Courtesy of Rachael Ostrom
For many years, Rachael Ostrom had dreamed about opening her own bookshop. “My niece and I like to take Saturday trips to visit as many independent bookstores as we can, and we’d spend the day planning the bookstore I’d open one day,” Ostrom says. The dream stayed a dream—Ostrom had a successful career as a marketing executive at Aveda, and she also felt a strong conviction that the location for her someday-shop had to be just right. “I told myself it had to be in a location I loved,” she says. She had been one of the many devoted fans of Micawber’s Books, in St. Paul’s picturesque Milton Square area, which closed in 2019. Ostrom always pictured her own bookshop in that very spot.
Then something wildly serendipitous happened. Last summer, Ostrom left her longtime Aveda job. The next day, she walked by the Milton Square space that was formerly Micawber’s. “It was up for lease,” Ostrom says. “I emailed the landlords while standing there, and they responded within ten minutes. When I got that email, I remember thinking, ‘Okay, this is it—I’m actually going to do it.’”
Courtesy of Rachael Ostrom
Less than a year later, Ostrom celebrates the opening of Acorn Bookshop this week. Acorn offers books “from every genre and for every reader,” she says. “It’s really important to us that there is something for everyone. As a feminist bookstore, we prioritize women authors and we strive for at least 75% of our new titles [to be] written by women.”
That feminist mission is personal and paramount for Ostrom. She and her husband have two daughters. “I refuse to stand by and raise them in a world where they have [fewer] rights than past generations,” she says. She mentions a striking statistic: Only 19% of books read by men are written by women, while 45% of books read by women are written by men (from “The Authority Gap,” by MA Sieghart). “We won’t have parity until men read more women authors,” Ostrom says.
Acorn Bookshop will highlight authors of all backgrounds, she adds, including many authors of color. “I read ‘Roots’ and ‘Uncle Tom’s Cabin’ in sixth grade. I remember both vividly and thought about them for weeks afterward. Honestly, I’ve been passionate about inclusivity since then. Books change you—they have the potential to education you on things you couldn’t possibly have experienced as a cis white woman.”
Courtesy of Rachael Ostrom
There’s also a strong focus on sustainability. Ostrom furnished the shop largely with vintage and secondhand items, and will offer locally made gifts, jewelry, and more from Indigenous and women makers. She also plans to partner with reforestation initiatives to plant a tree for every book order.
She hopes her customers, from tots to teens to grandparents, will make their own cherished reading memories at Acorn. “I want them to feel like it’s a second living room,” she says. “I’m excited to see people exchange ideas.” Acorn is intended to be not just a retail space but also a community gathering spot, with a full calendar of book-related events and even a soda counter slated to open later this summer that will offer custom, literary-themed beverages made with organic syrups. The shop is also available as a venue for birthday parties, book clubs, and other events, with access to a neighboring event center for larger bookings.
Ostrom says the first couple days of business for Acorn Bookshop have been delightfully busy. “I’m passionate about getting more people to read and introducing them to new books.”
Acorn Bookshop, 2238 Carter Ave., St. Paul; acornbookshop.com
Courtesy of Rachael Ostrom
