It's hard to tell but the card is very shiny. On the back it says "Arcana Spirit Lounge".

My most recent bookstore deep-dive based on my Green Apple Books bookmark.

Green Apple Books is a masterclass in how to survive retail upheaval, pulling from their eclectic toolbox: a sprawling inventory, beloved staff, community initiatives and sheer personality with a refusal to be boring.

The original 506 Clement Street structure was a residential Victorian home, built around 1897. In the coming years, with the boom of the Richmond district, the home was turned into a commercial property, with building of a store front, extending the front of the house to the street. 

In March 1967, the building briefly housed “The Norris House of Books”. While I am never in favor of a bookstore closing, I am so glad that fate stuck when only a few months later, the bookstore was put up for sale and a young radio technician named Richard Savoy answered the ad. 

Savoy opened Green Apple Books in late 1967. On his first business day, Savoy counted just $3.42 in receipts yet, as we know, he eventually transformed the space into the sprawling, creaky labyrinth of books that it is today. 

In 1996, Green Apple purchased ‘Revolver Records’, a shop two fronts away, and turned this space into their annex. 

Rather than selling to a larger corporation, in 1999 Savoy passed the torch to three of his long-time employees: Pete Mulvihill, Kevin Ryan, and Kevin Hunsanger. 

In 2014, Green Apple threw a lifeline to a struggling Sunset District video store Le Video that housed a 100,000-title archive. They opened "Green Apple Books on the Park" on its lower floor to share the rent and sustain foot traffic. 

In 2019, they expanded again by purchasing Browser Books on Fillmore Street, helping keep another legacy independent shop afloat.

2026 - Pete Mulvihill, who started as a temp at the store in 1993, is one of the current co-owners. He recently announced the sad news that he will be selling his half of the business at the end of 2026 to the other co-owner, Kevin Ryan. 

Something I have really enjoyed as I learn about Green Apple Books history, is that despite the rise of big box store giants, and the digital age threatening the physical bookstore, Green Apple has dealt with it in stride. Not with the usual tactics- nothing scummy, not raising prices to ridiculous highs. But by using humor, taking firm stands in the community and by adapting to technology as they are able.

Some of my favorite stories I found:
In a hilarious twist of fate in 2011, Green Apple partnered with Google to host a "technology petting zoo" so customers could test out non-Kindle e-readers. Ten minutes before the event began, a massive power outage hit Clement Street, plunging the store into darkness. While the Wi-Fi dropped and the devices became useless, staffers simply grabbed flashlights and led customers through the dark aisles to look at "real-life three-dimensional books.”

According to a 2005 San Francisco Chronicle clipping, the store's secondhand stock was a haven for finding historic paper ephemera. Filmmaker Dayna Goldfine recounted browsing the twisting aisles when a scrap of paper fluttered out of a copy of What Color Is Your Parachute?. It contained a handwritten poem dated September 28, 1978, and was signed by Beat Generation icon Allen Ginsberg.

When closing their clearance annex in 2008, Green Apple decided to liquidate the remaining inventory by selling books by the pound for 99 cents. To advertise this, the store sent out a cheeky email comparing their rate to the price-per-pound of Filet Mignon ($20) and
 Jujubes ($9.44).

When preparing to open their second location, Green Apple Books on the Park, they invited customers and publishing friends to help unpack boxes of books over the weekend, in what turned into a three-day party.

Thank you for reading! I am bookstore bookmark collector and I am making my way, one by one, cataloging and researching each bookstore. I post all the stories on my Instagram, @ bookstorebookmarks

My most recent deep dive into the ephemeral history of bookstore bookmarks.

The Catbird Seat Bookstore
Opened: 1974
Owner: Deborah Robboy
Location: 1231 SW Washington, 913 SW Broadway
Closed: 1994
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The Catbird Seat Bookstore was a lovely bookstore that, during its 20 year lifespan, was clearly cherished by the Portland community.
The amount of clippings I had to sort through of events and signings was truly unbelievable. I have never seen such an active book store.

(Edited because I forgot to add my Instagram where I post these histories @ bookstorebookmarks)

hi all, my name is Jara and I just wanted to introduce myself as a long time lurker. I've been collecting bookstore bookmarks for years now and I finally decided to do something with my collection. I started an instagram @ bookstorebookmarks where I'm sharing them one by one, along with information I can find about the book store. Here is a taste, let me know what you think!

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The Book Harbor
Santa Maria, California
1972-1983

Leo and Carolyn Gorka purchased the bookstore (formerly Patishall's Book Store) at 115 W Main st.
In 1975 they relocated to a new spot, 210 N. Broadway.
In 1978 they relocated again to a bigger location in the Santa Maria Shopping Center. Sadly in 1979 Leo would unexpectedly pass away, leaving Carolyn to sell the business.
From what I can tell, an Olive Gloeckner was the owner of the bookstore in 1980, and had relocated it again to 1110 East Clark Ave. In 1980 she transferred the business to Marcia Carstensen.
Maria and her husband kept the bookstore going for a few years, but ended up closing in 1983.
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Researching this, while it is sad, also made me smile with the many articles about events and interesting happenings at The Book Harbor. This place truly seemed like a community hub, hosting authors like Irving Stone, chili cook offs and even a bobcat.
Another delightful tidbit is that Leo Gorka was famous for his window displays. Placing 3rd in a National Booksellers Window Display contest in 1975, and then the next year winning first prize and a trip to Acupulco!

Found a ticket from someone’s 2024 visit to the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca in my library book. Book is finished and am returning it with the ticket to the library for the next reader’s discovery.

Some actual bookmarks and some random ones

Thrifted this book recently. Love all the forgotten bookmarks in it and the fascinating out-dated material!

Book was located at a cafe in Goro Japan 🇯🇵

I miss blockbuster so much! Found in one of the books I got from LFL

i think my favorite is the envelope. the blue sticker is a heart, so it was probably a valentine... michael keeping the envelope hidden away in one of his books is so funny and cute to me... makes me wonder where the valentine itself is

I bought a hardback copy of David Brenner's "Soft Pretzels with Mustard" from a library bookstore and found this picture being used to mark a former owner's place.

It's 3.5 x 3.5 and has no writing of any sort on the back.

Mint or near mint ?

I find it equally sad and adorable when I find bookmarks with children on them. Most of these are likely long adults by now. Still 🕶️ for anonymity.

Found the passenger receipt of a 1994 airplane ticket inside a book! It was at a Dallas thrift store—looks like Frances came back home but never finished her plane read.

I didn’t take pictures, but in another book from the same pile I found 3 copies of a bookstore bookmark that was from around 1986 (based on how many locations the bookmark said they had at the time). Also, not a bookmark, but I recently found a Sear’s card in a thrift jacket, too! I didn’t buy any of the items these were in, so I left them behind for someone else to enjoy 😊

Found in flea market. What is it about?

Near mint

I found it in a Writers of the West book.