The Book Bus, an independent bookstore on wheels, brings the joy of reading to those who need it most | Book Bus - Roadtrippers Magazine

After Melanie Moore retired from teaching, she filled a 1962 Volkswagen Transporter with books and hit the road, says Morgan P. Vickers, junior editor of Roadtrippers Magazine.

Though it’s mobile, The Book Bus remains in and around Cincinnati on most days.
Photo: courtesy of Melanie Moore

Two years ago, Melanie Moore looked out her kitchen window and saw a 1962 Volkswagen Transporter. The vehicle had been sitting in her driveway for years, but she suddenly saw it in a new light. Moore was in the middle of reading Christopher Morley’s 1917 novel Parnassus on Wheels, the story of a fictional horse-drawn bookseller.

Moore, a newly retired schoolteacher of 25 years, always dreamed of opening her own bookstore. She was even in the process of signing a lease for a brick-and-mortar store when Parnassus on Wheels fell into her hands.

Moore opened up the first chapter and read: “As he spoke he released a hook somewhere, and raised the whole side of his wagon like a flap. Some kind of catch clicked, the flap remained up like a roof, displaying nothing but books—rows and rows of them. The flank of his van was nothing but a big bookcase. Shelves stood above shelves, all of them full of books—both old and new.”...

Though the Book Bus is an independent, mobile store, Moore often partners with coffee shops and community markets across the greater Cincinnati area to set up a pop-up shop for a day or two. In the winter months—or during a heatwave—businesses like Wyoming Community Coffee invite Moore to park the bus in front of the building and bring some boxes of books inside to sell. During the warmer months, Moore still partners with local businesses, but instead opens the cotton flaps, displays her books in the sunlight, and invites customers to spend time walking around the bus, taking in all it has to offer...

Even though Moore had to retire from teaching in order to pursue her dream of opening a bookstore, she didn’t have to sacrifice any of her passions in the process. “I get to do it all—I get to have the teacher side and the book side,” Moore says. “But, meeting the kids and getting to see them excitedly hold the books in their hands—that’s my favorite part.”
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Source: Roadtrippers Magazine