Parnassus Books- An Independent Bookstore for Independent People
Ann Patchett, author of State of Wonder, What Now?, Run, Truth & Beauty: A Friendship, Bel Canto, Magician’s Assistant, Taft, and The Patron Saint of Liars co-owns a little bookstore with Karen Hayes in the Green Hill’s area of Nashville, TN.
Have you ever seen the movie You’ve Got Mail? Well, Parnassus would be Meg Ryan’s bookshop, The Little Shop Around the Corner. Super cute, cozy, comfortable, with a knowledgeable and friendly staff. It feel like the antithesis of the closest Barnes & Noble on West End and certainly brings the class back to books that Books-A-Million strips away.
I own a Kindle and am supposed to stop buying actual books BUT when you are a bibliophile like myself there are some tomes I need to be able to hold in my hand. The smell of a great book, a dog ear, a worn spine, notes in the margins, and the ability to pass it on for continued enrichment all make owning real books something I will never stop doing. I feel like Parnassus appreciates that about its readers.
There is also a great selections of magazines, greeting cards, and journals with a great focus on local authors. Not to mention Ann Patchett is just walking around being awesome. After chatting with her during World Book Day I developed a large crush as she has a fantastically sarcastic sense of humor and was buying books from her own bookstore.
B&N is really close to my workplace BUT I enjoy the atmosphere of Parnassus. The book shopping experience feels more personal. For my entire life books have been some of my best friends and when I’m gathering a new gang of homies I don’t want to feel like I’m in a book factory with random university apparel hanging out behind me on a shelf.
If you are a reader in Nashville visit Parnassus and support this lovely local bookstore.
peculiarpearl 