What are the 3 adjectives you would use to describe your bookstore?

Feminist, Activist, Genre

Share a quote from a book or poem that bares your bookstore’s soul.

“Nothing is lost. Everything is transformed.”

Michael Ende / The Neverending Story

Why was your bookstore founded/what role does it play in the community?

I started my bookstore in 2015 as a used bookshop. It quickly rebranded into new and used, and when I moved in 2018, it became a genre-specific shop. In 2020, during the shutdown in Washington State, I rebranded further into a feminist activist genre bookstore.

Which champion/warrior/wildcat (real or mythological) does your bookstore channel most?

Any and every disabled author I can find.

What makes your bookstore unique?

Ninety-five percent of my stock is written by disabled/BIPOC/LGBTQIA+/female voices. In 2017 I began building the shop’s Disability in Fiction section. While it’s still not a huge section, it does feature books across age ranges and genres. Books have to pass the Kenny Fries test to qualify for the section. I personally vet each and every book added to the Disability in Fiction shelves.

What is something that no one knows about your bookstore?

That its current location and branding almost didn’t happen. When I lost my lease in 2018, I decided it might be easiest to cut my losses and find another bookselling/publishing job. I was so depressed from the tenant politics that ultimately cost me that space, I didn’t want to try again. My husband talked me into finding a new location, and I’m so happy he did! My shop is still here, despite COVID, and my community happily supports my shop. And I think the message my shop brings to the community is too important to let go of: this is an equal space for minorities and repressed communities, and I will not cater to the patriarchal expectations of white, straight, abled America.