In 2012, Wendy Welch and Jack Beck, owners of Tales of the Lonesome Pine used bookstore in Big Stone Gap, Va., announced that they were looking for someone to take care of their bookstore for a couple of months while they traveled across the country promoting Welch's book, The Little Bookstore of Big Stone Gap. The request, which garnered widespread media attention, resulted in "the perfect" Andrew Whalen taking the helm.
Welch, whose latest book is Fall or Fly: The Strangely Hopeful Story of Foster Care and Adoption in Appalachia, recently told us: "Once again we find ourselves in need of a 'bookstore sitter or sitters' for this summer. Jack will be off conducting a group round Scotland the last two weeks of June and I will be tied up with my main job. Then both of us will be gallivanting around South Dakota and Wyoming for most of July. This is an opportunity for anyone who ever fancied owning a bookstore to have a 'dry run.' You live in the upstairs guest-room, get to meet all our quirky customers and live off the sales income while here. There have been many bookstore sitters since The Little Bookstore of Big Stone Gap was published in 2012 and all have thoroughly enjoyed the experience. If you are interested, then send a PM to Tales of the Lonesome Pine LLC on Facebook or e-mail to jbeck69087@aol.com and we can provide more details."