D.C. Field Notes #8: An Interview with East City Bookshop
Selling new books for the whole family on Capitol Hill
I’m excited to share another interview with a local D.C. book store. East City Bookshop is one of the largest independent bookstores in the city. Located on Pennsylvania Avenue a block or two away from Eastern Market, the stores wide selection caters to the families of Capitol Hill. I talked with Emilie Sommer, a book buyer for East City Bookshop.
Here’s the interview.
City Reads: Tell me a little bit about your store. What makes it unique among other Washington D.C. bookshops?
The beauty of independent bookstores is that we're all unique! Every indie bookstore, and certainly every indie bookstore in DC, has a different vibe, which is just as it should be. I think two things are hallmarks of East City Bookshop: our personal connection to the neighborhood and our enthusiasm. Many of us live extremely close to the shop, so it's very much not just a neighborhood bookstore but it's our neighborhood bookstore.
Our founder and owner, Laurie Gillman, has been on the Hill for over thirty years. She opened the store because she knew Capitol Hill needed a bookstore after Trover closed in 2009. And as for our enthusiasm, I have often said that some bookstores are cool but we are decidedly warm — we want to chat with everyone, we want to talk about our favorite books, we strive to be friendly and eager! (We'll certainly leave you alone if you want to browse in peace, as people often do... but we'll at least say hello first.)
How do you think about the store in the context of the city and the Capitol Hill neighborhood, generally? East City Books is one of the only and largest bookstores on the southeast side of town.
As I said in answer to your first question, my boss Laurie started the bookstore because Capitol Hill's Trover bookshop closed in 2009 and nothing had taken its place. She knew that we needed it! We had the wonderful Capitol Hill Books nearby, but no place to buy new releases, and we are a city and a neighborhood of readers. After several years of lamenting not having a bookshop in our immediate area, Laurie figured she better open one herself — and we hear all the time from our neighbors and customers how glad they are that we're here.
What role do in-person events play at your store? Any recurring favorites people should know about?
One of the superpowers of an independent bookstore is the community that it can build, and in-person events are a huge part of that! We love hosting author events because it's so special to bring writers and readers together, and we love our (many!) book clubs which also provide that sense of community. Our Really Reading Romance book club is a community favorite, and I'll shout out my own New Fiction Book Club too, which has been going strong since fall of 2016 and is currently running a waitlist for membership.
It's also been really special to us to be able to support Capitol Hill authors — our friends Louis Bayard and Laura Hankin have new books coming soon, among others — and to support debut authors and watch their careers continue to flourish.
When I visited, I was impressed at the size of the children's/young reader section. Is that a reflection of the demographics around Capitol Hill? Or something else?
Yes, our robust children's section is a reflection of the neighborhood — so many families, so many kids — and also our general and abiding love for children's literature! You're never too old to enjoy it!
How would you describe the taste of Washington D.C. readers? Have they changed over time?
I bet every DC shop would have a slightly different answer to this, but our bread and butter has always been smart, well-written, thought-provoking literary fiction. We have seen an exponential growth in our romance readership, though, which I think is a function of several things: a general growth in the genre over the last few years, our shop's enthusiastic embrace of it, and people's desire for escape and a happy ending during particularly trying times.
One author every employee at the store enjoys?
I'm doing my level best to turn every employee into a Liz Moore superfan and having great success so far. We're all extremely excited about her forthcoming The God of the Woods, coming out from Riverhead on July 2. It's marvelous! There is also widespread staff enthusiasm for James McBride and Percival Everett right now, along with many others!
A recent industry trend you're excited about?
Both Irish literature and books by Native and indigenous authors are having a moment at our store right now, and I'm always excited for both.
A recent industry trend you're not excited about?
I'm not a Romantasy reader and that's definitely a huge current trend — but while I don't read it myself, I love any time people get excited about books!
Favorite bookstore in the DMV besides East City Bookshop?
gain too many to name! Bookstore world is small and we are very supportive of one another... but I will say that we often send folks to our neighbors at Capitol Hill Books when they're looking for an older title. Capitol Hill Books might have a used copy, plus it's such an institution.
Best restaurant to pair with a trip to East City Bookshop?
Oh, too many to restaurants to narrow it down — but customers often ask for a coffee shop recommendation and we LOVE Peregrine!