ADS Bookstore of the Month No. 1
Starting at the Top
First, it must be said that starting from what I (and many others) regard as the greatest bookstore in America does not mean that every other bookstore from here on out is somehow inferior or less than the best. This is not a competition or a ranking. Besides, there can be many exemplars of something good, and as Thomas Aquinas might have said (but did not), it is befitting of the perfection of God that there should exist in the created universe a multitude of bookstores that have reached a state of excellence according to their own particular mode of being, and that no single bookstore can in itself fully represent the divine perfection.
On the other hand, there is one outfit that, for me, represents the gold standard of bookshops, the veritable Valhalla of printed matter: Square Books in Oxford, Mississippi.
There are many reasons to praise Square Books, but chief among them is its location in the very heart of a quintessential Southern college town that also happens to be a literary mecca, thanks to its most famous writer-in-residence, Old Count No ‘Count, William Faulkner. It’s also a magnificent place in which to lose yourself for a couple of hours. Contemplating the huge wall near the entrance devoted just to Mississippi writers is sufficient to reduce to dust whatever idea you may have had of Mississippi as a cultural backwater. No other state can boast such a roster of literary giants, nor such a distinctive literary tradition. Pound for pound, Mississippi is the most culturally generative state in the country, and second place is not even close. If you could draw the world of bookstores like the map of a Southern city, Square Books would be the courthouse.
The work that Square Books does on you begins as soon as you walk in the door. It is clear you are here not simply to purchase (or merely browse) product. You are here to be changed. The titles on the shelves exude gravitas, but the store utterly lacks the pretentiousness which it could legitimately claim if it wanted to. But it doesn’t. The motto of North Carolina could just as easily serve as the motto of Square Books: esse quam videre, “to be rather than to seem.” Its excellence consists in part in that it knows what it is, and knows it has nothing to prove to anyone. It simply is the most wonderful bookstore in the world, because it exists neither for appearances nor for honors nor for magazine spreads, but for the human creatures who make up the reading universe, especially those in Oxford, Mississippi. Unlike your average chain bookstore, it is not all things to all people; it is a very specific business in a very specific place with a very specific history.
The entire Square ecosystem—which includes the HQ itself, a kids bookstore, a rare bookstore, a used bookstore/events space, and Thacker Mountain Radio, a weekly variety show on public radio featuring musicians and authors—is built on a love of books, the people who read them, and the people who write them. The business of Square Books is driven by nothing more than a genuine desire for people to read.
Which brings me to the very best thing about this place: the people. Since its founding in 1979 by Richard and Lisa Howorth, Square Books has been instrumental in cultivating and nourishing a thriving and talent-rich literary community in Oxford. If, as I mentioned last time, booksellers were canonized, General Manager Lyn Roberts would unquestionably be a candidate for sainthood. I could go on and on about this place, but you really should make a pilgrimage there for yourself, if you can. Suffice it to say that there are a hundred reasons why I chose it as the first stop on the ADS Book Tour in 2024. I am honored to present Square Books to you as the first ADS BOTM. Shop away, friends!
So good to see that Professor Manuduction has not lost his Thomistic chops. I believe that reference to the fittingness of the bibliographic modus essendi comes from 4.1?