Effective May 4th, 2022, David Everitt will be the new owner of Back of Beyond Books. See the Moab Sun News article below for the inside scoop on David and his plans for the store.

Meanwhile, Marcee and I make this announcement with no small amount of pride, nervousness and anticipation for what is to come in our lives.

It was in October 2001 that I (along with several 'silent partners') opened Arches Book Company at 78 N. Main Street in Moab. The book selling bug hit me strong in the mid 1990's when I picked up a part time job at the best book store in the west, Back of Beyond Books. At the time I was a full-time Interpretive Park Ranger at Arches National Park. I loved everything about Back of Beyond Books, especially its emphasis on Natural History, Archeology, Native Americana and alternative literature.

Arches Book Company was to complement to Back of Beyond Books. We had a full-service coffee bar, we roasted our own coffee beans, sold a wide array of gift items, plus stocked many areas of genre fiction that Back of Beyond Books did not. We also had a news stand with regional and national newspapers and nearly 500 magazine titles. And in the face of Amazon and digital books Arches Book Company prospered. In 2004 Back of Beyond Books was put on the market and I (plus we added another silent partner) were able to purchase my favorite bookstore, across the street from Arches Book Company. A year later we opened ABC & Beyond Used Books a block south. Life was good!

Of course by 2009 the great recession hit and everything fell apart. First we consolidated Arches and Back of Beyond, then we closed the used store, so by 2011 we had one storefront at 83 N. Main. Needing more revenue, I began to dabble in rare and antiquarian books and did everything possible to keep Back of Beyond Books afloat. By 2014 we were back in black and steadily saw yearly increases in sales. We began to publish Rare Book Catalogs and sell at antiquarian book fairs around the country. Back of Beyond Books become a destination for visitors.

Who could have guessed a global pandemic would halt life as we knew it, almost overnight. Spring of 2020 we laid off the staff and basically closed the doors for nearly two months. Marcee and I shipped hundreds of books, delivered locally and provided curbside sales. A PPP loan saved us and slowly we brought back employees, but 2020 saw a huge drop in sales yet a larger drop in costs. According to the IRS we actually made a little bit of money in 2020. By summer of 2021 we extended our hours back to pre-pandemic times and showed our best year ever.

"I love this store. For many of us, whether you’re a returning visitor or you grew up in this town, Back of Beyond is a very specific touchpoint of what means to be, physically, in Moab. I look forward to helping it continue to thrive for our visitors, residents, and the crew that works to make the store the unique place that it is. Stop in and say hey when you’re downtown; the coffee will still be there in the back..."

--David Everitt

In a weird twist, David's first job after college graduation was at Arches National Park. This was probably 1995 or 96 when I hired this cocky young geologist from Florida to give tours in the Fiery Furnace and Campfire talks in Devil's Garden. David still tells the story of the first evaluation I gave him but you'll have to ask him for details. David also worked for me at Arches Book Company years later. David is, I believe, a perfect fit to carry on Back of Beyond Books.

--Andy Nettell

Please join Back of Beyond Books

Craig Childs bears witness to rock art of the Colorado Plateau—bighorn sheep pecked behind boulders, tiny spirals in stone, human figures with upraised arms shifting with the desert light, each one a portal to the open mouth of time. With a spirit of generosity, humility, and love of the arid, intricate landscapes of the desert Southwest, Childs sets these ancient communications in context, inviting readers to look and listen deeply.

“In Tracing Time, Craig Childs invites us to join him on a journey to visit, experience, and try to understand the ancient rock writings scattered throughout the storied northern Southwest—a journey that includes many colorful components and even more colorful characters. This is not an investigation, in the typical and tiresome sense, but a meditation. Punctuated with reflections on Childs’s own experience and insights shared with him by descendant knowledge-keepers, Tracing Time is an engaging glimpse into a world both fascinating and fundamentally unknowable to those who aren’t born into it.”

 —R. E. BURRILLO, author of Behind the Bears Ears

Hardback Radio airs May 2nd

Join Shari and Andy from Back of Beyond Books and Jessie from the Grand County Public Library Monday May 2nd at 5pm for the Radio Book Club. These three are voracious readers and will provide many great reading choices and new book reviews. Tune in locally at 90.1 or 106.7 or world-wide at KZMU.org

Anyone with an internet connection can stream the program live, or listen to archived programs at this link, https://www.kzmu.org/radio-book-club/ 

After 15 years as an NPS Interpretive Ranger and almost 24 years in retail I look forward to maybe a slower pace. Marcee and I have begun a new business called Stellar Books & Ephemera which we will work out of my father's basement. We'll specialize in 19th century photography and documents plus unique one-of-a-kind 20th century books, diaries, and manuscripts.

Owning bookstores has not been a solo endeavor. Marcee has been a true partner in every sense, not only doing the bookkeeping for the stores but being my advisor and supervisor. I could not have done this without her skill and tact and a small portion of hard love.

I have had the great honor to call some of my favorite people "partners" in the bookstores. David Williams and Marjorie Kittle supported the idea of opening a bookstore in Moab upon first mention. And while David is never 'silent' these two have not only supported the stores as financial partners but in so many other ways.

Randy and Racheal Martin also jumped on the bookstore bandwagon with almost blind faith in my ability to open a brand new bookstore and provided critical seed money in that effort. Their support has been tremendous.

Finally Anne Wilson came on board when we purchased Back of Beyond. In addition to being our interior designer, Anne would stop by the store frequently and I could always count on her to lend an ear and provide moral support.

None of this could have happened without the amazing staff members who have worked so hard to provide great customer service and maintain a clean well lit store full of great merchandise and books. Running a bookstore is a detailed heartfelt job and I've been fortunate to have worked with some remarkable creative employees. We've hired nearly 150 locals over the years and have many great friendships from this endeavor.

Lastly--thanks to each and every one of you, our wonderful customers. Where would we be without you?? You've provided so much support and love, it is overwhelming. And if I may make one last request, please, please continue to support Back of Beyond Books. Independent bookstores are the lifeblood of small communities. I provide you seven ways to do that below.