The Indie Bob Spot: McKay's Knoxville

McKay's Knoxville, Knoxville, TN

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Whatever words I write in this blurb and the pictures I post below will never begin to cover the enormity of what I saw here. This is an absolute behemoth. And get this, there are two other McKay's in Tennessee in Nashville and Chattanooga. There are also two others in North Carolina which is where this independent bookstore began and is now an independent bookstore chain. When I walked in there were lines everywhere. Lines to the right directing customers to their intake area and lines to the left for a multiple register check-out area. I tried to get a picture of the three-tiered parking lot but couldn't get far enough away for perspective. Given all this, I was not optimistic I would meet anyone to visit with even though I had contacted the store. But buried deep in the store and shelving books was Evan who kindly gave me a bit of the McKay's story.

The first McKay's was founded by owners Edward McKay and his wife. The one in Knoxville though is the original in Tennessee and has been here since the 1980s. They offer all used books and customers bringing books to the store are offered cash or store credit in exchange. There are no online sales because as Evan told me they can have a turnover of 30,000 books/day. There are also signed 1st editions within the shelves which are placed along side all the others. Think of this as a treasure hunt if you find one. They can be as low as $1, an incredible bargain since Evan told me the same books might sell for $300 elsewhere.

But there is so much more here. All sorts of video games, board games, toys, action figures, movies, guitars, lots of music in all formats, and electronics of all kinds including cell phones. The store's genres and inventory is divided up and assigned to staffers. Evan had a portion of the fiction and he was shelving and pricing when I met him. Above Evan is a person who is the director of fiction, and then another layer of people above him (at minimum).

Evan was not surprised that I didn't hear back from anyone after contacting the store since they scroll through over 600 emails/day. But that's ok. Evan has an MFA in writing and was extremely knowledgeable with book recommendations and I'm so grateful I got to visit with him.

Remember readers, a St. Bernard and a Chihuahua are both dogs and McKay's Knoxville and the smallest bookstore in a small town are both independent bookstores. The "St. Bernard" just takes a little bit longer to visit. Go to an indie and buy a book. Bonsoir.

JUST FINISHED: Dakota, Martha Grimes. A 20-year old vagabond woman with amnesia about her past wanders into Kingdom, North Dakota with little but the clothes on her back, a rescued donkey, and a gun. She stirs up the local community when she begins to advocate for animal rights at a local hog processing plant. This doesn't go over too well with most of the locals but she does gain a few allies to help her crusade. Animal rights activists will love this book. This is the first book I've read by this author and I enjoyed it. Recommended.

CURRENTLY READING: O Pioneers!, Willa Cather.

*RECENTLY PURCHASED: In The Lake of The Woods, Tim O'Brien. Miss Jane, Brad Watson. Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter, Tom Franklin. Wolf Whistle, Lewis Nordan. Is My Dog A Genius, SJG Gift Publishing. The Testament of Caspar Schultz, Jack Higgins.

*A note about the purchases. Before you wonder if I'm going to be able to sustain this wild spending, I bought these 6 used books for a total of $11.36. Two of them were .25, one was .50, and another was .90. Incredible bargains.

Everything about McKay's is enormous. The building is so big I couldn't get back far enough to get it completely in the picture.

Looking to the right inside the front entrance and you see a long line of people bringing their books in.

Whether you're buying or selling, one of these grocery carts will be useful.

Most used book stores have simple rules and policies but McKay's is a well-oiled machine with lots of room to handle intakes.

Follow the appropriate sign.

Take a number so you know when your intake order is complete.

After the front lobby area, this is the view looking to the left and the majority of the store.

Much, much more than just books.

Electronics of all varieties.

Find a guitar you like and then find a guitar book to go with it.

Above the large main floor is a wrap-around balcony that offers many things including comic books.

Gamers will enjoy visiting here just as much as readers.

Playstation fans will enjoy visiting.

A few of the puzzles and board games.

One of the MANY long book aisles.

These books are waiting to be shelved, something that is being done constantly.

Another long book aisle.

My first view looking down from above.

An overview of the main floor of books from the wrap-around balcony. The balcony reminds me of a track in a fitness center and if you take all the books out of the main floor it would make a great basketball court.

Go upstairs to find music of all genres in all formats.

Just a portion of the music on vinyl available.

This is the long view of the main floor from above. This is the view that reminds me of a basketball court.

From an upper level window I tried to get a picture of the 3-tiered parking lot but this doesn't really give you the full view. But you can see the large number of cars that equals the high volume of customers in the store when I visited.