I am an avid reader, and while that has slowed down in college due to the amount of academic reading I have to do, I still try and find chances to read something I enjoy. I’m a big fan of romance as a genre. It can have highs and lows, but that’s what makes the genre fun. It’s a journey, and even if I’m not a fan of the couple, the path to get to the end of the book will always capture me. So, when I heard a romance bookstore was opening up in Dogtown, I was excited to check it out.
Shelf Love DSM, a romance-focused bookstore, opened a month ago in Dogtown and aims to supply customers with quality books in an environment built around the romance genre. They plan to host events like book clubs, book swaps and signings from local authors. I was lucky when I visited because I got to meet the owner, Sarah Gardner-Bergan. She said she wanted a space for romance readers and indie authors since “a lot of people don’t realize their favorite authors were at one point indie authors.”
The store itself has a excellent location in the middle of Dogtown, across the street from Lucky Horse and next to Dough Co. Pizza. It’s a quick and easy walk for anyone who lives on campus. It also has interesting decor,referencing pop culture with bookmarks of Pedro Pascal or various pop artists like Sabrina Carpenter and Chappell Roan.
My only real critique of the actual physical store was the spacing of items. Most of the books line the walls, so if you’re checking out books at the same time as someone else, it can get a little cramped. Not to mention the ceiling has no actual tiles, leaving you to see steel breams above you, slightly dampening the soft, bubbly vibes.
However, the location is secondary to the selection of books that Shelf Love provides. The store focuses on romance but has a ton of genres from historical to fantasy. Each genre has its own place in the store, so visitors can narrow down their interests by genre. LGBTQIA+ books have their own section, but also stories that have those elements that fit into other genres are marked with pride flags, so if you’re looking for a pride story, it’s a bit easier to find them.
I have one more very minor critique on selection. As I perused the store more thoroughly on my second visit, I noticed a bit of a lack of stories lacking protagonists who happen to be people of color. Now this is less of a critique on the store and more on the romance novel industry in general since I am sure this is not intentional on the store’s part. I tend to find myself wanting stories from more diverse perspectives in all forms of fiction but especially romance so in the future I would like to see more of those present.
Overall, Shelf Love is a loveable store with an owner who clearly wants to run a business to benefit the community. My two critiques should not be taken as reasons to not go; in fact, it should be a reason to go to the store and support it so it can gain the base to continue to grow. These small issues are just symptoms of the shop only opening a month ago. I’m comfortable saying Shelf Love has the chance to be a phenomenal bookstore close to the Drake University campus.
