NORTHAMPTON — It’s no secret the Valley’s a literary kind of place, where writers, independent bookstores and book vendors, writing groups and readers all find lots of sustenance.

Now a new book fair, scheduled to take place June 17 in downtown Northampton, hopes to build on that interest.

Working with a number of local bookstores and rare book vendors, two independent booksellers, Joel Levin and Michael Manz, have organized the Northampton Outdoor Vintage Book Fair and Book Sale, which will take place Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., behind Thornes Marketplace in the plaza at 1 Kirkland Ave.

Levin, who runs an online shop called Dewey Decimals on Etsy for vintage books, said he and Manz expect there will be “thousands” of books for sale, as more than a dozen vendors, including Broadside Bookshop and The Raven in Northampton, will be participating.

“Mike and I were interested in creating an event that would be open to everyone, with no admission fee, and we thought we could reach a wider audience by having it outside,” said Levin.

“We want to create that feeling of serendipity where you walk by and are kind of drawn in,” he added. “You can browse for a book just like you would in a bookstore, and maybe you can find something you didn’t expect to.”

Manz, who like Levin lives in Northampton, runs Babylon Revisited Rare Books, a business that specializes in literature of the Jazz Age and the era of the Great Depression. Levin says his friend has a lot of experience with book festivals, having exhibited at venues such as the ABAA New York International Antiquarian Book Fair.

The Northampton Book Fair “is really a cooperative effort with all the local bookstores and vendors who are taking part,” said Levin. “I think we all recognize there’s a receptive audience here in the Valley for this kind of event.”

Levin says prices are being kept affordable, with more emphasis on vintage books rather than rare expensive ones. There also will be signed copies of books by local and regional authors for sale, as well some book-related merchandise such as tote bags.

In addition, Levin will be selling a number of books from the personal library of Madeleine L’Engle, the author of a range of fiction, poetry, and nonfiction, as well as the acclaimed young adult science fiction/fantasy novel “A Wrinkle in Time.”

“I’ve been working with her family for a while on this collection,” he said. “These are both some of her own titles as well as other books she had in her library … It should be of interest, considering her connection to the area (L’Engle attended Smith College from 1937 to 1941).

Levin and Manz hope to make the book fair an annual event and have gotten some “wonderful” cooperation from Northampton officials in setting it up, Levin noted. It is weather dependent, he noted, and will be held June 18 in the event of rain, or moved to another weekend if necessary.

“And maybe down the road we’ll find an indoor location we can use,” he said.

Steve Pfarrer can be reached at spfarrer@gazettenet.com.]]>