# Paperback Dreams

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***Paperback Dreams*** is a 2008 television documentary film about the fate of bookstores in the [new economy](/source/Information_economy), that was part of the [KQED](/source/KQED_(TV)) ([San Francisco](/source/San_Francisco)'s [PBS](/source/PBS) station) documentary film series, *Truly CA*.[2] It is "the story of two landmark [independent bookstores](/source/Independent_bookstores) and their struggle to survive. The film follows Andy Ross, owner of [Cody's Books](/source/Cody's_Books), and Clark Kepler, owner of [Kepler's Books](/source/Kepler's_Books), over the course of two tumultuous years in the book business."[3]

*[Publishers Weekly](/source/Publishers_Weekly)* notes that Beckstead became interested in the topic after becoming a "fan" of Cody's and Kepler's.[4] While working in [Menlo Park, California](/source/Menlo_Park,_California), he frequently shopped at Kepler's. Beckstead stated: "When I heard Kepler's was closing [briefly in 2005], I was shocked: it's in one of the most affluent, educated cities in America—just 15 minutes from Stanford University—and it made me realize that if an independent bookstore couldn't survive there, there must be a larger story."[4] After making the documentary, Beckstead stated that he discovered "four elements essential to the survival of an independent bookstore: Own your own building [...] Hire experienced staff [...] Sell used books [...] Figure out some way to sell books online."[4]

## Screenings

*Paperback Dreams* aired on [PBS](/source/PBS) stations beginning in November 2008. It was previously screened at Book Expo America on May 31, 2008.[5] and at the [Oakland Museum of California](/source/Oakland_Museum_of_California) (presented jointly with the Oakland Film Office) on August 1, 2008.[6]

## See also

- *[Indies Under Fire](/source/Indies_Under_Fire)*

## Notes

1. [http://paperbackdreams.com/index.php/about/the-filmmakers/](http://paperbackdreams.com/index.php/about/the-filmmakers/) [dead link]

1. [Truly](http://www.kqed.org/arts/truly/)

1. [Official Site](http://paperbackdreams.com/index.php/about/the-film/)

1. [Documentary Chronicles Indies' Challenges](http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6570314.html?nid=3321)

1. [Book Expo Announcement](http://news.bookweb.org/news/6020.html)

1. [KQED Announcement](http://events.kqed.org/events/index.php?com=detail&eID=2174&month=08&year=2008) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20110722224111/http://events.kqed.org/events/index.php?com=detail&eID=2174&month=08&year=2008) 2011-07-22 at the Wayback Machine

## External links

- [Official website](http://paperbackdreams.com)
- [Paperback Dreams](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1337679/) at IMDb
- [TV Documentary Chronicles Indies' Challenges](http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6570314.html?nid=3321)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Paperback Dreams](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paperback_Dreams) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paperback_Dreams?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.