MASON CITY, Iowa – North Iowa readers are going to have a new place to shop soon.
Three Bells Books, described as a small and community-focused independent bookshop, is scheduled to open in downtown Mason City in early November. The ownership team of Molly Angstman and Jake Rajewsky of Fat Hill Brewing say Construction is currently underway on a 1,200 square foot retail space at 14 S. Commercial Alley, which is located between The Hungry Mind and Simply Nourished on the former movie theater parking lot attached to Southbridge Mall.
Angstman will serve as the bookstore’s on-site CEO and events coordinator, while Rajewsky runs the behind-the-scenes beverage and business side. Julie Bublitz, former general manager of Book World in Southbridge Mall, which closed in 2018, will help with the day-to-day running of the store. Another three to six employees are expected to be hired.
Plans are for Three Bells Books to feature thousands of works from many genres, bookish accessories and gifts, sitting areas, a children’s book room, a rotating drink list, and a calendar of events full of book club meetings and author visits.
“The pandemic was actually a huge boost to the book publishing industry nationally,” says Angstman. “People staying closer to home started reading again and have kept up the habit.”
Three Bells Books is named after the Bronte sisters, a trio of Victorian-era English authors who all wrote under the pseudonymous last name of Bell. Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre, for example, are some of the family’s most famous works.
“I want to create a warm, welcoming place where all these bookworms can browse, read, get to know each other, and have fun with book culture,” says Angstman. “Reading is traditionally a solitary activity, but it doesn’t have to be!”
