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customers, telling them the shop was reopening.
When the store debuted Aug. 7, 2018, customers
returned, paying full price for books in lieu of online
discounts. “The community has come back and so
embraced this place,” Bartnett says.
Four days after the opening, Foy’s family gathered
for her birthday. They wanted to see the Bookshop. Foy
insisted on going, so they took her in her wheelchair.
A photo of her at the new shop would run with her
obituary just a few months later. This past May, the store
was the site for the family’s celebration of Foy’s life.
Bartnett says: “I miss her every day. I think, ‘What would
Ann choose?’”
Bartnett, who had only worked at the old store for eight
months, says she’s been “slowly getting my book feet.”
She has a carefully curated collection of classics and
quality new books, usually just one copy per title. There
are children’s books, but few toys. Now, she’s planning
to turn a lower-level space into a meeting room for book
clubs. She’s made back her initial financial investment.
But clearly that isn’t Bartnett’s greatest pride:
“I feel like I’m giving back to the community.”
Approved © 2019, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

SPRING 2020 SPIRIT MAGAZINE 19