Congratulations to Once Upon a Time children's bookstore in Montrose, Calif., which is celebrating its 50th anniversary. Bookselling This Week reported that over the years, the shop, owned by Maureen Palacios, "has been recognized for its outstanding work. Earlier this year, the store was named Small Business of the Year by California Senator Carol Liu. In 2015, it won the Women's National Book Association's Pannell Award for best children's bookstore and in 2016 it was again nominated for the Pannell. In 2014, Once Upon a Time was one of 81 indie bookstores to receive a grant from author James Patterson as part of his $1 million Saving Bookstores, Saving Lives campaign."
"There have been challenges, but the thing that keeps us going is that we have a reputation for putting the right book in the right hands at the right time," said Palacios. "Last year was our best year in 49 years, and we're expecting this year to beat that.... The community really values reading and values what we're doing, and continues to value it even with cheaper prices elsewhere....
"It's about continually offering advice, because that's really what we do," said Palacios. "When we say we handsell, we're really consulting, asking questions, trying to determine the best books for readers... and hopefully they'll buy from you. That is the key now: Find it here. Buy it here. Keep us here."