Yesterday’s Books, Modesto’s only independently owned bookstore, closing after 42 years
Modesto’s only independently owned general-interest bookstore, Yesterday’s Books, has become another victim of the pandemic and will close after 42 years in business.
The shop has been a staple just off the intersection of McHenry and Standiford avenues, offering an extensive collection of used, new, rare, paperback and hardback books. But on Wednesday night, Yesterday’s owner, Paula Kiss, posted a farewell note on the bookstore’s Facebook’s page, which announced the closure.
It read, in part, “It is with the heaviest of hearts that I must write this news to you. We will soon be closing after 42 years in Modesto. Unfortunately, despite fervent hopes and extensive efforts, we have become one of the many small businesses to struggle through the pandemic but not recover. While I am sure this must be disappointing to you, it was not an easy decision for me to make in any way, and I could not be more disappointed personally that it has come to this point.”
Yesterday’s is the second long-running Modesto business to shutter permanently in as many weeks while citing the lingering effects of the pandemic. Last week, the owner of Deva Cafe in downtown Modesto announced its closure after almost 30 years in business on J Street, citing the pandemic’s impact, skyrocketing inflation and changing customer habits.
First opened at Coffee Road and Floyd Avenue in 1980 by Larry and Kathleen Dorman, Yesterday’s Books moved to its current McHenry Avenue location in 1993. Kiss worked for the Dormans and with her now ex-husband bought the business in 2008. She continues to own and operate the store on her own now.
Over the years, the shop and its wood-lined shelves had overcome the arrival of big-box booksellers like Borders, which closed in Modesto in 2011, as well as two fires that damaged the building. But the stresses of the recent years, from the pandemic to rising inflation, made it too difficult for Kiss to continue.
She said the decision to close permanently was “purely financial.” She said she has been contemplating the decision for months, but it came to a head in recent weeks.
“I just can’t continue,” said the 49-year-old. “My personal savings is completely gone now. I’ve tried to keep the store open for so long. But I can’t do that anymore.”
Inflation might not have as direct an effect on used book prices, she said, but when prices of new books go up, so do the prices for preowned ones. Also, the current record-high inflation means shoppers have less disposable income, which has cut sharply into her business.
She estimates that since the pandemic, her sales have been down 30%.
“People are having to spend more on things like food and gas,” she said. “They don’t have the free money to buy books.”
The store currently has five employees, down from her peak of nine staff prepandemic. She estimates they have some 80,000 to 90,000 books in stock, and 95% of those are used, as well as DVDs, music and more. Kiss said the store will sell off its remaining inventory as it winds down its business in the coming weeks. It has stopped its used book purchasing as of this week.
Longtime customer Karen Hurley, 69, started going to Yesterday’s when it was still at its original location, and then followed it to McHenry Avenue. She came the morning after the closing announcement to find herself “a lifetime supply of reading material” as two full bags sat near her feet already.
“This is my library,” she said. “The closing of this store changes my entire book life.”
Barbara and Don Arney, both in their 70s, also have been coming to the bookshop since it first opened, and still come at least once a month to pick out their favorites. They were upset at the loss of the city’s last independently owned book shop. Barnes & Noble, less than a block north on McHenry, is now the city’s only remaining general-interest bookstore.
“It’s really people’s loss to lose this store,” Barbara Arney said. “But people don’t want to hold books in their hands anymore. They want to read things online.”
Kiss expects the store to close for good before the end of the year. The store will keep its normal hours, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday, during the process.
She does not own its building and does not know what will come next in the space. While she is open to someone making an offer to buy Yesterday’s, she has not actively put the shop on the market.
As she prepares to say goodbye to the bookstore, Kiss admits she’s not sure what her next chapter will be either. She plans to look for a new job, take some classes at Modesto Junior College and “see what comes of that.”
She said the stress she has weathered during the pandemic and its fallout as a small business owner was comparable only to the time she had to be hospitalized “near death” from a bad infection that required emergency surgery.
Since her evening post went live on Facebook and the store’s website, Kiss said she’s been inundated with messages from customers lamenting the store’s loss.
“It’s been beautiful, I am so grateful. I have cried a lot just since putting that up,” she said. “I expect a lot more tears in coming days. But I am really grateful to get to see that we’ve touched a lot of people here. We’re all sad, I hope that people will keep reading.”
This story was originally published October 27, 2022 at 1:13 PM.
