What’s happening with the Charlotte bookstore scene? One closes, while others find new life
The bookstore scene continues to evolve in the greater Charlotte area, with news that downtown Gastonia’s only Black-owned bookstore will close after nearly 30 years. Meanwhile, other shops are shuffling locations and rising to national fame.
Here’s a look at what’s happening at Charlotte area bookstores.
Your Christian Bookstore is closing
Twenty eight years after Carretta McLean opened Your Christian Bookstore at 148 E. Main Ave., in Gastonia, she has made a decision to sell the inventory and will soon close the shop’s doors for the very last time.
“I’m 86 years old, and I’m ready to spend more time relaxing and just doing what I want to do,” McLean told CharlotteFive. “I hope someone buys everything in here to use in another Christian bookstore. So many of them are closing, and that’s just sad.”
The shop has a storied history in downtown Gastonia. McLean opened the business in 1995, after she retired from Frito Lay, at the encouragement of her now-late husband. “He knew I couldn’t just sit around, and this way I could work for myself,” she said.
Business took off quickly, with many regular customers coming in for the shop’s warm atmosphere and wide selection. In the early days, McLean sold lots of choir and minister robes. Her husband and son were both ministers, and often they’d congregate with others at the store.
“Sometimes we had church at the store. It was just beautiful,” McLean said, her tone shifting while thinking of the days past. “But it’s not like that anymore. Everything has changed so much.”
McLean hasn’t decided on a final day for the shop but noted, “I hope it’s soon.”
“I’m ready to take care of Carretta now and just enjoy the rest of my life,” she said.
Urban Reader temporarily closes
Urban Reader Book, a Black-owned store in Charlotte, has closed its East McCullough Drive location and is holding pop-up shops around town while the owners search for a new site.
“We are hoping to relocate within the University area which gives us a better commercial lease agreement, visibility, and a much-needed coffee shop,” the business announced last month on Instagram.
The store is holding a t-shirt fundraiser for the new location.
The temporary locations are:
Sonesta Select, 333 West W.T. Harris Blvd., from 11 a.m -6 p.m. on April 5-8, April 19-22 and April 26-29.
Fairfield Inn, 535 Collins-Aikman Drive, from 11 a.m.- 6 p.m. on April 12-15.
I’ve Read it in Books has a new home
I’ve Read it in Books has officially reopened in its new home at 2902 N. Davidson St., which also houses Milk Money Vintage and Stash Pad. The progressive book store is owned by Rob Banker and offers a well-curated selection of books, all picked by hand, with an emphasis on authors of color and those from the LGBTQ+ community.
The store was previously located in Tip Top Daily Market Plaza. The new site is double the space and includes room for up to 1,500 books.
Since opening in early March, the store continues to get new arrivals. The shop will host a poetry reading and Q&A with Sadie Dupuis on April 5.
Archive makes national news
Archive, a coffee shop and bookstore showcasing Black culture, opened Aug. 27 and quickly made its way to the national scene. The West Charlotte bookstore owned by Cheryse Terry was recently featured on the Discover Black Heritage series on “Today.”
The shop, located at 2023 Beatties Ford Road, Suite D, has also revised its hours and is now closed on Wednesdays.
