Books 101: Where is Ohio's biggest independent bookstore?

The Wooster Book Company (Photo courtesy of
David Wiesenberg)

Nestled in downtown Wooster is Ohio’s largest independent bookstore. The Wooster Book Company, however, is much more than just a bookstore. They are also a publishing company, the chief sponsor of the Buckeye Book Fair, home to a very friendly cat named Mr. Booker and a wonderful place to shop for books.

The Wooster Book Company opened in 1993 and moved into a larger building a few years ago, giving them around 6,000 square feet of space in which to sell and publish books. The original building had been a restaurant and came with a liquor license, so they still serve wine for guests over 21 in addition to coffee. David Wiesenberg, the owner, started the bookstore when he needed a retreat from the traveling he was doing in the publishing industry.

“Curiously, conventional and well-educated Wooster did not already have a bookstore and we followed our principles by locating downtown. We were an early hit –much to our relief; the downtown has flourished and the community still reads,” Wiesenberg said.

Adding publishing to the bookstore was an excellent way for them to diversify, and with Wiesenberg’s background in the industry, gave them the knowledge they needed to make it a successful venture. In addition to soliciting manuscripts on regional natural history, the Wooster Book Company will work with authors on editing, development, proof-reading, design, layout, production supervision, marketing and, of course, distribution.

So far the company has produced about 200 titles, published books by Louis Bromfield (a Pulitzer-prize winner), David Kline, Wes Jackson, Scott Russell Sanders and Gene Logsdon, and the publishing division has won both an Ohioana Citation and an Advocate of the Literary Arts award.

Along with the store and publishing comes the Buckeye Book Fair. Held on the first Saturday of every November, the Buckeye Book Fair hosts about 100 authors and illustrators and 3,000 guests. This year the fair will be held on November 7 in the auditorium of Wooster’s Ohio State University campus. Authors and illustrators are encouraged to incorporate various activities into the fair, but, says Wiesenberg, “the interactivity between reader and writer is the essential draw.”

Twins enjoying the children's section (Photo courtesy of
David Wiesenberg)

Back at the store itself, kids are given a wonderful space to play and read. The children’s area is large and features both a dragon and a horse for them to sit on, as well as chairs for adults –although it’s Mr. Booker who sits in the chairs more often than not. Mr. Booker is at the store full-time; he showed up as a kitten and has stayed ever since, even getting a mention on NPR.

The Wooster Book Company takes pride in stocking and ordering compelling and interesting books, conversing with customers about reads and making sure that they have good reads available for shoppers who come in looking for something new or needing a specially ordered book. With an incredible selection of books, great events, comfortable spots to sit and relax, the Wooster Book Company should be on any reader’s list of places to visit.