Effective July 1, Roger and Nancy Page "officially passed the torch" to Laurie Raisys, who has become a co-owner of Island Books, Mercer Island, Wash. Calling the change "musical chairs, not a curtain call or a revolution," Roger Page wrote on the store's website that Raisys "is a longtime Mercer Islander who has the warmth, creativity, integrity and confidence that the store needs to carry it far into the future. She also has our trust and affection. We have signed on to stay and will be working for her, just trading hats. She will wear the hat decorated with the joys, dreams, and challenges of ownership. Nancy and I will be in bookseller caps, trying to entertain the masses and do right by you."
Noting that the decision was a matter of timing, Page wrote: "We had no intention of closing the store. We were in the second of the three best years of its over 40-year history. We were busy every day. I'd had over 30 stimulating years since I started as a gift wrapper, and the last 15 years with Nancy working beside me in the shop were just plain fun.... Time on our lease was dwindling; we were getting grayer; our kids had left the nest. We could manage a few more years of traveling over hill and dale from Ballard, but not forever. So we began to ask two questions: What would it take to create new chapters for our story? And what kind of person should we find to help write those chapters?"
Page advised "members of our beloved community, old friends and new faces alike" to "celebrate the continuation of our shared legacy. We can't thank you enough for the years of goodwill and generosity. Looking forward to swapping more stories."
Correction: Laurie Raisys is the new owner of Island Books, Mercer Island, Wash. We mistakenly reported that she would be co-owner with Roger and Nancy Page, but Roger clarified that the bookstore actually now has "a new owner with a couple of caring employees."