Yesterday my peregrinations took me to the People's Co-op Bookstore on Vancouver's Commercial Drive where I was delighted to find Rolf Maurer tending the cash. Rolf, whose job-job is the publisher of New Star Books, is a determined volunteer at the store, as well as the recent chronicler of its history. (The story, which is a fascinating one for anyone interested in the recent history of the book trade, may be found at New Star's blog, beginning here.)
With me I had a packsack weighted down with used thrillers that had been piling up beside my bed. Recently the store has been accepting donations of used books to shelve alongside its stock of new volumes and Rolf reports that the policy is working well.
The PCB is currently in the middle of a fund-raising campaign to keep its doors open, its lights on and its inventory healthy. If you want to help, you can join the Co-op for as little as $25, or make a donation to the campaign, or haul some of your own used books over to the Commercial Drive premises.