The Indie Bob Spot: Cherry Street Books

Cherry Street Books - Alexandria, MN

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When you visit Cherry Street Books in Alexandria, MN, don't go to Cherry Street. You won't find it. Heck, I don't even know if there is a Cherry St. in Alexandria. So where is it? On Broadway St. of course! Naturally, I was confused but Kathleen P., the owner, straightened me out. She's the founder of this wonderful indie and at one time her sister lived in a town in a house that was on Cherry St. Kathleen thought the name sounded bright and happy and thought it would be a good name for her bookstore. Like the name of a store you might read about in a book, for example. It works! It's a great name for this indie in west central Minnesota.

If there were beauty pageants for bookstores, Cherry Street Books would be considered a very attractive contestant. Kathleen has done a great job with both the exterior and interior of this store which lends itself to a very comfortable atmosphere. I think the location is great, a corner building on the busiest street through town. This location makes it very visible and accessible. You can easily park on the street or in a free lot behind the store. Cherry Street Books hosts frequent author events in the store and has a great space to do so. The sidelines are an important part of the business with some of the best including games, journals, and jigsaw puzzles, especially for kids, just to name a few. There are definitely some unique and interesting games you can get here that are difficult to get elsewhere. Kathleen works to make this one of the store's specialities.

Kathleen did not hesitate to tell me that tourists are a vital part of the success here, especially during the summers. However, she also stated that local customers are continuing to show increasing support for the store. It's also a hopeful sign that Kathleen can see a growing trend in support of independent bookstores, an opinion shared with me by other bookstore owners.

Kathleen has a a great set-up here because not only does she get to spend time in a bookstore, she also gets to spend time with her daughter Christine and a granddaughter who helps out at the store. I can't imagine a better work place! I enjoyed talking to Kathleen and Christine during my visit and like every other indie, I could've spent hours talking about books with them.

Ok, so the tourists are all over this place. Great. Hey citizens of Alexandria, now it's time for you to step-up your support as well. If you haven't been here yet, it's time. You'll have a great experience at this terrific local bookstore. Go to an indie and buy a book. Bonsoir.

JUST FINISHED: Old Filth, Jane Gardham. Didn't. This British author gets a lot of positive review from many readers and lots of people really like this book but her style just didn't fit for me. Just couldn't get into it.

CURRENTLY READING: Us, David Nicholls.

RECENTLY PURCHASED: Neither Wolf Nor Dog, Kent Nerburn. The Charm School, Nelson DeMille.

The side street view.

Another exterior view from Broadway St.

One of the front window displays.

Looking to the right of the store from the entrance.

Looking straight through the store from the front entrance. Discerning readers may recognize the celebrity searching for a good book. Yes, that's my mom.

Looking to the left from the front entrance. Some great games can be found on this table.

A nice display of regional interests and authors.

There are many varieties of socks here. These are just a few of them.

A nice staff picks display. Notice the signs at the top of the shelf. They're like small street signs, keeping the theme with the name of the store, Cherry Street Books.