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Dear Book... Seller?
For over 20 years, the Ouray Bookshop (formerly Buckskin Booksellers) has been a fixture in the heart of Ouray, and your support has sustained one of our town’s greatest treasures. Now
that we’re getting on in years and ready to spend more time with our family and traveling, we’re hoping that you—or someone you know—will want to be the next owner of the Ouray Bookshop, and see it remain as the core of our community.
When we started Ouray Bookshop in 2019, we did so with the belief that it was essential to create a sustainable environment for years to come. Even now, in this age of electronic this and digital that, we are well-positioned to ensure that books and reading will remain at the forefront of our business. The key ingredients that will contribute to the success of a new owner are all in place: a loyal customer base, a dedicated, hard-working staff, the technology tools to remain current and relevant, a fresh up-to-date inventory of books and sidelines, and a beautiful environment that appeals to customers of all ages. Besides all of that, we’re willing to provide you with the necessary resources to ensure a smooth transition.
All it takes is someone who is passionate about books and all that they represent, who genuinely loves people and wants to be of service, and who has good judgment
and a good sense of what it takes to operate a retail business. The reason that we’re contacting you directly is that we know how much you care about the Ouray Bookshop, and perhaps might know someone—even a family member ready for a change of pace—who would enjoy being the owner of our community’s center for literary culture.
If you or someone you know would like to learn more about the opportunity to become the Ouray Bookshop’s new owner, please contact our friends and colleagues at the Bookstore Training Group of Paz & Associates at (904) 277-2664 or by email at MKaufman@PazBookBiz.com. They can not only let you know more about our business and its potential, but also can provide you with the necessary training and education to succeed as a bookstore owner.
Thank you so much for your continued patronage and for your interest in seeing the Ouray Bookshop serve more generations of readers for years.
Special Author Event with Shelley Read
Join us for this wonderful evening with our local gem of an author, Shelley Read!
About the Book, Go as a River:
Set amid Colorado’s wild beauty, a heartbreaking coming-of-age story of a resilient young woman whose life is changed forever by one chance encounter. A tragic and uplifting novel of love and loss, family, and survival—and hope—for readers of Great Circle, The Four Winds, and Where the Crawdads Sing.
Seventeen-year-old Victoria Nash runs the household on her family’s peach farm in the small ranch town of Iola, Colorado—the sole surviving female in a family of troubled men. Wilson Moon is a young drifter with a mysterious past, displaced from his tribal
land and determined to live as he chooses. Victoria encounters Wil by chance on a street corner, a meeting that profoundly alters their young lives, unknowingly igniting as much passion as danger. When tragedy strikes, Victoria leaves the only life she has ever known. She flees into the surrounding mountains, where she struggles to survive in the wilderness, with no clear notion of what her future will bring. As the seasons change, she also charts the changes in herself, finding in the beautiful but harsh landscape the meaning and strength to move forward and rebuild all that she has lost, even as the Gunnison River threatens to submerge her homeland—its ranches, farms, and the beloved peach orchard that has been in her family for generations.
Inspired by true events surrounding the destruction of the town of Iola in the 1960s, Go as a River is a story of deeply held love in the face of hardship and loss, but also of finding courage, resilience, friendship, and, finally, home—where least expected.
About the Author:
Shelley Read is a fifth-generation Coloradoan who lives with her family in the Elk Mountains of the Western Slope. She was a senior lecturer at Western Colorado University for nearly three decades, where she taught writing, literature, environmental studies, and Honors, and was a founder of the Environment & Sustainability major and a support program for first-generation and at-risk students. Shelley holds degrees in writing and literary studies from the University of Denver and Temple University’s Graduate Program in Creative Writing. She is a regular contributor to Crested Butte Magazine and Gunnison Valley Journal and has written for the Denver Post and a variety of publications. Now in her 50s, she finally returned to the novel she’d started many years ago. She writes:
“This novel gets at the heart of what is most valuable to me and what I think the world needs now: a strong connection to nature, a belief in love, and a deep faith in personal resilience. I hope that my novel
will leave readers exploring some of the relevant issues of our time— displacement, prejudice, and notions of progress; the value of women, mothers, and the natural world; resilience in the face of adversity; and,
of course, the extraordinary power of love.”
To purchase tickets: www.thewrightoperahouse.org/events/special-events/shelley-read-book-signing
For more, visit ShelleyRead.com.
NEW AT THE BOOKSHOP!
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| New Ouray Bookshop Tote Bags You’ve stocked up on books, but how will you carry them? Stash them all in our brand new heavy duty Ouray Bookshop tote bag, and you’ll have all you need for the hammock or the park (or your armchair). These canvas bags have gussets at the bottom, so there is plenty of room for all your books— and a container of snacks too. |
Beautiful New Cards New cards have hit the shop from artist Kim Attwooll. You’ll find scenes specific to this area, including features of the Cascade Falls and Million Dollar Highway. All are embellished, and make wonderful greeting cards and art worthy of framing. |
“Hello From Ouray” Cards We are so excited to offer these gorgeous new “Hello From Ouray” greeting cards, featuring Mt. Abram and our little town by Coit Creative. These are an exclusive by Coit Creative—a Colorado company—and ONLY available at Ouray Bookshop. You’ll want to send them to your friends and family, and you’ll also want to frame one for yourself! |
Local Interest
Indie Bestsellers
Books for Ouray Residents
New Book by P. David Smith
Former Ouray resident and bookseller, P. David Smith, has written a new book about Ouray, I Never Knew That About Ouray.
P. David and his wife, Jan, own Western Reflections Publishing in Lake City, CO. Ouray Bookshop carries many, many of their local and Colorado history titles.
Puzzles!
Many people discovered how much they love putting together jigsaw puzzles during COVID stay-at-home orders. We have a wide variety of them from which to choose. We carry White Mountain Puzzles, Pomegranate Puzzles and small Wentworth Wooden Puzzles.
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We carry beautiful Sandbottles that are made by Ouray long-time resident Robert Stoufer, aka “The Sandman.”
Come in and see our selection of Word Cloud Classics by Simon and Shuster. These classics are attractively bound in a “leather” cover, are in many beautiful colors, and have a wonderful texture, as the word clouds are cut into the material. Welcome our Newest Bookseller, Jennifer
Jennifer has been a member of the OBS family since October, 2022. She moved to Ridgway with her little dog, Molly, in mid- 2021 and hopes one day to be considered a “Local.” Jennifer has an A.B. from Duke University and a J.D. from the University of Denver. Working part-time in an independent bookstore like the OBS is every attorney’s dream come true. When she’s not “living the dream” working at the OBS, Jennifer enjoys hiking in the surrounding San Juan mountains, reading detective novels and sleeping
