Photos and interview by Stacie Joy
TeamEVGrieve was excited to see signage going up late last year promising an independent bookstore in the neighborhood, and the recently opened (Dec. 13!) Afterword Bookshop delivers on that promise.
We talked with co-founders Lulu Mourning (left) and Nika Voron on a blustery January afternoon at the space at 216 E. Sixth St. (between Second Avenue and Cooper Square) about the shop, the neighborhood, and their curatorial process.
How did Afterword Bookshop come to be? What brought you two together to open a bookshop?
We met while working at another bookselling job. We bonded over our shared love of merchandising and curating '70's funk. I had always wanted to open a bookstore, but it was something I thought about doing way down the line, more of a dream than a five-year plan.
Nika was looking for a way to share her curation skills and her unique vision with NYC. We started talking about what it would look like if we started a bookstore together — how we would have more space to try out new, creative ideas, how we could build our own community hub, and how we could create value for ourselves instead of for someone else.
Eventually, we got so excited about the idea that we knew we had to try to turn it into reality.
What brought you to the East Village and this particular location to open your shop?
We were looking for a neighborhood with a strong arts identity, because our tastes are on the funkier side. Being in this neighborhood, which has such a history of avant-garde art, fashion, music, theater, cinema, and literature, allows us to stock a wide range of titles that wouldn’t necessarily move in more traditional areas.
As for this particular location, we fell in love with the idiosyncratic architectural features, the columns, the random window onto an alley — the alcove that currently holds kids' books, and the backyard, which we are definitely going to do more with when the weather gets warmer.
You have a carefully curated selection of books. How do you select what books and what genres you sell?
We are interested in a wide range of topics and genres. Our curatorial "mission," so to speak, was to stock the store with only cool books, which translates to books we thought were interesting or that we love, but doesn't actually correlate to coolness in the traditional sense.
We both did months of solo research on books we could stock, and then we went through the lists we had made together, discussing every title and making adjustments.
We have a little of everything, which hopefully includes a lot of titles our visitors have never seen before.
There are also other things available at the shop: cards, puzzles. Do you plan on expanding into other merchandising areas?
Short answer: We've already started expanding into art — we are passionate about supporting local artists. We want to maintain books as our main focus, of course, but we plan to do a lot of experimenting.
To that end, we’re installing more substantial shelving in the spring, which will allow us to hold more inventory and expand our current selection.
How has the reception been since you opened? Do you have a typical customer?
The reception has been warm and enthusiastic since our opening day. We feel so lucky to be in a neighborhood full of book lovers and people who really want to see independent businesses thrive.
As for our typical customers, it’s a mix. We get a ton of traffic from locals, which is great to see. It will be interesting to see how January plays out now that all the students have returned from the holiday break. We’re still getting a sense of who our typical customer is.
Nika recommends "Bliz-aard Ball Sale" by David Hammons; "the performance piece took place just a block away."
Lulu recommends "Brideshead Revisited" by Evelyn Waugh, "because January is a time for revisiting old selves and old memories — the novel is sweet and sad and romantic, and bears a reread if you haven't picked it up recently."
Follow @afterwordbookshop on Instagram for updates.
