Joel C. Turner, a member of the family that owned Under Cover Books, Shaker Heights, Ohio, died suddenly at the age of 58.
With his parents, the late Earl and Sylvia Turner, his brother, Philip, and sister, Pamela, Joel founded Under Cover in 1978. From the original location at Van Aken Shopping Center, the family-run independent chain grew to include a store in the historic Old Arcade of downtown Cleveland and one in Chagrin Falls that sold record albums and the then-new format of CD-ROMs.
Philip and Pamela Turner wrote that their brother's "role in the bookstores' success and the good reputation we enjoyed in the book world was vital and indispensable. He was always generating exciting new ideas that drove our growth. Joel was a constant reader, a passionate believer in books and the power of the printed word. He derived tremendous satisfaction from selling books to the devoted readers whose trade we cultivated in our bookstores."
Under Cover Books helped launch a range of writers, including Mark Helprin, author of Winter's Tale, Richard North Patterson, author of The Lasko Tangent and Walter Tevis, author of Queen's Gambit. The stores and the Turner family home, aided by Sylvia's cooking and hospitality, Earl's gregarious nature and Joel's energetic raconteurship, attracted many sales reps and authors. Joel was also an officer and board member of the American Booksellers Association.
By the early 1990s, competitive and economic pressures led Joel to reduce the bricks-and-mortar side of the business and transform it into an operation that served businesses, corporate libraries, schools and public institutions. The company became Undercover Book Service, which soon had an online presence, one of the first online booksellers. He also developed a sideline in the antiquarian and second-hand side of the trade.
Philip Turner is now head of Philip Turner Book Productions. After leaving Under Cover Books in 1986, he held senior editorial positions at Union Square Press; Carroll & Graf, Thunder's Mouth and Philip Turner Books at Avalon Publishing; Times Books; and Kodansha America.
The family is making plans for a memorial service and asks that any memorial contributions be made to the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression or for medical research for a cure for diabetes.