Other Change of Hobbit
The Other Change of Hobbit was an SF bookstore founded by Dave Nee, Debbie Notkin, and Tom Whitmore in May 1977 (the same weekend that Star Wars opened) in a retail arcade off Telegraph Avenue in Berkeley, CA. The founders had previously collaborated on The Portable Bookstore.
It took its name (with permission) from Sherry Gotleib's LA-area A Change of Hobbit bookstore who had suggested the new store. In April 1993 it moved to 2020 Shattuck (near Addision) in downtown Berkeley. The physical store closed in April 2010, though the working office for the mailorder operation is some open hours at 1600 Kearney Street in El Cerrito, CA.
After Poul Anderson's death in 2001 Karen Anderson donated his typewriter and desk which was then displayed in the store window. The main street level was the bookstore and Dave Nee's toy collection. The second floor, known to the staff as Shelob's lair, was the store office. Downstairs in the basement storage were thousands more books.
Debbie Notkin left the partnership in 1994 and Jan Murphy joined it. Tom Whitmore subsequently left the partnership.
| Store | ???? |
| This is an SF bookstore page. When a floreat "fl." is listed it records the dates for which we have evidence and may not be the store's entire span. |
