12/24/2021
If you ever stepped into Harbor Books or Berry & Co you were sure to catch a glimpse of one or two homages to my favorite writers and books. On Main Street, Margaret Mitchell, Hemingway and Steinbeck watched over our window benches, in The Treehouse you were welcomed by custom prints by The Ideal Bookshelf and our literary direction post. But most notable our walls— lovingly (and painstakingly) papered with the pages of my most very favorites. Most of all, The Tender Bar.
I have received countless texts since the news broke that JR Moehringer’s memoir has been adapted into a movie. My readers know that this brilliant book not only changed my life but was a foundation of our bookstore. I have not seen the movie yet, of course, I will (how could I not?!) but I am taking this little social media moment to shout from my soap box —“Read The Tender Bar!”. The story of a young man who is raised by a bar… but more, a love letter to his mother, a tribute to his uncle, a salute to all of the books that molded him. A story I wish I could read over and over again for the first time. I fell in love with the boy that became the man and all of the hodgepodge of characters that made him and I know you will too.
