Oak Ridge is getting a proper independent bookstore. Blackbird Chapterhouse has been setting up at 1972 Oak Ridge Turnpike for months now and the grand opening is set for Saturday, November 14, running from 9 in the morning to 8 at night, which tells you they expect people to keep wandering in all day.
The opening day deal is simple. The first 40 customers get a free breakfast from Barriga Llena and the store has a small gift waiting for those same 40 on top of it. If you know Barriga Llena, you already know why that matters. John and Jennifer Marx run it, a military family whose name means full belly in Spanish and their menu jumps from smoked wings to empanadas to a Green Goddess sandwich depending on the week. Breakfast from them is worth setting an alarm for.
Local Author A. Shea Will Be Signing Books at the Opening
A. Shea writes dark romance and fantasy and she is about as local as it gets for East Tennessee readers. Her newest, BAD AZI, is book one of the Praise and Ruin trilogy and she also has Veils of Eldritch out. She will be at the store for a signing and a meet and greet, so if gothic fantasy is your shelf, bring your copy or buy one there.
The Store Buys, Trades and Even Repairs Books
This is the part that makes Blackbird Chapterhouse more than a place to spend money. They carry used and new books, they run a trade-in program, they take donations and they do book wraps and repairs. A shop that will fix the spine on a book you love instead of just selling you another one is rare and it is the kind of thing that keeps a small store alive long after the opening day crowd goes home.
Get there early Saturday if you want that breakfast. Forty spots go fast in a town that has been waiting on a bookstore.
About The Author
