After 40 years in the business of books, owners Linda and Fred Burg have announced that The Little Read Book store will close permanently on July 18.
We spoke to the couple about the four decades spent running one of Tosa Village’s most recognizable, longest-running shops.
‘It’s because of her that it exists.’
Linda credits her love for reading to her mother. Growing up with four siblings, Linda remembers her mother reading to them at night before they went bed.
“It’s because of her that [Little Read Bookstore] exists,” Linda says. “It’s because of her that I love reading so much. She used to read to us chapters from from books at night, like Treasure Island, the classics. We’d get one chapter, which we would die for, then we’d have to go to bed. That was the worst part.”
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Linda’s mother died in New Hampshire in 1978. A check arrived in Linda’s mail a couple years later, leaving her with newfound inheritance money. “I had three boys, and I was doing fine, and I got this money. It was more money than just a little money, but not a huge amount. I said, ‘Well, what can I do?’”
Over the next few years, Linda would go through potential ideas for shops she could open with the starter cash. Ultimately, it was a simple bookstore that was the winner, and in July of 1985 The Little Read Book opened on Harwood Avenue, just south of the train tracks in Tosa Village. Four years later, Linda moved the store into its current location at 7603 W. State Street, where it has remained for over 35 years. After her husband Fred retired from a career in social work, he helped her run the business.
Celebrating 25 years in a unique way
When you think about books, some things that come to mind, probably include reading glasses, comfortable pillows, maybe a warm cup of coffee and so on. One thing that probably doesn’t is egg rolls. But in 2010, for the stores’ 25th anniversary, Linda and Fred held a week-long celebration that paired discounted books with egg rolls.
“Before the bookstore opened I had worked with St. Pius X [Catholic Church] for years, and we resettled refugees. Many of the refugees became friends of ours, and they started businesses around here,” Linda says.
One of those businesses included selling egg rolls. “Their egg rolls were the most fabulous. And so it just made sense that when we had this [25th anniversary] party, they didn’t just show up. They came with a huge platter of egg rolls, of course.”
Navigating COVID as small business owners
In 2020, disaster struck for thousands of small business owners as the world went into lockdown. With the inside of The Little Read Book store shut, Linda sold books out of a side door. However, the pandemic wasn’t as bad as it could’ve been for the small shop.
“Even with their masks on, people would come to the side door – We’d sell right into the parking lot,” she says. “During COVID, nobody worked here, so all that money was not going out the door, and so we were able to just squeak by. We made it through. We didn’t make money, but we held on.”
Looking to the future
Over the decades, Linda considered making changes to The Little Read Book, including adding more locations. But at the end of the day, the Burgs were happy with what they had in Wauwatosa. “The whole family cemented me here and made me not want to go big,” Linda says.
This year, Linda and Fred decided it was time to retire. The couple plans to spend much of their time with their eight grandchildren, while also catching up on reading and gardening. “He has his vegetables, I have my flowers, it’s our summer thing,” Linda says.
And what’s going to happen to the vacant space? As of right now, that’s still uncertain. According to Fred, there was another buyer interested in bringing in a different bookstore to the space, but negotiations have since fallen apart.
“We’d love to see a book store [in the building],” Linda said.
The Little Read Book’s retirement sale began June 15, with the entirety of their inventory – both new and used books – being discounted. As the days wind down and the shelves grow increasingly empty, Linda emphasizes that she is going to miss the people the most.
“I absolutely love what I do,” she says. “I love the book world. I love book people. They’re different than other customers. … Book people end up talking to each other just out of the blue. It’s fun. It’s been a lot of fun for 40 years.”
