With a headline "Condensed Cover Doing Just Fine," the Rocky Mountain News examines how the Tattered Cover's flagship store is faring after its move in June to the Lowenstein Theater.

"Generally, I think things are going really well," general manager Matt Miller told the paper. "Business is where we had projected it to be. . . . The reaction from customers has been very positive. People seem to be finding us."

During an evening visit, columnist Patti Thorn observed: "With the Tattered Cover's trademark forest green carpet and rustic shelves, the space seemed pleasantly familiar, yet utterly fresh. Now occupying the renovated Lowenstein Theater and retaining charming touches from the historic landmark, the store flows nicely from the small café near the front to the curved ramp in the middle that spirals into the theater's old orchestra pit. There, plush red theater chairs pay homage to the past--and provide great places to lounge.

"Similar nooks and crannies scattered about add to the store's appeal. My favorite: two quaint theater boxes overlooking the selling floor where readers can perch. (Really: Could they be more adorable?)"

She added that the store has "a great vibe. It seemed safe, even at night, was easy to access and best of all, it preserved the welcoming, stay-awhile flavor of the old store."

Among a few complaints: a miscategorized book; crowds during a Sunday afternoon visit that would likely have felt less compact in the larger space on Cherry Creek (the old store had 30,000 square feet of selling space while the new has 24,000); and a diminishment in what Thorn called the "grandeur and distinctiveness that comes with size" (mainly because of the contrast to the Tattered Cover's old four-story space).

In an article called "10 places to escape from Disney--inside Disney," the Miami Herald offers this thumb-nail sketch of a book oasis in Disney World:

"The Writers' Stop at Disney-MGM Studios: It's so small that you can't call it a cafe (even though it serves coffee) or a bookstore (even though it sells books and magazines). But it offers enough of each experience to somehow qualify as its own Starbucks-meets-Barnes & Noble equivalent within Disney."

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Since construction has evolved far enough to allow tours, the Toledo Blade profiles the Creation Museum, set to open next spring in Petersburg, Ky., in suburban Cincinnati, Ohio. The museum's bookstore--called the Dragon Hall Bookstore--is designed to look like "a medieval castle."

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Vald Svekis, former owner of Liberties, is moving ahead with his "new and improved" bookstore in Boca Raton, Fla.'s Mizner Park mall, where Liberties was located, according to the Boca Raton News. Svekis signed a lease for the store last month (Shelf Awareness, July 11) and now is close to receiving "official design plans" for the space. He hopes to open next June.

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The Book Cellar, has opened in St. George, Utah. According to the St. George Daily Spectrum's brief note, the store's "décor includes antiques and collectibles, creating a comfortable atmosphere to browse."

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On August 25, Turn Row bookstore in Greenwood, Miss., is moving across the street to a larger location that will have "a screened-in porch and will offer snacks and coffee," the Jackson Clarion Ledger reported. The store, which specializes in "Mississippi authors, Southern literature, cookbooks and blues CDs," was founded in January by Jamie and Kelly Kornegay.

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The Last Chapter Bookshoppe, Overland Park, Kan., has closed, according to the Kansas City Star, which ran the sadly inevitable headline about the Last Chapter's last chapter.

Owner Jane Schaumburg, who last fall celebrated being in the business 25 years, noted at the time that "when we first started, there was no Barnes & Noble or Borders or Sam's. No Amazon. Even though you struggled to make a profit 25 years ago, the competition today is so fierce."

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The Café Abuelita café and bookstore in Indio, Calif., has closed but will reopen this fall in nearby La Quinta, according to the Desert Sun. Owner Gloria Maldonado had decided some time ago to move, because the Indio location was "very secluded for us on a daily basis."

In a discussion of the gender gap in reading in Canada, which parallels that in the U.S., the Globe and Mail reports few surprises, but here are some insightful and amusing observations:

"Women read more, they read more novels, they read earlier and they read later. Sixty-five to 70 per cent of the [Canadian] book market is women," Brad Martin, president of Random House of Canada, told the paper. "How many men do you know who are in a book group?"

"While men read and many men read voraciously, they tend to read nonfiction, history, finance and sports," Doug Pepper, president and publisher of McClelland & Stewart, said to the Globe and Mail. "I wish it were more evenly split but it does make it easier for us because we can identify our market."

Vancouver writer and literary critic George Fetherling has found some encouraging news: "The male-only book club has sprung up. It's viewed the same way the Vancouver papers view the existence of nude yoga: It's a sign of the times, and should we be worried about it?"

This morning on the Early Show: Sharon Lamb, author of Packaging Girlhood: Rescuing Our Daughters from Marketers' Schemes (St. Martin's, $24.95, 0312352506).

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Today on NPR's Morning Edition: Morning Edition's own Juan Williams, whose new book is Enough: The Phony Leaders, Dead-End Movements, and Culture of Failure that Are Undermining Black America--And What We Can Do About It (Crown, $25, 0307338231).

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Today on NPR's Fresh Air with Terry Gross: Adam Roberts, author of The Wonga Coup: Guns, Thugs and a Ruthless Determination to Create Mayhem in an Oil-Rich Corner of Africa (PublicAffairs, $26, 1586483714)

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Today on WAMU's Diane Rehm Show: Nora Ephron, whose new book is I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman (Knopf, $19.95, 0307264556).

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In a repeat, tonight's Colbert Report features Linda R. Hirshman, author of Get to Work: A Manifesto for Women of the World (Viking, $19.95, 0670038121).

Pennie Clark Ianniciello, Costco's book buyer, has made The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (Knopf Books for Young Readers, $16.95, 0375831002), first published in March, her pick for the August issue of Costco Connection, which goes to many members of the warehouse club.

Admitting "my love of reading young-adult novels and seeing what today's kids are reading," Ianniciello recommended The Book Thief to adults, too, saying, "The novel is about a little girl, Liesel, who lives with a foster family outside Munich during World War II--after her mother is taken away. At her brother's gravesite she finds a book that ignites her passion for reading. The only way Liesel can get books is to steal them. She then shares these stolen treasures with nearly everyone, including Max, the Jewish man who is hiding in the basement. I don't think I'll ever forget the image of Max painting over the pages of Mein Kampf to write down the story of his friendship with Liesel on top of Hitler's words."

From last week's Book Sense bestseller lists, available at booksense.com, here are the recommended titles, which are also Book Sense Picks:

Hardcover

Sweet Ruin by Cathi Hanauer (Atria, $24, 0743277341). "The plot of Sweet Ruin might sound familiar (a lonely suburban housewife meets a handsome, much younger neighbor), but what makes this special is the wonderful writing and character development. No neat answers, but a hopeful ending."--Jan Warner-Poole, Storyteller Books, Vancouver, Wash.

Hotel California: The True-Life Adventures of Crosby, Stills, Nash, Young, Mitchell, Taylor, Browne, Ronstadt, Geffen, the Eagles, and Their Many Friends by Barney Hoskyns (Wiley, $25.95, 0471732737). "Anyone and everyone who defined the California sound of the '70s can be found in this meaty musical story. Dust off your favorite vinyl records and join Hoskyns as he leads us up and down Laurel Canyon and into every nook and cranny of the not-so peace, love, dove creative community."--Kathleen Creamer, Maine Coast Book Shop, Damariscotta, Me.

Paperback

Dancing Under the Red Star: The Extraordinary Story of Margaret Werner, the Only American Woman to Survive Stalin's Gulag by Karl Tobien (WaterBrook, $14.99 paper, 1400070783). "Margaret Werner's courageous, defiant spirit, as well as her love for family and a tremendous faith in an unseen God, helped her overcome many obstacles in her path to return to America. Written by her son, this is a wonderful story of triumph."--Jerry Quick, Partners Village Store, Westport, Mass.

To Age 8

Yellow Elephant: A Bright Bestiary by Julie Larios, illustrated by Julie Paschkis (Harcourt, $16, 0152054227). "Color and sound create mood and imagery in this book of animal-themed original poems."--Rondi Brower, Blackwood & Brouwer, Kinderhook, N.Y.

A Frog Thing by Eric Drachman, illustrated by James Muscarello (Kidwick Books, $18.95, with companion audio CD, 0970380933). "This is a truly enjoyable tale of Frankie the Frog, who wants to fly and who finds a way, by accident, to do just that. The illustrations are soft and beautiful."--Brenda Spratt, Books on First, Dixon, Ill.

[Many thanks to Book Sense and the ABA!]