A surprise bestseller at Capitol Book & News Company in Montgomery, Ala., is the memoir Heart in the Right Place by Carolyn Jourdan. "It has been our greatest unexpected success this year," said Thomas Upchurch, who owns and operates the store with his wife, Cheryl.
A Capitol Book employee read Heart in the Right Place and gave it a favorable review on the website Goodreads.com. The author spotted the review and called the store to say thank you, which led to a reading and signing there in September. Since then word of mouth has helped sustain sales, including interest from book clubs, and to date the store has sold about 500 copies.
After cutbacks at a local newspaper earlier this year led to the cancellation of a twice-monthly book recommendation column the Upchurches had written for more than a decade, they sought to expand the store's visibility with online marketing. In addition to joining Goodreads, they created a page on Facebook.com and started a blog. This holiday season, for the first time, customers can purchase select titles through the store's website.
In another change this year, the store bought more remaindered books to appeal to cost-conscious holiday consumers, a decision made in October when it became apparent tough economic times were coming. The Various Haunts of Men and Pure at Heart, two mysteries by British scribe and store favorite Susan Hill, are remaindered in hardcover and striking a chord with customers. "I can't believe how many we've sold of those," said Upchurch. "I hope she catches on because she's really, really good."
One of Upchurch's handsells is the thriller Serena by North Carolina author Ron Rash, which he recommends for fans of Dennis Lehane--whose latest novel, The Given Day, is selling well at the store. Young readers, meanwhile, will be unwrapping copies of staff suggestions The Big Bell and the Little Bell, a new edition of a 1950s picture book that comes with an audio CD, and Lemony Snicket's The Lump of Coal.
Regional titles are top sellers for the store, and two in particular are proving to be great gift choices--The Long Shadow of Coach Paul "Bear" Bryant by Dr. E. Gaylon McCollough, a biography of the former University of Alabama football coach, and Birmingham restaurateur Frank Stitt's Bottega Favorita: A Southern Chef's Love Affair with Italian Food. Another is Nobody But the People: The Life and Times of Alabama's Youngest Governor by Warren Trest, the first authorized biography of former Alabama governor John Patterson. Both Patterson and Trest recently appeared at Capitol Book, as did McCollough and Stitt.
Some generous shoppers have opted to sign up recipients for the store's book-a-month program, which was launched when a customer asked to have a book sent to her grandchild each month. In addition to kids, the program is popular with people looking for a gift for elderly parents.
Capitol Book typically does not carry sideline items, but an exception was made for an item Upchurch heard about and found intriguing--the word game Bananagrams, which is "selling like hotcakes." (Last week the store's newsletter included a link to two YouTube videos about Bananagrams: How to Play and Funny Anagrams.) "At $14.95 it's cheap enough to be a stocking stuffer," said Upchurch. "They're going to pay the rent this month."
In fact, paying rent is something the Upchurches will no longer be doing. Last week they purchased the building in which Capitol Book is located--a fitting way to mark a milestone year. Cheryl Upchurch purchased the business three decades ago in 1978. "We've seen good and bad times over the years, and we were very concerned about what was going to happen this year. We have a loyal clientele but still, people lost a lot of money in the market," said Upchurch. "Our ace in the hole is that we are geographically removed from the big box stores in town."
Traffic in the store has been steady for the holidays, and this past Saturday was the biggest day yet. "I'm happy with the way it has gone. We've been much busier than we thought we would be," said Upchurch. Ultimately, whatever the final sales tally for the year, he's optimistic about what lies ahead. "We think there's a future in the book business, and we're committed to it."--Shannon McKenna Schmidt