Books can entertain and educate and heal. They can create and build community. And they can, sometimes, even change the world.
For the folks at Western Sky Books, bookstores can — and should — strive to do the same.
At first glance, Western Sky is a book lover’s dream: tall, tidy shelves stacked with used and new books in every genre, a front desk staffed by friendly and knowledgeable staff, walls adorned with paintings from local artists, and a handy central location.
But what you can’t see in this cozy Port Coquitlam shop is just as important as what you can. Behind the scenes, this is a business that is committed to not just books, but also to the people who read, write and make those books, as well as the surrounding community, both local and global.
Owner Tamara Gorin says they knew when they opened in 2017 that they would focus on used books as a first step in aligning business practices with a variety of broader personal concerns — in this case, climate change and the environment.
“Used bookstores are integral to an economy which puts the planet first,” says Gorin. “We keep books in circulation, keep them read and re-read, provide low-cost options … we do everything we can to try to get books to at least one more reader, if not more, before they have lived their lives.”
Gorin notes that books are not yet recyclable, and many end up in landfills at the end of their lives — which can come much sooner than necessary, and in large quantities because of high print runs for some titles. For new books, the store keeps a close eye on what customers are looking for, and stocks to meet that demand so they don’t have excess inventory later.
At the same time, Gorin says the store is a place to showcase vital books for readers to discover, which includes highlighting Indigenous writers, making space for indie authors, and focusing on local writers and publishers.
“We are lucky in BC to have a number of very skilled and long-lasting small publishers with terrific backlists that they keep in print. So, I am always happy to work with them and their writers. They’re doing small, targeted print runs with readers and writers in mind. And the quality of the writing is beyond excellent, so we know the content, ideas, stories are ones that customers will want to read.”
“We are lucky in BC to have a number of very skilled and long-lasting small publishers . . . the quality of the writing is beyond excellent, so we know the content, ideas, stories are ones that customers will want to read.”
The store has also become a creative and friendly hub — even with the limitations of covid these last two years. With readings and launches going online, the store still draws a sense of community in the virtual space.
“I love that we managed to keep our vision of community and home and connection … and that informs every decision we make. It would have been easy to lose our heart over the pandemic, but we stayed true.”
For Gorin and her partner, Dianne, the store is the culmination of a desire to do rewarding work in a welcoming space.
“Turns out we had this dream separately and didn’t know it. We spent a lot of our free time in used bookstores together,” says Gorin, noting that it had also been a shared daydream with her mother who had long imagined opening a bookstore cafe. When Gorin was considering a career change and looking ahead towards what retirement might look like, the pair decided it was time to take the leap into the book business and work “on our own terms, building and creating something we love for ourselves and the community.”
It has become in many ways an extension of their personal values and identity, reflecting what’s most important to them as individuals.
“(I’m a) middle-aged lesbian with disabilities,” she notes, “with a wife and co-conspirator who grew up in this community, and we are deeply committed to community as the source of the best of what makes living anywhere truly great. We are a haven, a secret lair for activists and birders and builders of canoes and poets and anyone who wants to find some peaceful centred moments in their lives. We’re pretty laid back and just make room for people, no urgency, no pressure, no judgements.”
The store has also committed to becoming a living wage employer, which means an employer that pays the living wage — enough for a family of four to live on, which varies from region to region, but is typically well over minimum wage (see the Living Wage BC website at https://www.livingwageforfamilies.ca) and to continue efforts to increase accessibility for both staff and customers.
And while the last few years have been uniquely challenging for small businesses in general and bookstores in particular, Gorin is looking ahead with enthusiasm, with an eye to making the next five years as full of transformation, connection, and growth as the first five have been.
Find Western Sky Books:
Unit 2132-2850 Shaughnessy Street
Port Coquitlam, BC
Online:
• Instagram https://www.instagram.com/westernskybooks
• Facebook https://www.facebook.com/westernskybooks/
• on the web https://www.westernskybooks.com/
Christina Myers is is an award-winning newspaper journalist turned freelance writer and editor. After leaving her long-time newsroom post, she turned her attention to more creative work, including both fiction and narrative non-fiction (and sometimes, secretly, poetry too.) She holds degrees in journalism and psychology from TRU and UBC, respectively, and is an alumnus of the Writer’s Studio at SFU. She is a fan of vintage collectibles and big dresses with deep pockets, she juggles parenthood and creative work from her home outside Vancouver, BC.