The Next Chapter Bookstore in Apple Valley now open for hungry readers
Are waves of customers visiting the newly opened The Next Chapter Bookstore in Apple Valley helping to dispel the idea that print media is dead?
“People of all ages still love books, and our job is to make them available to people that are hungry to read,” bookstore owner and retired teacher Sylvia Crabtree told the Daily Press.
Located a few doors down from Stater Bros. Market on the corner of Navajo and Bear Valley roads, The Next Chapter Bookstore carries thousands of used books, Crabtree said.
A recent tour of the store revealed numerous shelves filled with used books classified as vintage, children, nonfiction, thriller, fiction, mystery, suspense, picture-filled, young adults, science, history, sports and more.
Books range from $1 to $4 each, but there are times when Crabtree will give them away for free, much to the objection of some customers, who have told her, “Take my money, you’re running a business.”
Crabtree said since opening her store on May 11, she and her team have welcomed scores of readers.
“We’ve made a lot of connections and friends since we opened,” said Crabtree, who recently moved to Apple Valley from Upland. “Everyone is so friendly here and they told us they are excited that we opened.”
The next chapter
Over the years, Crabtree and her late mother collected nearly 20,000 books, with many of them donated by schools and individuals. She has also saved books before they got thrown into a dumpster, she said.
Crabtree opened her bookstore to keep the memory of her late mother alive by making books available to the community. Her mother wanted to open a bookstore with her daughter, Crabtree said.
“My mother was an amazing teacher and she loved to read,” Crabtree said. “When she stayed with us, we had a baby monitor and many times I heard her laughing hysterically. I would tell my husband I know what she’s doing — she’s reading Amelia Bedelia.”
When her mother died, the grief led Crabtree and her husband, Zero, a retired math teacher of 40 years, to move out of the Upland area.
“I couldn’t live there any longer,” Crabtree said. “She was my world and I needed a change.”
Take a look, it’s in a book…
Crabtree recalled a time when she was teaching with the Pomona Unified School District, and she assigned a research project to a student who later returned empty-handed.
“He told me he didn’t have any books at home to study with,” Crabtree said. “That day I sent him home with a box full of books. It was a moment that touched my heart.”
From that day, Crabtree promised herself that she’d never walk away from a child without giving them reading material, whether it’s “books, comic books, newspapers, or picture books.”
“Kids need to know what it feels like to read, then turn the pages and be taken on an adventure of knowledge, entertainment and fun,” she said.
Summer events, wall art
Crabtree shared that over the summer she plans to add events to the bookstore’s calendar such as hosting read-aloud times for children, author meet-ups, and book talks.
“You’ll notice that the walls to my store are blank,” Crabtree said. “I’d like to see local artists come and display their work here. The high schools, the college…anyone who has art, I would like to have it.”
Bookstore hours are 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday to Friday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday. The store is closed on Sunday and Monday. Evening hours are by appointment.
The Next Chapter Bookstore is located at 21580 Bear Valley Road in Apple Valley, next to the Subway sandwich shop and near Staters Bros.
Daily Press reporter Rene Ray De La Cruz may be reached at RDeLaCruz@VVDailyPress.com. Follow him on X @DP_ReneDeLaCruz
This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: The Next Chapter Bookstore in Apple Valley now open for hungry readers
