Neither a pandemic nor a freak accident could stop Columbus readers from getting their hands on a book.
As COVID-19 continued to cause another year of upheaval, more and more people turned to books. NPD BookScan recently told Publishers Weekly that 2021 book sales were 11 percent higher than 2020 through the first nine months of the year.
That’s despite supply chain issues causing major delays on printing and shipping books.
On top of that, there was a car wreck at Friendly City Books in September. The Columbus bookstore was closed for 10 weeks after a car accidentally drove into the building.
The year ended on a happy note, however, when the bookstore reopened after Thanksgiving — and there were plenty of highlights along the way.
COVID impacts yearly book gatherings
Sometimes, you get lucky. Sometimes, you don’t.
Among the lucky: The Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters, which convened in Pass Christian in June to recognize statewide award winners from 2020 and 2021. C.T. Salazar, of Caledonia, received the 2020 award for poetry at the joint ceremony.
The Mississippi Book Festival was not so fortunate. The Delta wave of COVID was raging just as the annual event was to take place in Jackson. Instead, the organizers released videos of 31 author panels spanning a wide range of genres.
In the fall, the pandemic subsided enough so that Mississippi University for Women could hold the 33rd annual Eudora Welty Writers’ Symposium in person. The event was virtual last year.
The authors featured in the Welty program hailed from seven different states, in addition to five Mississippians. Keynote speaker W. Ralph Eubanks, author of “A Place Like Mississippi,” was recently recognized by the Mississippi Humanities Council as the recipient of its Reflecting Mississippi Award.
A new state Poet Laureate takes the stage
A growing number of prominent and up-and-coming poets call Mississippi home. In April, Catherine Pierce was selected from their ranks as the new state Poet Laureate.
The torch passed to Pierce, a professor at Mississippi State University, from Beth Ann Fennelly, a professor at the University of Mississippi who served in the role from 2016 to 2021.
Pierce is Mississippi’s sixth Poet Laureate. She and her spouse Michael Kardos co-direct the creative writing program at MSU.
“Danger Days,” her fourth collection of poems, earned the 2021 award for poetry from the Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters.
Columbus reconnects with Mississippi legends
The Columbus-based Tennessee Williams Tribute marked its 20th anniversary with a celebration for its namesake’s birthday in March. It was the perfect opportunity for MUW graduate Augustin Correro to introduce his book “Tennessee Williams 101” to the famed playwright’s admirers.
Correro is co-founder and co-artistic director of the Tennessee Williams Theatre Company of New Orleans, which produces contemporary stagings of the Columbus native’s timeless plays.
Two authors of books on the legendary William Faulkner also met with Columbus readers during the year, Phillip Gordon for his book “Gay Faulkner” and Michael Gorra for “The Saddest Words.”
To round out 2021, Columbus was treated to a book tour event for “Walter Anderson: The Extraordinary Life and Art of the Islander.” Authors Robert St. John and Anthony Thaxton plan to visit over a dozen Mississippi towns. The book’s first printing sold out, showing that Anderson’s legacy as one of Mississippi’s greatest artists is still strong.
Local family of four produces four books
When longtime educator Emma Richardson released her book “A History of the Mississippi School of Mathematics and Science” last year, she set off a publishing frenzy within her family. Over the course of the next 15 months, her spouse and two children would go on to release their own works as well.
Tom Richardson edited “Some Passages in the Life of Mr. Adam Blair, Minister of the Gospel at Cross-Meikle,” a scholarly work on 19th century Scottish writer John Gibson Lockhart. He continues to teach at MUW and previously served as provost.
Their children Thomas and Cameron have followed in their footsteps with careers in education and writing. Thomas Richardson teaches at MSMS, and Cameron B.R. Howard is a professor at Luther Seminary. Their debuts “How to Read” and “The Old Testament for a Complex World” came out in May and June of this year, respectively.
Community rallies to save bookstore
Friendly City Books is back in business thanks to tremendous support from near and far.
Booksellers Rachel Derise and Bailey Phillips were in the store when the car drove inside. After the initial shock, they spent hours going through inventory to identify damages. They came back early the next morning to stage an impromptu booth donated by Main Street Columbus so that the bookstore could still participate in the annual Market Street Festival.
Munson and Brothers welcomed the bookstore’s staff into their space for a pop-up shop for a month while the building underwent repairs.
In the meantime, Friendly City Books continued selling books online through Bookshop.org and launched fundraisers on Bonfire and GoFundMe that reached across the country.
A group of kids even held a lemonade stand, organized by the Bogue, Turner, Wilson and Windle families.
All told, nearly 500 people contributed in some way to Friendly City Books’ recovery — demonstrating just how apt Columbus’ nickname is.
Emily Liner is the owner and founder of Friendly City Books, an independent bookstore and press in Columbus, Mississippi.
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