Cottage indusrty Tremont writer shares knowledge in new bookstore

When Nichols Fox moved into a little house in Bass Harbor in 1987, she named it Rue Cottage, inspired by British novelist Elizabeth Goudge’s “Pilgrim’s Inn” (1948).

In that book, some people who are going through a difficult time moving into an old house subsequently discover a cottage in the woods where monks went for spiritual restoration. Fox chose the name with the thought that her house, which she turned into a bookstore, would renew her. She even planted rue, the herb of grace and renewal, around the outside.

The gray-green of the plant’s leaves is reflected in the color of the newly painted walls of Rue Cottage Books, which Fox opened last month in Southwest Harbor (she ran out of space in her home). The nicely spare shop, formerly The Last Walt’s, features an authentic pressed tin ceiling and plenty of bookshelves. “The wonderful spaciousness probably won’t last too long,” Fox notes, acknowledging that she has several hundred recently purchased books in the back that have yet to be processed.

Opening Rue Cottage Books was an opportunity, Fox states with a laugh, “to redeem a wasted life spent reading.” What better way to share her experience and knowledge of books than through a shop? This fact was underscored during a recent tour when Fox pulled John Fowles’ novel “Daniel Martin” from a shelf and proceeded to speak eloquently about his nature writing.

Another reason for turning to books is Fox’s weariness with journalism.

“I’ve gotten to the point,” she notes, “where I feel like I can’t pick up the phone and ask another person another question.”

A well-known free-lance writer, she is the author of several nonfiction books, including “Against the Machine: The Hidden Luddite Tradition in Literature, Art and Individual Lives.” Another recent book, “Alone Together,” the story of a couple who lived on Placentia Island off the Maine coast, more or less sold out when it went from 750,000th to the 50th-most-popular book on Amazon.com following a feature article in The New York Times. Fox has a small stash of the latter book, which will not be reprinted.

The store’s offerings reflect its proprietor’s interests and philosophy. The foundation for the collection was the expansive bibliography for “Against the Machine,” which included Victorian fiction, Romantic poetry, the Transcendentalists and environmental books. Fox has added to the stock, but sticks to her vision to carry only books she likes. As a Quaker, she offers no books about war, which she acknowledges is a liability considering the popularity of the subject.

In addition to the traditional bookshop sections – gardening, cooking, etc. – there are a few unusual shelves, including one devoted to revolutionary radicals of the ’60s.

“People are interested in that period,” Fox explains, and she also loves the “in-your-face” book covers. American Indian books, sociology, natural history and memoirs also are represented.

Fox has a choice selection of collectors’ items, among them books related to the designer William Morris, a first edition of “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?,” a copy of the letters of Carlisle and Emerson, and an early study of midwifery. At the other extreme, the shop offers $2 mysteries – “cheap thrills,” the bookseller calls them. Several glassed-in cases, including one with a marble base that came from a pharmacy in Searsport, protect the rare stuff.

Handsome letterpress-printed cards (thank-you notes, invitations, mailing labels) and writing paper, book plates and Italian paper clips, a few vintage engravings and a lively watercolor by Patia Mitchell of Bangor round out the inventory.

On a Saturday morning in early May, visitors include a local gentleman bearing a dog biscuit for Milly, Fox’s 14-year-old Labrador retriever. He also has a request for a particular out-of-print title. Another caller has books to sell and sets up an appointment to have them looked at. In explaining her purchasing policy (“books must be clean, not musty”), Fox recalls one day returning to a yard sale to pay an extra $20 because she had discovered that her $2 purchase was worth a lot more. The seller was astonished by her honesty.

Fox plans to plant rue in the shop’s windowboxes. She also envisions poetry readings on the Southwest Harbor village green, which her shop overlooks, when it is expanded and replanted. She will continue to set aside time to write, focusing on essays, her favorite form. And she will go on restoring her spirit through books.

A grand opening for Rue Cottage Books will take place from 2 to 6 p.m. Thursday, May 15. Refreshments will be served and there will be a drawing for discounts. Call 244-5542 or e-mail ruecottage@acadia.net to confirm time and date.