PORTLAND, Ore. — As the saying goes, “don’t judge a book by its cover.” The same could be said for used bookstore Rose City Reads near the intersection of Northeast 122nd Avenue and Glisan Street in Portland. Behind the beautiful storefront is a catalog of character.
“It is really a special store and I feel like it's a staple in this community,” said Jackie Starr, executive director of Friends of the Multnomah County Library. “We’re new, but we're building relationships and want to continue to do so.”
The nonprofit is an advocacy organization for the county’s libraries and provides funding through their book sales.
“When the proceeds come in, the library has different programs and services that they might not necessarily have budgeted for or have the funds for,” said Starr. “So they'll come to Friends of the (Multnomah County) Library and ask us for monies for different type of programs.”
Rose City Reads opened on December 5, 2023 and has already sold 27,000 books and hit $100,000 in sales. If you’re doing the math, the average cost of a book is only $3.
Before Friends moved into the new space, they operated out of the Library Operations Center on Northeast Russell Street. For their big fall & spring book sales, staff & volunteers moved over 60,000 books offsite to hotels or conference centers.
Books come in as donations from the public or retired books from the libraries. Volunteers sort through incoming books with an emphasis on quality.
“We don't put everything on the floor,” Starr said. “We want to put the very best here because we want people to have a good shopping experience.”
Peggy Holliday has been a volunteer for eight years and formerly owned a bookstore.
“I really like sorting the books. I'm a book nerd,” she smiled. “I find a lot of books that I want!”
On June 5, Rose City Reads is celebrating six months of this new chapter. Starr wants the community to know they’re more than a bookstore, they’re a community resource.
Marguerite Schumm, who started volunteering as a cashier in February, lives a short 10 minute walk away.
“I want folks to know we're here first and foremost,” she said. “I want people in the neighborhood to know that we're here because this is such a cool little hidden gem in our neighborhood.”
All the proceeds benefit Multnomah County Libraries. Friends has committed $200,000 to the East County Library which is under construction.
“People say, ‘I feel like I'm stealing away from you!’” said Starr. “No no no, no, buy the books. That's what they're here for. We want them to be affordably priced.”
Rose City Reads has over 15,000 books out on the shelves and more in the back. They even have LPs, audiobooks, DVDs & CDs.
“There's affordable books for everyone, anyone in your family, no matter what you're interested in,” Schumm said. “You can find really niche books. You can find kids books, you can find sheet music, weird, old maps and things. So it’s just a cool place to find a hidden treasure.”
“I think a lot of people don't know that we're here,” Starr added. "We're here. We've been here six months. Come and check us out. I think they'll really like what they see and what they experience.”
Friends of the Multnomah County Library also runs the Friends Library Store at Central Library in downtown Portland.