Nora O'Neill

Up, down, & sideways- shelving your books

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When you’re opening a bookstore, probably the last thing on your mind is how to shelve your books.  You just get some cases and put them on, right?    Wrong.  Particularly if you’re building your own cases, you want to determine HOW you’re going to display your books first.  Otherwise you’ll get stuck with a shelving system that doesn’t work for you or your customers and costs you time and money to redo.


The key part to consider is what KIND of books will you be selling.   If it’s almost all paperback, you’ll want to use a different system than if you’ll be carrying only hardcovers.

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New lives for old books

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As much as book lovers are loath to admit it, there comes a time when a book has outlived its usefulness.  The cover has fallen off. Pages have gone missing.  It’s so hopelessly out of date that it’s not even interesting as a historical item. There’s 200,000 of them out there and they’re all in better condition than this copy.  It’s time to say goodbye… but goodbye doesn’t necessarily mean a trip to the trash heap.  Artists and craftsman have done some pretty amazing things with old books.

Click any of the photos to see larger photos and photos from different angles.  Most of the artists showcased here also have other works featuring altered books, so check out their websites for even more book crafts.

ABC Origami books by Rhymes With Magic

bookorigami
ABC Origami Book by Rhymes With Magic

A three book set where the pages have been carefully folded to form a 3-D alphabet.

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You don't have to be mad to work here, but it helps!

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A opossum reading trash Monthly. So exciting!
A opossum reading "trash Monthly". So exciting!

Much of the charm of independent bookstores comes from the fact they’re run by eccentrics for eccentrics.  They’re often located in repurposed buildings with strange layouts.  Strange shelving patterns, odd floor plans, bizarre color schemes, and strange decor are the norm for independent bookstores.  And multiply the weird factor by 10 if its a used or antiquarian dealer.  The older the books, the weirder the decor should be.  We rather expect the antiqurian book dealer to use skulls for bookends and have a live raven sitting at the checkout. If the owner has an eyepatch, so much the better! Yes, an independent bookstore often looks like a Monty Python sketch will break out at any moment.

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