jog ing me now is novelist ann patchett, author of "state of wonder," "bel canto," and six other bookser of parnassus books in nashville, tennessee. great to have you on the program. >> glad to be here. >> thank you so much for joining us. you put $300,000 of your own money into opening an independent bookstore. you're already a best-selling, prize-winning author. why become a small business owner as well, putting your money on the line? >> i should say my partner karen hayes told me it would be $300,000. to date she's only taken $150,000. i'm only in for half at this point. she's very good with money. because i was in a city and our bookstores closed and simple as that. i just didn't want to live in a city without a bookstore. i thought, i can afford to take a hit, if i lose it, it's fine. but it matters to me to have a bookstore. >> how's business? tell me about that. the store opened six months ago. what can you tell us about how the community has responded? >> it's been six months ago right now. and it's been crazy. because everybody said, you might as well be selling eight-track t

the things that i'm very excite bed about is that -- excited about is that the wonderful writer, anne patchetttually newly taken over an independent bookstore which is in nashville and, apparently, is doing quite well. so i'm hoping, um, that we cannot only close some indies, but revive or create some as well in the years to come. >> host: have libraries ticked up at all where the independent bookstores have closed? have local libraries picked up the book tours at all? >> guest: well, libraries and indies always had in common the fact that they would say, here, read this. you know? i mean, the number of librarians who helped me out when i was a kid saying you liked heidi? try "little women." i mean, they really shaped my reading behavior. and in some places there are or libraries that have taken over events. the philadelphia free library, for example, has fantastic author events. but indie bookstores are still a follow crumb for literate people in communities who want to know what to read, and we've got to keep them alive. >> host: judy franks, e-mail, wanted to ask about book clubs. she says