A
Two Sisters Bookery (318 Nutt Street,
910-762-4444) is located inside Historic
Downtown Wilmington’s Cotton Exchange.
Though the location has been a book-store
since 1974, Two Sisters Bookery was
founded in 1991 by sisters Mary House
and Wanda Canady. Today, the bookstore
is owned by Brooks Preik and her daugh-ter,
Angela Napier. Although especially
proud of their local history, children’s
and southern fiction section, Two Sisters
Bookery delivers on their mission statement
to “offer an eclectic selection of quality
books and gifts.” Napier suggests reading
Matterhorn: A Novel of the Vietnam War, by
Karl Marlantes.
Nestled inside a pink-shuttered cottage
is Wilmington’s largest independent
bookstore: Pomegranate Books (4418
Park Avenue, 910-452-1107). Pomegranate
opened in 2005 and is currently owned
by Kathleen Jewell, a retired physician
and book enthusiast. Sip a cup of coffee
and peruse their wide selection of titles.
For 2011, Jewell suggests reading Kate
Braestrup’s Marriage and Other Acts of
Charity. “Braestrup, with her singular voice
and graceful prose, takes on the topic of
marriage in this heartfelt treatise,” says
Jewell. “It’s so compelling, it deserves a
second read.”
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WBM january 2011
McAllister & Solomon Used and
Rare Books (4402-1 Wrightsville Avenue,
910-350-0189) has been in the vintage book
business for almost 18 years. Owners Steve
McAllister and Linda Solomon say that the
oldest book in stock is a 16th century world
atlas with woodcut illustrations. Jumping
ahead five centuries, McAllister recom-mends
Thomas Day: Master Craftsman
and Free Man of Color by Patricia Phillips
Marshall and Jo Ramsay Leimenstoll as a
must-read for 2011. “It’s a fascinating story
about the life of a North Carolina furniture
maker and free black man in the age of
slavery,” McAllister says.
beachbites
The Saltshaker
Bookstore and Café
(705 South Kerr Avenue,
910-350-1753) is a
Christian-influenced indy
bookseller. Co-owned
since 1999 by sisters
Claire Efird and Katherine
Sullivan, this bookstore
and café provides
“Christ-honoring prod-ucts
in an atmosphere
of encouraging and caring services.” Stop in and pick
up your inspirational read for 2011. Efird recommends
Rebecca Nichols Alonzo’s The Devil in Pew Number
Seven, a true story of violence, persecution, tragedy
and closure in 1970s Whiteville, North Carolina. “It’s
truly a story about forgiveness,” Efird says.
novel idea
curl up with
a good book
lthough the massive stock of chain book-stores
has its advantages, only 13 cents
out of every dollar spent at mega-book-stores
goes back into the local economy.
Not much when you consider that almost
half of every dollar (45 cents) spent at a local, inde-pendent
bookstore is cycled back into the community.
Wilmington offers its share of big-chain bookstores,
but for many passionate local readers, the personality,
warmth and positive community impact of one of the
Port City’s independent bookstores is enough to keep
them coming back again and again. We asked four of
our local indy booksellers to suggest some fabulous
reading material for 2011. — Ashley Peel