With a love for stories, Macon bookstore owner seeks to bring community together

Editor’s Note: This story is part of Living Local, a regular series featuring a look inside local businesses — the things they make, services they provide and their impact on the community.

Margaret Harrington’s mother taught her to read at the age of 3, instilling in her a lifelong love of stories, both written and spoken.

Those early lessons stayed with Harrington, and in October 2023, she opened Bear’s Books in downtown Macon , making community and youth literacy a priority.

“My mother’s field was children’s literature,” Harrington said. “And she spent her career and beyond teaching reading, doing professional storytelling, volunteering in libraries, and working to ensure that books got into the hands of children as early as possible.”

Bear’s Books sells new books for children through adults, as well as gifts. It also regularly hosts literary events, such as book club discussions, author readings and signings, writing classes, and more.

Harrington wants the shop to be a place where everyone is welcome. Encouraging a love of reading enriches the community in a multitude of ways, she said, from broadening people’s horizons to making way for interesting conversations among Macon’s residents and visitors.

“I enjoy our events, because people who share a love of reading and stories have a chance to meet and discuss their passions,” she said. “Having writers visit Macon and do readings is a great way to bring the broader world to us, as well as to share the many delightful things about our community with others.”

Harrington said she is always looking for creative ways to engage with the community and connect reading with other businesses and organizations in Macon.

That’s how her Read with a Dog event started. Studies abound about the benefits of reading for children, Harrington said.

“I had heard about a ‘Read with Dogs’ event that an organization in Chattanooga held, and it sounded like fun,” she said. “My mother used to do things like that in libraries, because children are not intimidated by reading to dogs. The dogs will not correct them.”

Harrington shared that it feels “surreal” approaching one year in business. At times it feels as though the store just opened, she said, while other times, it feels as though this is what she always has done.

She called her first year in business “invigorating,” with something to learn every day. But owning Bear’s Books is a terrific way for her to incorporate creativity, her love of books and stories, and her love for building community.

Harrington said she is immensely grateful to NewTown Macon , a nonprofit with a mission to revitalize Downtown Macon, investing time, resources, and money in local people and businesses.

She said Bear’s Books would not exist without their Entrepreneur’s Academy and loan program for small businesses. The Small Business Development Center through the University of Georgia has also been instrumental in helping her to navigate the tasks necessary to open and run a business.

The bookstore has several events planned in the coming months, including a first birthday celebration in October.

On Friday, Bear’s Books will hold its Back-to-School Bash, where it will offer specials on back-to-school themed items.

On Aug. 15 the bookstore will host the first of a four-part Resilience Book Talk Series on “The Book of Delights” and “The Book of (More) Delight.” On Aug. 24, children’s book authors Rosalind Bunn and Kelly Silverman will be on hand to read and sign their books.

Bear’s Books is at 835 Forsyth St. in downtown Macon and can be reached at 478-259-6375.