Archer City--Booked Up

Heading out with some friends to Archer City, we made the 2 1/2 hour drive with great anticipation. It was book day! I set aside days to do some book shopping. Sometimes I shop for books to read, sometimes for books to sell, sometimes for books to do research (although libraries are usually just as well for this), and sometimes just out of tremendous curiosity, and what better place to satisfy my hunger for books than Archer City, Texas, the mecca of used book stores with more than 500,000 books for perusing.

And peruse I did. Starting at Booked Up One--there are four large stores around the town square, each labeled a number--I immediately found the book I wanted to buy last time, Georgia Slave Songs. I spent some time in the folk song section marveling at the amazing collection of folk song books, then walked around the aisles to study on the mystery section. Knowing Mr. McMurtry, the owner of the stores, does not have great affection for mysteries and probably had not added to the collection, I walked over to the general area where I found a nice Graham Greene book. I am a fairly diligent collector of Graham Greene, an author I consider one of the finest of the twentieth century.

Knowing I was spending too much time in number one, I wandered across the street for a quick look at Booked Up Two. Unfortunately my quick look lasted quite awhile as I studied the Anthony Burgess books, the Graham Greene's, Roth, Vidal, and then finally the rare book room. In that room, I wrestled with the compilation of short stories edited by John Updike, searched for the signed Carl Sandburg that was there last time, glanced at the Beloved by Toni Morrison, and then spent some time in the poetry section.

Passing by Booked Up Three, a nice store with older books and foreign copies, I headed over to Booked Up Four. As I headed that way, I smiled thinking about the set for The Last Picture Show which is nearby, the writers conference held each year at motel down the street, and thought briefly about a small town with one of the largest bookstores in the world in the middle of the town square. How ironic and joyful is the world!

Walking into Booked Up Four, where books on the arts, reference materials, biographies, sports, and some fiction reside, I found the book by George Plimpton I sought, glanced at several other books, and spied a nice book by Theodore Dreiser. Amazed at the number of Philip Roth books not to mention Gore Vidal, I decided to grab a bite to eat. Following a delicious hamburger at a cafe located about 25 yards from Booked Up four, I wandered across the street and down to return to number one.

As I walked, I found myself laughing at the conversation I had just had with the waitress. She was very nice, and as I was paying for the meal I asked her if she had ever visited the bookstores on the square. She said no, but then proceeded to tell me that she did read a book about a month ago and enjoyed it! For me, a book lover willing to drive several hours to visit Archer City, it is astounding that a local would never darken the door of the bookstores in their own backyard.

A prophet is without honor in his own country and a bookstore is without meaning in its own little town! Returning to Booked Up One, I drooled over a first edition Booked to Die, grabbed a Reveille by David Morrell and checked out. The ladies were just as sweet as always and I hated leaving the 500,000 plus books as always. It was a great day. For some it is the movies, others clothes, perhaps for some it is a theme park with its wondrous sights and sounds, or maybe a sports event, or a camping trip or any number of great enjoyable events. I certainly like all those things and more, but one of my favorite days is book day when I get to visit Archer City!