By Zoe Perzo
The King’s English Bookshop has been serving Salt Lake City, Utah, since 1977. With 47 years of bookselling behind it, I met with co-owner Anne Holman to learn more about the store’s history, its growth, and what’s in store for the future.
Holman described The King’s English’s growth as “organic.”
“The store began in 1977 when Ann Berman and Betsy Burton rented office space in a rundown, old dry goods store so that they could work on their novels,” Holman explained. “They decided to sell books as a side hustle, and that very quickly became their full-time job!”
In 1987, they bought the corner gas station and were able to expand their space. Over the years, they've become a staple of the Utah indie scene.
Today, the shop is co-owned by Anne Holman and Calvin Crosby. Together, they’ve continued to grow The King's English. Their latest addition is a not-for-profit arm called Brain Food Books, a program dedicated to increasing access to books.
While The King’s English has faced the same obstacles all indies face — “the big box stores, then Amazon, Audible, then the pandemic” — Holman said owning their building gave them the stability they needed to weather those challenges. But the busy event schedule, packed with author appearances, book fairs, school visits, and book clubs, offers another challenge.
“We have thirty people on our official roster, the majority of them are part time,” Holman explained, “so it’s hard to get everyone on the same page much of the time. We use every method we can, including texting, signs, messaging, and meetings to make sure all of us know what is hot that week.”
But for Holman, the challenge of communicating with a larger workforce is worth the extra work. She’s proud of her team.
“The one thing we don’t have to worry about is the passion of our booksellers.”
Holman and Crosby both know there’s something magical about the bookselling life and about The King’s English in particular.
The King’s English had been Crosby’s childhood bookstore. As an adult he moved to California, and even served as CALIBA’s executive director for several years, but when the opportunity to return to The King’s English appeared, he didn’t hesitate.
Similarly, Holman had worked at and loved bookstores long before she found herself at The King’s English. When she moved back to Utah after living in the Chicago area for a while, her next door neighbor suggested she try The King’s English, and she’s been there ever since.
While Holman admits bookselling can be a hard career to choose — “It's not currently a job where you can make a living, so you have to have a back up plan” — it’s the only choice for her.
“I wouldn’t trade this life for anything,” she said.
If you’re in Salt Lake City, UT, you can visit The King’s English Bookshop in person, or visit them online via their website, Facebook, Instagram, or TikTok.
