Stevens Point business works to recreate the nostalgia of the scholastic book fair

By Kris Leonhardt

STEVENS POINT – The scholastic book fair; the words take you back to a time when school libraries and auditoriums transformed into pop-up bookstores.

Long before the introduction of the internet and smartphones, the anticipation in the days leading up to the book fair might be compared to the approaching of Christmas or your birthday.

Today, the nostalgia takes you back to those elementary years when, essentially, traveling salesmen made their stop at your school.

A Stevens Point business is now working to recreate the magic of scholastic book fairs, but with adults in mind.

“We will transform an area of the Central Waters’ Amherst Tap Room into something reminiscent of the Scholastic Book Fair. We’ll fill the space with books, trinkets, and fun doodads for sale and, of course, with great Central Waters brews,” explained Lyn Ciurro of Bound to Happen Books.

“The idea for our book fair came directly from our childhood memories of the elementary school book fairs. These were days filled with joy and wonder, and we think it’s unfortunate that there aren’t more opportunities like this for adults.

“So, we decided to make it happen. Indie bookstores across the country have been partnering with their local breweries to host similar fairs and it just made sense to us to team up with Central Waters.”

This is the first year for the “Boozy Book Fair,” which will be held at Central Waters Brewing Co. in Amherst on July 28, 4-7 p.m.

Bound to Happen Books, which opened its store front on Main Street in 2021, is an indie bookstore that “prioritizes authors, experiences, and stories not represented in the community.”

This is the first year for the event.

“The plan is to continue partnering with other breweries and adult-oriented locations to offer more book fair opportunities in the future,” Ciurro added.