Green, a Grand Forks resident and freelance book editor, has a personal affinity for middle and young adult books, the types of books she enjoys editing and writing.
This year she’s read fewer books, but that’s partly because the local libraries have been closed for much of the past year due to the pandemic, and Green often likes to check out books first to see if she likes them before purchasing them. When she is on the lookout to purchase a new title, she goes online or visits one of the bookshops in town.
The problem is, there are few bookstores in Greater Grand Forks and she sometimes has a tough time finding what she is looking for locally.
Still, the local bookstores say they have been keeping busy over the past year as people seem to be reading more during the pandemic.
Green said she’ll sometimes browse Ferguson Books & More! because of the number of titles available – some 100,000 according to store manager Sterling Reed – but from time to time she’ll also visit the UND Bookstore on the University of North Dakota campus.
The UND Bookstore at its peak season has some $3 million worth of inventory, said store director Kevin Flanagan, and sells books and other items, including university apparel, to university students and the public.
Partly because of the few options in town, Flanagan views his bookstore as a much-needed commodity for the community, even if it doesn’t have as many books as Barnes & Noble, the closest of which is in Fargo. (A B&N store formerly was located where the UND Bookstore is now.)
People come into his store seeking entertainment through the written word – anything to escape the humdrum and stress of the pandemic. He also has seen an increase in hardcopy textbook sales, giving a nod that even the younger generation prefers hardcopy books to digital ones.
Flanagan can understand that philosophy.
“At my age I still want to hold that book in my hand,” he said. “With all of the devices these kids have, they still want the hard book, too. I find that refreshing.”
Titles that sell regularly in his store are works by local authors. Before the pandemic was declared, Flanagan would invite authors in for book signings and lectures, but those have been put on hold in recent months. He hopes to host those again in the future.
The book section has shrunk at the store over the months, with more space devoted to apparel and other…
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