Charlie's Queer Books in Seattle, Wash., will open a new, larger location in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood this fall, KIRO7 reported.
Store owners Charlie Hunts and Madeline Burchard told the Stranger the new store will occupy a two-story space on E. Pike St. and include a cafe and wine bar as well as a children's reading nook and a loft for hosting events. It will be roughly twice the size of the original Charlie's Queer Books in Fremont and is expected to be open in November.
Hunts said the expansion came about due to the bookstore outgrowing its home at 465 N. 36th St., in which it opened in November 2023. Hunts recalled that at the time of the opening, "there were barely any books on the shelf. Now, we don't have enough wall space to even add bookcases if we wanted to."
"I feel honored to have something that Seattle embraced and that they took and ran with," Hunts told KIRO7. "The queer community embraced this thing and then grew it into what we know today."
Hunts pointed out that many of the books on the store's shelves have been banned or challenged in public libraries and schools, and it is "really important to us" to get queer stories to a wider audience during these times.
Hunts further emphasized that the store "isn't just for the LGBT community; it's for everyone. The store should be full of good stories for everyone and I hope that everyone feels welcome to come check it out."