23 Mill Hill Road, Woodstock; (845) 679-2100, https://mirabai.com.
“Independent bookstores are thriving, doing everything well,” says the Golden Notebook’s Kellachan. “It takes a lot to make it work. In some ways bookstores were once places of elitism, and their numbers have decreased. The cool thing about Barnes & Noble and the now-defunct Borders is that they democratized books in a way that didn’t exist before. It was a powerful, good thing. But the scale was just off. They knocked out a lot of indie bookstores, and now they’re disappearing because the scale was just wrong. The indies that were able to hang in are benefiting from that.”
The continuing viability of these great resources depends on us: to vote with our hard-earned dollars, to choose community over price and human contact over virtual technology and to support the ruggedly determined and dedicated booksellers who work and live among us.
