Happy Monday! We’re excited to introduce bookstore owner and bookseller R. Aimee Chipman of The Bluestocking Bookshop in Holland, Michigan.
How did you get into bookselling?
I worked in Event Coordinating and Production Management for a local theatre company. Another bookstore in the area sold tickets for us, so when they moved into a larger storefront, I was brought on to help with events and marketing. Two years later, I was running the business for them and decided it was time to strike out on my own!
What do you love most about being a bookseller?
I love the moment that a reader connects with a book that makes them light up. Whether it’s a teen reading Simon vs. the Homosapiens Agenda for the first time and seeing a character they can relate to, or an adult who gushes about reading for enjoyment for the first time since high school, that joy that others find in books is my favorite moment.
What do you love most about your bookstore?
I love that my shop strives to keep the environmental footprint down. We’re mostly paperless, keeping used books in circulation helps keep publishing and waste costs down, and offering digital options like Libro.fm and Kobo ebooks helps support small business and independent bookseller economy.
What are you listening to right now?
Slay by Brittney Morris
What audiobooks would you recommend or are among your favorites?
Daisy Jones & The Six – I love the casting of this one!
Where / when do you listen to audiobooks?
At the shop or in the car.
What is your favorite thing about audiobooks through Libro.fm?
The wide selection. Before it was difficult to find audiobooks – my library was always out of what I wanted to listen to!
What do you do when you’re not selling books?
What’s this “day off” you speak of? *laughs* Honestly, I read. I used to follow a lot of TV shows before I realized I was giving nearly 3 hours a day to doing nothing but sitting on the couch. Now I use that time to read.