Left Bank Books, Searsport, Maine, is moving to Belfast, into space that will be about a third larger with "a regular, rectangular layout, which will allow them more room for their books and special events," according to the Bangor Daily News. The store will open in June.
"It's very bittersweet," said Marsha Kaplan, who owns the store with Lindsay McGuire and Barbara Klausmeyer. "Our building is so lovely, but we are just tight, tight, tight. When we have our programs, like this one on Sunday [part of the Winter Lyceum series], we say, 'Gee, we hope too many people won't come,' which we realized is a silly way to run a business. It's purely a matter of elbow room."
Left Bank Books will join several other bookstores in Belfast, including Artisan Books & Bindery, BellaBooks and the Old Professor's Bookshop. In addition, the gift shop Beyond the Sea sells books, and Out on a Whimsy sells children's books.
The town will hold its second annual Belfast Bound Book Festival, July 27-29. "Our goal is to have Belfast be known as a city of books," said Dorothy Havey, director of Our Town Belfast. Last year's festival featured 33 authors.
