Community Book Center
2523 Bayou Road, New Orleans
readcbc.com // facebook.com/readcbc // (504) 948-7323
Celebrating 20 years at its location at 2523 Bayou Road, and 40 years in business, the Community Book Center is the longtime hub of this historic commercial zone just off North Broad Street and Esplanade Avenue. While the area is currently enjoying a substantial renaissance, with an influx of shops and restaurants, Community Book Center predates its neighboring businesses by more than a decade.
Founder and director Vera Warren Williams was working as a substitute teacher when she began selling books out of her parents’ home in the Lower Ninth Ward.
“I realized that books which positively reflected African-American people, culture and history were absent from the schools,” she recalled. “I brought some in for the students, and other teachers and administrators wanted them. That led to the business.”
The journey to Bayou Road had several stops along the way, including Williams helping to launch the African Marketplace at Jazz Fest, which has now evolved into Congo Square. She also created the Book Emporium at Essence Fest.
After settling in the present storefront in 2003, Williams continued her focus on serving as a community resource. Community Book Center hosts book signings and readings featuring national authors such as Alice Walker and Octavia Butler, as well as local writers such as former Louisiana poet laureate Mona Lisa Savoy and Kalamu ya Salaam. Community Book Center also hosts a youth arts program, along with frequent community marketplaces and festivals, often focusing on topics such as reading and financial literacy.
Yet it is still a retail operation first. Books, CDs, crafts, apparel, soaps and scents, and much more can be found on the shelves. The selection is diverse, though the store emphasizes African-American history and culture. There is a particular focus on items for youth.
“My biggest passion is working with and for young people,” stated Williams. “They are the guardians and keepers of our culture. The foundation in their lives often determines the direction of their lives.”
In addition to Williams, the business has two full-time staff members, which means, like many smaller neighborhood businesses, the pandemic put the operation at risk.
“We’ve always had the problem of lack of resources,” Williams said. “Everything we’ve done has been from the ground up. Then the pandemic shut everything down, and we had no online presence.”
The center’s lifeline came from an unexpected and ironic source.
“The murder of George Floyd created new interest in knowledge about racial justice and Black history,” explained Williams. “This especially included young people.”
A couple of these younger patrons volunteered to help build the store a website, which has generated enough sales that filling the online orders can itself be a challenge. In addition, the business has a page on Bookshops.com, an online presence for independent booksellers.
Seeing the Bayou Road revival makes Williams happy, but is not likely to change her focus.
“I want to do more community programming, help folks be aware of what’s going on, how they need to take an active role in their lives,” she commented, citing a recent neighborhood resource fair as an example. “It’s the future, but it’s the past and the present as well.”
