Carson City's last standing bookstore is completely volunteer-run and raises thousands for library each year
Submitted by Kelsey Penrose on Wed, 03/16/2022 - 9:52am
Ten years ago there were several bookstores that called Carson City home, but one by one they've slowly gone out. Morley's Books was the last of these to close last August, leaving one remaining bookstore in operation: Browser's Corner Bookstore.
Browser's Corner Bookstore has been in its current location across from the Carson City Library for seven years, but its foundations are much deeper.
The store is run by the Friends of the Carson City Library, which have actually been around longer than the library itself; this group of fundraisers and book-enthusiasts were invaluable to the opening of the Carson City Library back in 1966.
Browser's is completely volunteer-run, with its supplies of books, movies, cds, magazines, puzzles and more coming directly from donations from the community.
"Ninety-five percent of our net profit goes to the library," said Manager Lisa Buder. "It goes toward things they need that they don't have the funds to purchase for themselves."
For example, in 2019, Friends of the Carson City Library was able to donate over $33,000 sourced from Browser's Corner Bookstore, which went toward five new computers for the public computer upgrade project, Planetarium events for the Boys and Girls Club, book leases, and many community programs such as Banned Book Week, Dia de los Muertos and more.
Prior to Browser's Corner Bookstore's current location, the Friends were located inside the library itself until they outgrew the space. They were then located in a warehouse on the north end of town where they held monthly sales, until finally alighting at their current location, 711 E. Washington St.
The store is much bigger than it seems from the outside, with several rooms dedicated to various genres, with everything from non-fiction to art, sci-fi, romance, travel, popular fiction and everything in between.
However, it's the bargain room that Buder says is the community's favorite, which contains "a little bit of everything" with prices between $.10 and $2.00.
Volunteers restock the shelves consistently, with new donations coming in from the community on a daily basis. But volunteers are picky about what they put on the shelves, books that are damaged or non-fiction books that are 10-years or older don't make the cut.
"Unfortunately for those non-fiction books, the knowledge is outdated," said Buder.
Books that don't make the cut are sent to Grassroots bookstore in Reno, or, if they're too far damaged, they are recycled.
The library isn't the only organization the bookstore seeks to help.
"One of the things we're really proud of is we are doing the Ron Woods Food Bank drive right now," said Buder. A large barrel asking for food donations is already half full in the bookstore, showing that the store is a hub for donations of all kinds from the community.
While Browser's Corner Bookstore is always happy to receive donations, what they are really in need of is more volunteers.
There is a team of about 30 volunteers currently, who help out in shelving, sorting, cashiering, or even just as substitutes when the regular volunteers go on vacation or are ill.
"All of our volunteers are Friends of the Carson City Library," said Buder.
Shifts can be anywhere from only 2 hours long to 4 hours or more, depending on what a volunteer would like to offer on their schedule.
High schoolers volunteer at the bookstore in order to gain experience for the working world; one student dreams of having a summer job at Grassroots Books in Reno, and sought out training at the bookstore to give her a leg up.
Being a Friend has its own perks, including special sales, special Friends-only store hours, and much more.
But, at the end of the day, Buder says the reason she and the other volunteers continue to return is because they love the books, they love the library, and they love the people in the community who do, too.
Browser's Corner Bookstore is open Tuesday to Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Stop by during the week of March 22-26 for the Spring into Spring Sale, where everything in the store is 50 percent off.
To learn more about the bookstore, Friends of the Carson City Library, or volunteer opportunities, please visit https://www.friendscclibrary.org/
