Commerce Street Books, Charlottesville, Va., will host its "Big Weekend" grand opening celebration from September 5-7. The bookshop debuted in June at 499 W Main St. in Charlottesville, Va., the Cavalier Daily reported.
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| Philip Lorish, Commerce Street Books owner. | |
Owner Philip Lorish hopes to support what he calls the "practice of reading" in the community, noting: "We're creating value for a community and for folks who want to have an in person experience.... What makes us unique is that we want to be easy to use and we want to be as transparent as we can be. We want to get people closer to the prices that they see on Amazon or elsewhere by offering them significant discounts on books with their membership."
The store is located near the Downtown Mall in the back of the Doyle Hotel's lobby, a space that "reinforces the openness and modernity Lorish envisioned for his bookstore, with elevated ceilings, full length windows and a minimalist white finish," the Cavalier Daily noted.
"Bookstores should be places where you lose time.... We want to have comfortable seating around and lots of light," said Lorish. "You should be able to browse without feeling like you're trapped.... I've wanted the store to feel like a relief or a respite, so that's part of what's going on architecturally too."
He hopes that Commerce Street Books will serve as an intellectual conduit for the public, noting: "Charlottesville is a super interesting place for people who want to be around ideas.... There is a really interesting reading public that's not all attached to [University of Virginia] and then there are folks within the UVA world who want places to speak to other folks."
He added: "Reading is a practice in the sense that it requires attention and effort and it's a real skill. A good bookstore can't read books for you, but it can put the right kinds of books in your hands and surround you with people who are helping you develop your own reading practice."
In a recent q&a with UVAToday, Lorish responded to a question about whether anything had surprised him since opening the store by noting: "Honestly, how satisfying it is to see total strangers light up in the space.... I think of bookstores like gyms. You shouldn't be made to feel bad if you're new; you should be welcomed and encouraged. That's what I hope Commerce Street Books becomes."