Shhhhhhhh.
It’s an old wives’ tale that that’s what librarians always say. Shhhhhhh, hush yourself, be silent, don’t be so loud, no talking. Shhhhh, quiet is what makes a library appealing for many folks. As in the new book, “Shut Up and Read: A Memoir from Harriett’s Bookshop” by Jeannine A. Cook (Amistad, March 2026), though, the bookstore is where you can really make some noise.
She had no plans to live in Philadelphia. But that’s where Jeannine Cook landed after she graduated from high school—in Philadelphia, Penn., in college, living in a “shell” of a house with occasional rats and junkies. She stayed, though, fell in love with the city of Brotherly Love, and made plans in the form of college essays. She wanted to do something good for her community, to teach youth, and put books in the hands of the people who needed to read.
As it’s been throughout her life, Cook was supported in this plan by “Aunties” and sister-friends, and by “angels” who often appeared. She also appealed to her muse, Harriett Tubman, whose name graces Cook’s first physical bookstore.
But Harriett’s didn’t happen easily.
Cook understood that she needed to own the building that housed her bookstore, and the owner finally decided to sell it to her. The closing took more time than expected. She was in Paris when purchase-day came unexpectedly, and had to fly home quickly to get it done. There were problems with construction workers; problems with stock and events; and with building additional bookstores in New Jersey and in Paris. Problems also arose with safety, in the aftermath of the killing of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor by police officers and the ensuing riots.
There were times, she says, when she felt as if she were drowning. Her mother had gone back to the Caribbean, her father was dying (again), but Cook stayed the course. She knew that books were the answer. That’s the mantra she said every day when she got out of bed: books would always be humanity’s salvation.
“Shut Up and Read” is a sweet story with grit, determination, and magic. Anyone who’s ever looked for room on his or her calendar and found none will identify with it. Anyone who’s ever dreamed larger than large will find parallel in Cook’s words. If you’ve had a hero or two in mind when you launched a difficult endeavor; struggled with your health and that of an aggravating but much-loved family member; wondered how you’re going to get things done— this is the book for you.
It’s all shared, novel-like, held together by coincidence, magic, heartbreak, surprises, customer-service smiles, an “overground underground railroad,” literature, and an artificial leg named Lester. It’s everything you’re thinking, and there’s room for it on your shelf.
“Shut Up and Read” is so worth a look. And if opening a bookstore was ever a lure, this is a book that you’ll love for shhhhhh-ure.
