Sitting amid a quiet neighborhood in Laytonsville, the two-month-old bookstore lives with endless amounts of stories to tell, excited for Montgomery County residents of all ages to come by.
Michelle Brady, a Nebraska native, opened The Brady Readery in June of this year. Wanting to get in touch with her creative side again after serving in the army and becoming an attorney, she said she wanted to own a bookstore in hopes of helping her community in a different way.
“I didn’t feel like I was helping anyone. I didn’t feel like my time was valued in the way that I wanted it to be. Money isn’t enough,” Brady said.
Seeing the low literacy rates in the country – 21 percent of adults having low literacy skills according to the National Center for Education Statistics – Brady said she wanted a place where people could come together and get to know each other while exposed to literature.
“What I really wanted to do was, first of all, have a place where community could meet together for free as much as they can,” Brady said. “Number two, help people learn to love to read again and make it not intimidating.”
Patrick Fromm, Assistant Director for Branch Operations of Montgomery County Public Libraries, said in an email that exposure to literature is key for learning and community.
“Literacy works best when people find the stories that hook them and push them to pursue continued development. By engaging with literature, people of all ages help expand their horizons, develop their reading skills, and join a community of others on the same journey,” Fromm said.
Despite going to law school and serving in the military, Brady said her passion had always been literature, holding a bachelor’s in fiction writing, according to Columbia College of Chicago. She also said it had been a vow and dream of her and her husband.
“I have always been a writer and have always dreamed of owning a bookstore,” Brady said.
Being a locally owned business, she said she loves being able to interact and tend to her community’s literary needs.
“The locally owned part, I like it because it’s good for the community. Our money stays here,” Brady said. “It’s nice to know I can actually serve people’s direct requests.”
She also said being a veteran-owned bookstore was important to her, as she said it feels like the most “patriotic” thing to do.
“I feel like there’s a lot of rhetoric about veterans and military people being on board with some of this crazy stuff that’s happening, and I don’t think that’s the case,” Brady said.
Growing up in Nebraska and in poverty, she said literature helped her learn more about the world and what she could do with her life.
“Something about knowing that these other people had these amazing lives while I was living in a small place in Nebraska was really helpful to me to know that there’s a whole world out there and you can have whatever life you want,” Brady said.
The Brady Readery Children’s Section (Photo courtesy of Marlene Orantes)
When walking into the red barn, the first thing seen is the children’s section. The section includes games, toys, rugs and a lending library with colorful decorations.
“I wanted a place where kids could feel comfortable to play and hang out,” she said.
The lending library, Brady said, was to allow anyone, but mainly children, to borrow books. According to their website, children will also receive a discount on a future purchase if books are returned with a book report.
“It makes the barrier for parents bringing their kids here a little lower because kids always want to buy all the stuff,” she said.
The bookstore also holds Story + Craft Hours twice a week, which Brady said was to engage children in the stories they read.
“The idea with the story and craft is that I thought it would be more interactive. We could read a story for a little bit, but kids get bored, and then we do a craft that’s sort of associated with it,” she said.
Storytime decoration corner in Children’s Section (Photo courtesy of Marlene Orantes)
Although she said she felt she would have to guide the community in the initiatives like Story + Craft Hours, Brady said the community has come together to help her, with volunteers coming in and assisting with the bookstore.
“It has been really fun, and people volunteer to help me,” Brady said.
Warren Miller, a retired federal worker, has been a volunteer at The Brady Readery since the second week of opening.
“When the store opened, I was so excited a bookstore had opened in our neighborhood that I went over,” Miller said.
He said the local bookstore was “eclectic” and “welcoming,” and that it felt like a neighborhood bookstore. Miller also said he wanted to volunteer because he’s always loved books and wanted to give back to his community.
“That whole notion of doing something and giving back always resonated with me, so it was an opportunity to do something,” Miller said.
Inside of The Brady Readery (Photo courtesy of Marlene Orantes)
Experiencing the bookstore as a volunteer, he said he’s seen an “amazing” community response, even seeing people come in to interact with other book lovers.
“People come in and they want to talk about books. It’s a great kind of entree in terms of the community,” said Miller. “I think it realizes the concept that Michelle is trying to create in terms of trying to create that sense of community.”
He also said Brady’s passion for literature and developing a path for that same passion to the community comes out in the store.
“Her appreciation of the written word, she really believes in it,” Miller said. “That’s the whole premise of the store, so I think it goes a long way.”
With books being more accessible online, he also said local and independent bookstores bring the in-person experience people crave, like touching a book and talking about it with others.
“You can’t create that community on Amazon,” Miller said. “I think the value of an independent bookstore is creating that sense of community.”
