A good read for Marysville

By Eve Hightower/Appeal-Democrat

June 14, 2006 - Amicus Books is bucking a national trend.

While most independent bookstores are down-sizing, Amicus recently moved to a new, larger location.

The community-minded owners and thousands of books crossed the bridge from Hillcrest Plaza in Yuba City to Marysville and found a home on D Street last month.

Such growth is all part of Kara and James Davis' plan: Give to the community and it will give back.

The American Booksellers Association has disintegrated from 5,200 bookstores in 1991 to 1,702 stores in 2005. “We aren't trying to get rich,” Kara said. “If we really wanted to make a lot of money, we would not have gone into used books.”

Nestled in one of Marysville's old downtown buildings - where exposed brick is not boring and wide windows lend themselves to the clean, well-lighted place - Amicus is Marysville's only bookstore. It was one of three in Yuba City. More than three times the size of their old store, the Davises have 3,500 square feet to fill with their mostly-non-fiction collection. They carry new, used and out-of-print books. “We focus on non-fiction because we feel by educating society, we'll all find a better way of life,” Kara said.

The Davises regard Amicus less as a capital venture, and more as a community project. They realize it may be a short-lived one. “We don't know how long this will last, but we are going to do all we can with this time,” Kara said.Spend any time in Amicus and you are likely to hear one of the Davises say “We're working on a project to ...”

They are focusing their seemingly boundless energy and creativity on the community where they grew up. “We left the community frustrated when we were young. But we traveled a lot, and we've discovered that community is what you make of it. It's you that makes the place,” Kara said.

One of Amicus' most recent successes is the publication of “WordColors,” an anthology by Yuba-Sutter area writers. It was release Dec. 11 and is available at Amicus.

Amicus hosts several literature and community projects. It also supports local authors. To read more about those programs, check out amicusbooks.com.“By supporting the community like this, we feel the community will support us. We're doing what we believe in,” James said. “Which is taking care of the community,” Kara added.

That's just what building owner Karen Nelson was looking for to fill her D Street building she and her husband, Steve, bought last spring. “We were looking for something that would add to the street,” Nelson said. “They're so community minded.” Nelson said they watched the reinvigorating of Grass Valley years ago, and couldn't afford to invest in it. Nelson said the opportunity will not pass her by again.

The Davises brought more than books with them when they moved. Customers have followed, they said. “If people appreciate you and your service, they'll come,” James said.