by Teanna Gentry

I love books. Ever since I was a kid growing up in small town Eastern Washington I remember the smell of opening up a brand new book. The soft feel of the pages, and the sense of awe and wonder at what was in store for me once I started to read the story. Every town, or city for that matter, needs the kind of bookstore like Page 2 Books on 152nd. I was able to sit down with one of their employees Lauren, and here more about their wonderful book store. Check out our interview!

Teanna: What new new hires have you had recently? 
Lauren:  Lauren Rafanelli (me!) was hired the day after Christmas 2017 and has been with the store almost four months. I handle the website and social media as well as being one of our 5 booksellers.
 

Teanna: What special dates or events do you have coming up?
Lauren: So many! Here's a breakdown; more info is available on our website event calendar. All events are free and open to the public. Events happen at our store unless noted otherwise. 

April 21 - Story Time for Kids + Celebrate 150th Anniversary of "Little Women"
10:30 a.m. - Story time and book signing with children's author Darlene Hartford, "Bats in the Attic" series.
1:00 p.m. *at Burien Library* - 'Authors in Conversation' (co-sponsored by Page 2 Books and Burien Library) with local authors Elise Hooper, "The Other Alcott", and Kit Bakke, "Miss Alcott's E-mail". It's the 150th anniversary of "Little Women".
3:40 p.m. - Page 2 Books' Saturday Morning Book Group discussion of Hooper's "The Other Alcott".

April 28 - Celebrate Independent Bookstore Day
All Day - exclusive merchandise, free books with purchase, activities for kids, giveaways, and local authors!
10:30 a.m. - Story time and book signing with children's author Paul Owen Lewis, "MotoMice" (ages 3-8).
11:00 a.m. - Book signing with local author Sean Anderson, "The Year of Oceans".
12:00 p.m. - Book signing with local author Stella Cameron, "Whisper the Dead".
1:00 p.m. - Book signing with local author Ambrose Stolliker, "Old Hollow". 

May 5 - Celebrate Children's Book Week
10:30 a.m. - Story time, activities, and book signing with Dr. Eric Chudler, "Brain Lab for Kids".
1:00 p.m. - Story time and book signing with Rae Rankin, "Cowgirl Lessons" and "Beach Day". 

May 8 - Tea and Conversation with Krentz & Dodd
1:00 p.m. *at Burien Library* - Jayne Ann Krentz, "The Other Lady Vanishes", and Christina Dodd, "Dead Girl Running", discuss the romance, mystery, and suspense books they've written over tea; book sales and signing to follow.

May 19 - Page 2 Books' Monthly Saturday Morning Book Group
9:00 a.m. - Discuss Francisco Cantu's "The Line Becomes a River: Dispatches from the Border". 

June 16 - Story Time for Kids + Page 2 Books' Monthly Saturday Morning Book Group
9:00 a.m. - Discuss Annie Jacobsen's "Phenomenon: The Secret History of the U.S. Government's Investigations Into Extrasensory Perception and Psychokinesis". 
3:00 p.m. - Story time and book signing with children's author Wendy Wahman, "Nanny Paws", "Don't Lick the Dog", and "A Pony in the City". 

July
All Month - "Where's Waldo" activities and celebrations to be announced!

July 21 - Page 2 Books' Saturday Morning Book Group
9:00 a.m. - Discuss Yuval Noah Harari's "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind".
 

Teanna: What special notes would you like to add from you or the owner about the business or upcoming anniversaries/open houses? 
Lauren: We'll be celebrating the current owners' 5-year anniversary of owning the store and our 5-year anniversary at the current location in downtown Burien. We'll be planning a celebration or two for October 2018. 
 

Teanna: Have you added any new equipment or services in the past 6 months?
Lauren: Yes! We recently partnered with two new vendors to provide audiobooks and e-books to our customers. Libro.Fm is our partner for providing audiobooks, andHummingbird Digital Media is our partner for providing e-books. Customers can create accounts for free or purchase monthly subscriptions. 

Unlike Audible, which only supports Amazon, Libro.Fm and Hummingbird both allow the customer to choose their local independent bookstore when purchasing audiobooks or e-books and we (Page 2 Books) receive a small portion of that purchase. Authors, publishers, and illustrators are also paid a fair wage for their work offered on these platforms which is untrue of the Audible platform. 

Links to both of these partners are available on our website. We also have bookmarks with instructions in our store and are happy to help customers get setup. 
 

Teanna: Are your hours changing or business operations in anyway in the next 6 months that could affect your patrons?
Lauren: Sort of - We're utilizing Facebook more and more so we're encouraging our customers to follow us on Facebook to hear about the latest in books, merchandise, and events from Page 2.  
 

Teanna: So, what else is new and exciting at your business? Why should people come see you?
Lauren: New - but NOT exciting - is that we're the only remaining independent bookstore in Burien. In the last two years, two of the three indie bookstores in Burien have closed. Independent businesses, bookstores or otherwise, pay local and state taxes, and provide free event programming and a safe/welcoming spot for the community. We are so grateful for our customers and would like to invite all of Burien and our surrounding neighbors and towns to shop local and visit Page 2 Books!

If you want to contact Page 2 Books, give them a call at 206-248-7248 or visit their website at page2books.com.

Thanks for stopping by the Seen this week! 

Biography
Teanna Gentry is a health and wellness guru from the Pacific Northwest who has a passion for helping people find freedom in movement. She was an all conference Track and Field athlete at Eastern Washington University from 2003-2007 and has since coached and trained athletes and clients of all ages in the greater Puget Sound area in running, yoga, speed/agility/quickness, and total wellness. Teanna is a certified yoga and barre instructor, as well as an avid lover of the outdoors. She is most often seen around Hot Feet Fitness or running around town with her husband and toddler, and newborn.