Arna Lewis, who bought Buttonwood Books and Toys, Cohasset, Mass., in 2013 with Katherine Detwiler, is moving to Denver, Colo., where her husband has been offered "a wonderful job opportunity," she said in a letter to New England Independent Booksellers Association members yesterday.
She is keeping her home in Scituate, near Cohasset, and will continue as an owner of the store as she and Detwiler "figure out how all of this will work out." But she will no longer be in charge of "the day-to-day operations of managing and buying and selling of books."
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| Katherine Detwiler and Arna Lewis at Buttonwood Books | |
She also said that Detwiler "will have more of a presence in the book industry and our store manager, Bill Grace, will be our new book manager. Bill, along with our long-time employees, Sarah Pease and Susan Buswell, will all share the tasks involved in book buying, meeting with reps and other aspects of the book industry. Kathleen 'Totsie' McGonagle will continue as our events coordinator managing all our author events."
She added: "Buttonwood Books and Toys is thriving and Kathy and I are proud of what we have accomplished in the last two years. We are both committed to seeing that the store continues to flourish and together, with our capable staff, we have no doubt that it will remain a hub for our local community."
She and Detwiler bought the store in 2013 from Detwiler's mother-in-law, Betsey Detwiler. Since then, Detwiler and Lewis, who had been a schoolteacher, have extensively remodeled and remade the store in striking ways.