Question: What do you get when you have an army of over 35 best friends? Answer: Brome Lake Books Moving Company, sugar coated with lunch provided by the members of the local book club. That’s what it appeared to be on Sunday when a whole host of friends and book-store supporters showed up to lend a hand in yet another big move for owners Danny McAuley and Lucy Hoblyn. Within jig time, 9,000 books and all the shelves, props and furniture had been shifted to their new location across the street. They’ve been dreading the move for several months given that they had only moved to their current location two years ago. But Sunday left Danny and Lucy almost breathless when over 35 of their best friends showed up to pack, lug and make it a party. They were “blown away” with the speed at which everything had been relocated across the street. For the volunteers, it was their way to say thank you “for all you do for our community.”It seems not long ago that Brome Lake Books relocated to the landmark building by Cold Brook Park on Lakeside Rd. In fact, it was just two years ago. News in the early winter of 2018 of the town expropriating the property, moving its administration offices there while the big renovation of the Town Hall would be undertaken, was not very comforting for McAuley and Hoblyn. They had little time to find a viable solution to a challenge that they were faced with. Luckily the storefront that once housed Jones New York was still vacant. Unfortunately, the space needed a lot of adjustments to accommodate the merchandise. McAuley and friends like Laura Teasdale, who was back in town for a visit, have been hard at work preparing the new space. Both Hoblyn and McAuley are concerned about the accessibility for parking being limited. They pointed out that having to leave the cars in the parking lot behind the building requires clients to walk back up to street level. Most of the spaces at street level are often taken up by patrons of nearby businesses. The added that there seems to be inadequate space to create a ramp for the entry to the store that would conform to code for people with disabilities. Although the dynamic duo laments the imposed move at a point where they felt they had just settled into their new digs and are now faced with higher rental costs, they have taken the situation in stride. The floor space is bigger and the entire space is brighter with lots of natural light streaming in and lots of lights too. The children’s corner is also roomier. Friend Laura Teasdale pointed out that there is finally space to create a real tribute to fans of Louise Penny’s Three Pines/Detective Gamache mystery books who make a pilgrimage to TBL specifically to check out the famous book store. The new display props for that particular space, which will showcase Three Pines memorabilia, were constructed by Ralph Steiner. “The lighting is great, but the configuration and size of shelves has been a challenge,” explained McAuley, while in the midst of putting finishing touches on the freshly painted space last week. Of course, one would not know that there was an issue because as everyone who knows McAuley, his eye for design is impeccable and he is known for creating beautiful, welcoming spaces. The industrious owners anticipate reopening on May 9. (Published in the Brome County News, May 8, 2018)
The big Brome Lake Books move: a labour of love by an army of best friends
By Staff Writer
