Kid-friendly events at Bookstar
Saturday, January 26th, 2008
Bookstar
3402 Poplar Avenue
Memphis, TN 38111
901-323-9332
In addition to public libraries and community centers, bookstores often host free events geared toward children. I’ve been highly impressed by the story time at Davis-Kidd and wanted to see how other area stores compared. I also was looking for something held on the weekend to accommodate working parents. Bookstar hosts events nearly every Saturday at 2 p.m.
Bookstar is part of the Barnes and Noble conglomerate, but it has the aesthetic of a funky independent bookstore (at least in the bathrooms and the facade, which resembles an old movie theater). It is located in the Poplar Plaza shopping center next to the Blockbuster. The children’s area is small and poorly laid out — it lacks the train table and other amenities that other Barnes and Noble stores or Davis Kidd boasts, but it is not a bad place to pass an hour or so and it is close to Midtown.
On Saturday the store hosted a birthday party for Elmo, which seemed like a fun way to pass a few hours with my kids. We arrived at 1:45 for the 2 p.m. event and the staff was still setting things up. Several parents and children were milling about. By 2 p.m., the place was jammed with children and parents — at least 50 kids with one or two parents and they were all crammed into the tiny space allocated for the event. Because Elmo appeals to a young crowd, there was no effective way to leave the clear area for the children and have the parents sit elsewhere. On a positive note, the crowd was the most racially diverse that I’ve ever been in while living in Memphis.
The staff passed out birthday hats and had the children color a birthday cake. Then two stories were read, but the young woman reading had a very soft voice, so only those few children in front could hear the story. (Luckily, we were in front). The two books were Elmo themed. Following the reading, Elmo arrived. And I have to say it was like the Pope had arrived. Children were held aloft or put on shoulders and his progress through the stacks of books was murmured through the crowd. We got our first glimpse of Elmo when he turned the corner. It was (a guy in tennis shoes in a cheap costume rental) Elmo!
The staff then tried to line everyone up in an orderly fashion to get a photo with Elmo (we again lucked out and were near the front). There were a few line breakers, who weren’t really chastised, but I didn’t have too many ill feeling toward them. Everyone got a Poloroid memento of their visit with Elmo and then there was cake (which we ate in the car because it was still far too crowded in that store).
Overall, I thought it was a good idea, but poorly executed and much more thought should have been given to the store’s layout and logistics. I also don’t know if they were expecting that many children to show up.
In the coming months, Bookstar is focusing on boys with a series of events utilizing “The Dangerous book for Boys.” These events are especially for boys ages 8 to 12 (but are open to all ages and girls). The first event is February 2 at 2 p.m. and promises to explore the secrets of coin tricks, cracking codes and ciphers and more.
The regular storytime resumes on Saturday February 9 at 2 p.m. with the book Froggy. And Froggy will be there for a visit, the store encourages you to bring your camera. On Saturday February 16 at 2 p.m. the story will be Little Quack and on February 23 at 2 p.m. the story will be Fancy Nancy: Bonjour Butterfly.
p.s. for any regular readers. reviews will be a bit slow in the next week or so we’re housebound due to potty training!