The Wise Owl Books & Music, a book and vinyl record store offering a mix of new and used titles, has opened a bricks-and-mortar store in Seattle, Wash., the Seattle Times reported.
Owner Christina Gilbreath opened the Wise Owl as an online and pop-up store in October 2020, and officially opened the physical store on December 4, 2021. There are sidelines, such as stickers, pins, candles and cards, in the front of the store, vinyl records in the back and shelves of books throughout. While Gilbreath sells books for children and adults across all genres, the store's used inventory has a definite lean toward science fiction and fantasy.
Gilbreath explained that her mother, who had always dreamed of owning a used bookstore and had been collecting used titles for years, was an avid reader with a particular fondness for SF and fantasy. When she died in 2019, Gilbreath inherited about "40 boxes of used books," many of them genre titles. Gilbreath had no idea about her mother's bookstore dream until after her death, and as a tribute to her decided to merge that dream with her own dream of owning a record store. It became a "legacy project."
The store's name, she added, is a tribute to her mother, who "knew everything. You could ask her anything and she always had an answer."
The shop is located at 2223 N. 56th St. in Seattle's Tangletown neighborhood. Gilbreath was careful not to open too close to any existing bookstores, and she said the Tangletown community has been "lavishing" her book and record store with love. Her plans for events include author events, readings, game nights, live music and book clubs. She continues to host monthly pop-up appearances at Pilgrim Coffeehouse, where the Wise Owl got its start.
The success of the pop-up shops, she said, and the need for more storage and display space accelerated her plan to get a permanent storefront. "Everybody just kept asking, 'where’s your storefront, where can we come visit you?' "