Post Katrina Shop Reopenings in New Orleans

Before the A&P grocery opened, before you could find a cup of coffee, before Walgreens, video shops, most restaurants, before most of the French Quarter re-opened in the autumn of 2005 Arcadian Books was open for business. On September 1st Russell opened the door of his Orleans Street bookshop to a very empty city. And one by one our independent book shops in, near, and dear to the Quarter reopened.
We joined this band of bibliophiles ten days after our return to New Orleans. Boyfriend and I were blessed with dry French Quarter apartments and his library of 5,000 cookbooks were no mustier than before Katrina. Next thing I knew we were signing a five-year lease. On that day I stood in the middle of the street and saw no one, zip, ya could shoot a canon down Royal and not hit a single drunk much less potential book buyer. Yet, Kitchen Witch Cook Books opened on an even quieter block off Royal in late November. And it has been a love affair ever since.
On October 5th Crescent City Books returned. Steve propped up his fallen sign and resumed business hours at Dauphine Street Books October 8th. Kaboom Books, across the street from a tornado damaged park opened also on the 8th. Beckham’s Book Store not only opened October 10th but also served as living quarters for two weeks with the owners sleeping on the floor of the shop awaiting electricity to be restored to their home. Faulkner House, Librairie Books, De Ville Books, Faubourg Marigny Art & Books, and Beth’s Books all followed quickly in above and beyond timely manners.
Johnny White’s Bar received major press for remaining open 24/7 throughout our government sponsored debacle. And that’s fine and good, god knows I enjoyed my share of warm beers during those horrible days before we escaped. But most folks overlooked the quiet yet remarkably fast comeback of the booksmen. The small, independent book purveyors were off the media radar. And again, fine and good – food, medical, clean water, electricity, mail, and an endless ETC. list were the priorities.
I do not count our shop among the first responders of print, I am just proud to be among these folks who, by their mere presence, made us want to be a part of this grand sub-culture of book dealers and collectors.
In a world of online shopping where the only “Thank You for Shopping with Us” is a computer generated message that appears after your credit card is processed, it is nice to hear a voice and shake the hand of that voice. The big box stores certainly have polite sales folks but ya still don’t get that Ma & Pop feel or, in the case of the Quarter, that intellectual, quirky, avant-garde shop cat and its side-kick the book dealer.
And you certainly will never enter any two shops that are alike. Inside Dauphine Street Books you will find Steve’s lack of square footage to be in constant conflict with an enormous wealth of cloth, leather, and paper bounded print. Same thing goes for Russell at Arcadian where shelves seemingly tippy-toe to the ceiling and precariously stacked books rise like skyscrapers. Yet, even with public library sized inventories stuffed within the girdles of four small walls Steve and Russell both will hone in like radar upon a requested book, knowing its placement among the multitudes.
If the near claustrophobic envelopment of books is a bit much for some then there’s the more rambling spaces of Beckham’s, Crescent City and Kaboom. The Librairie Books on Chartres offers a more mid-size vehicle for its selection. And the award for most tasteful and well-appointed digs goes to Faulkner House. Of course we at Kitchen Witch win the “Bling and Mini Garden Center” award.
We live in a world where Wal-Mart and the Internet can wipe out a small business in the blink of an eye, and Barnes and Noble can cause extinction to an independent bookstore. But here in my neighborhood the big guys folded and we still survive.
Frankly I preferred the boxy Book Star to what resides there now. Despite its corporate status is was a part of our community. And to this day a New Yorker magazine is no where to found short of a road trip or subscription. Of course we all know Tower Records closed nation wide leaving many scrambling for jobs and making NetFlixs a must for Quarterites. Virgin Records, for reasons I assume were related to post-K, never reopened. Winn-Dixie Food Store never came back to Basin and St.Louis.
So, even with great concern for jobs lost and appreciation for these businesses’ ability to acclimate to our off-the-wall neighborhood, I still gotta say, “Well what do ya know – the little guy, the indies, dug in and came back with no help from corporate America”. Just wish I was a little bigger so as to throw a job or two to some of the great guys I know who were left hanging from those giants’ tumble.
Word on the street is that one of our French Quarter family owned bookshops is closing. But the great news is that they are to reopen in another city, a larger city – and they will be running with the big dogs. And so it would seem that being small and independent does not necessarily place you in retirement with the dinosaurs.
Today, life in New Orleans could make dinosaurs of all of us. Large or small. Everyday we loose another friend, associate, or business to Katrina. Take time to notice the quiet desperation of the person next to you -- lend an ear, a shoulder and a hand to them. And shop locally, as if your life depended on it. We are all like the small shop – on our own.