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Book dealers from across the country displayed
prints, maps, and vintage magazines – as well as
books – at the Santa Monica Book Fair on
Saturday and Sunday, September 6 and 7, at the
Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. Such book fairs,
according to sponsor Bustamante Enterprises’s
Shelia Nickerson, have become increasingly
important since high rents have driven many
booksellers out of retail storefronts and into
strictly online and mail-order “stores.” The
fairs give them a chance to meet customers in
person and give those customers the opportunity
to see and touch the merchandise.
This year’s fair at the Civic featured a special
display of the works of Leo Politi
(1908-1996), a prolific artist and
illustrator best known for his children’s books
that earned him the coveted Caldecott Medal and
the Catholic Church’s Regina Medal. He also
produced some wonderful books like Bunker
Hill and
Angeleno Heights,
featuring his renditions of old Los Angeles.
Politi’s son Paul was on hand to guide
fair-goers through the display of his father’s
works and distribute postcards of his
paintings. A year-long celebration of the
centennial of Politi’s birth will continue at
the Santa Monica Public Library’s MLK Auditorium
on Saturday, September 13, at 2 p.m. with Paul
Politi and author Ann Stalcup (Leo Politi,
Artist of the Angeles).
The Santa Monica Book, Print, Photo & Paper
Fair, as it was officially called, included
booths from Santa Monica and Venice dealers, and
booksellers from throughout California (north
and south) as well as from New York,
Massachusetts, Florida, and points in between.
Santa Monica dealer and Landmarks Commissioner
Roger Genser echoed the sentiment of the more
than 80 booksellers when he said that he
welcomed the opportunity to interact with the
public face-to-face and display his wares to
book lovers in person. |
