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“All neighborhoods want a children’s bookstore,” says Pam Lewis, owner of A Children’s Place. “People always have—it touches so many lives.”
The deceptively small bookshop tucked into a triplex retail strip known as Fremont Place at Northeast 15th Avenue and Fremont Street, is the oldest independent children’s bookstore in the city, only three years younger than Powell’s Books.
The shop celebrates its 50th anniversary this Saturday, May 18, with a gilded affair that will feature an impressively stacked schedule of readings, signings, guest appearances, discounts and prizes.
Through multiple owners, locations and chaotic variables, A Children’s Place has continued to thrive, serving Northeast neighborhoods with school and library alliances that support teachers and librarians as well as students. Founded in 1974 by Lynn Kelly and Jan Bruton, the shop is now run by Lewis, who became the proprietor 20 years ago. In anticipation of the big event, WW visited Lewis in the shop not only to peruse the titles, but to delight in a bookstore built for kids, where settling in and thumbing through chapters, exclaiming over fave authors and characters, and wide-eyed childhood discovery are unapologetically encouraged.
WW: How did you come to own A Children’s Place?
Pam Lewis: I had two little girls who were in second and fifth grade, and I wanted to get back in the workforce. I decided to work part time in a bookstore because I always loved bookstores. I’d only been working here for a couple of months when [previous owner Diane Smith] was like, “I’m going to sell.” I very quickly made the decision and bought it. My oldest daughter is a huge reader. She was so excited about it. I think she was a great influence in that decision.
The shop has moved. Was the community upset when you changed locations?
In 2003, we were at 48th and Fremont. In 2015, we moved because the rent went sky high. People were upset—all my customers up there at one point were signing this huge petition to send to my landlord, saying, “Don’t make her move. Don’t raise her rent.” Of course, money is always the bottom line, so I had to move and reestablish a bit, and it was a much smaller store. I still have people coming in every day going, “Oh my gosh, I didn’t know you were here.” But I’m still here, and why I’m still successful is because of the community.
In addition to being an incredible bookstore for kids, what type of bookish offerings does the shop provide to the neighborhood?
We do a lot of author events in or out of the store, [and] a lot of fundraising. One of the ones I’m most proud of is [at] the Community Transitional School; I used to read there with kids. Anyway, we started the Giving Tree: Every year, all the teachers give me a book that every child wants or they think [the kids] would like. I put [the books] on a tree, and I give a 10% discount. And then, after the holidays, kids come back and, on their desk, every child has a book, which is fabulous, isn’t it? During the holidays, we do a holiday fundraiser; you come in and you name a school, [and] I give 10% of what they spend back to the school in the form of a certificate. That’s then given to the school’s library. With so many resources being shut down, this has been a good way for librarians to get books.
Fifty years is a considerable accomplishment—what’s in store for the next 50 years?
I was thinking about that at 3:30 this morning. I couldn’t sleep. I kept thinking, I hope it goes another 50. There’s a legacy here. It’s timeless, in ways. I really, really hope it keeps on going. I’ve gotten kids where they were babies, and now I’ve seen them go off to college. It’s really nice to have gotten to know families and watch them grow. I’ve been really lucky, I have to say. I’ve got a job where I enjoy coming in every day. Every day. There has not been a time I’m like, ugh, I got to go to work—because I’ve had those jobs before. We all have. I’ve got people who come in that I’ve been seeing for 20 years. It’s like a family. I don’t take it for granted. Especially in the world we live in. I’m a lucky person.
The Haul:
1. Pete the Kitty and the Three Bears by Kimberly Dean and James Dean
2. Out There by Seaerra Miller
3. Nosy Neighbors by Freya Sampson (selected from the small, curated adult section)
GO: A Children’s Place Bookstore 50th anniversary celebration, 1423 NE Fremont St., 503-284-8294, achildrensplacebookstore.com. 10 am–5 pm Saturday, May 18.