Meghan and Rick Hauser, who have been setting up Act 4 Books, Perry, N.Y., and earlier this year were seeking a bookseller to take over the store eventually, have found a partner: Maggie Wheeler Peace, high school library media specialist in the Perry Central School District. Meghan Hauser said that the three have been "taking a crash course in bookselling by staging Act 4 Books Pop-Up Shop, open weekends Thanksgiving through the New Year. This living, learning retail lab has taught us so much and has also warmed local hearts to the idea of a community supported bookstore (CSB). Because things weren't humming at a fast enough pace, Maggie also got married during this window!
"After the last pop-up weekend, all the books will be boxed and shelves moved to the other side of the store so renovations can continue for our planned full-time opening in Spring 2025."
Pictured: (l.-r.) Maggie Wheeler Peace; Heather Jackson, Perry native and owner of Merit Badge Books in Hamburg, N.Y. (in town to host a boozy book fair at the local brewery); Meghan and Rick Hauser; and Ann Burlingham, who owned the former Burlingham Books in the same location.