Business spotlight: Serendipity books

​By Matthew Sorna [email protected]
Chelsea is a charming town, full of small shops, great people, and a true community feel.  No business personifies this more, from my perspective, than the Serendipity Bookstore.  Perhaps I am a bit biased because this gem of an independent bookstore is owned by a writer named Michelle Tupin.  Michelle holds a master’s degree in creative writing from The Open University in England.   
                Compared to most writers, I have a dismally short list of books I have read cover to cover.  That being said, I do love to be in the presence of books.  At Serendipity you are a guest in the home of these books, and it is magnificent.    My wife, who has literally read hundreds more books than I have, discovered Serendipity not long after we moved to Chelsea last year.  My wife loves all bookstores, big and small, but really was infatuated with this store and its owner.
“She recommends the best books!” my wife told me, after finishing Michelle’s first recommendation.
          Soon after my wife’s discovery, she convinced me to sign up for a creative writing workshop at the store once a month.  I am not what you would call an overly social or outgoing person, so the workshop setting did not appeal to me, but my wife is usually right, and once again, that held true.
          I walked into the cozy bookstore for the first workshop like freshman on the first day of high school.  That feeling of not belonging was gone in an instant.  The smell of the wood bookshelves, and old books reminded me of my grandparent’s bookshelf growing up.  The bookcases were rolled to the outskirts of the room, and the chairs were in a circle to promote open dialogue.  I met Michelle that night, and I knew right away why my wife liked her so much.  I have been going back every month since.
          Serendipity Bookstore is on Middle St in downtown Chelsea.  They have plenty of stock in their quaint store, both new and used,  and can order just about anything.  In a world of mega stores and Amazon, there still exists a place like Serendipity.  A place for readers, and writers, and just lovers of the written word.  Walk in, breathe in the smell of a real bookstore, put a few pieces in the puzzle on the front table, and bask in what an independent bookstore should be.

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