Future best sellers? Check out 3 new indie bookstores in Westchester

Heather Clark, Rockland/Westchester Journal News
·5 min read

Shelves piled with books. The smell of new reads or well-loved novels. Searching for the perfect book to cuddle up with on a cold winter's night. Walking into a bookstore can be a relaxing experience.

And now there are three new opportunities to browse the aisles of an independent local bookstore in Westchester County, with shops opening in Tarrytown, Ossining and Croton-on-Hudson.

Independent bookstores, often referred to as indie bookstores, are privately owned unlike chain bookstores owned by large corporations.

"I don't have ten stores, so I have no affiliation," Chris Steib, owner of Transom Bookshop in Tarrytown said. "It's mom and pop. I rent the space, I own every book in the store and I hand sell them to the neighbors."

Independent bookstores strive to give customers a personal experience, molding their shops to the communities they serve and interests they share.

"I think an indie bookstore is really only as good as it can be when it serves the community," said Andy DeRado, owner of By-the-Dam Books in Croton-on-Hudson. "You can get to know Andy the owner and the other people that work there."

For these three new indie booksellers, one thing was clear: each wanted to bring something unique to their towns.

New in Yorktown: Restaurants serving tapas, acai bowls, empanadas

Sports: 8 golf simulators to check out this winter

Shopping: Last chance for holiday pop-ups

Chris Steib of Transom Books in Tarrytown, works at the register on Wednesday, November 24, 2021.
Chris Steib of Transom Books in Tarrytown, works at the register on Wednesday, November 24, 2021.

Transom Bookshop, Tarrytown

Steib always had the idea of owning a bookshop; it just took him a few turns before he got there. He was a literature major in college, though he was what he refers to as a "late bloomer" when it came to reading.

"I had an amazing teacher in high school," Steib said. "Before him, I thought I was going to be a math teacher. My teacher said to read '1984' and it was the first time I ever sat up and gasped when reading something. I've never looked back."

In the spring of 2021, Steib heard that a space was going to become available on Tarrytown's Main Street — NU Toys was closing— and he spoke with the owner, which made his decision real. He didn't go with the space, but ended up across the street.

A customer looks over the selection of books at Transom Books in Tarrytown on Wednesday, November 24, 2021.
A customer looks over the selection of books at Transom Books in Tarrytown on Wednesday, November 24, 2021.

"I heard a lot of people around town were looking for a bookstore," Steib said. "It gave me the validation I needed. I knew the community would be behind this."

The name "Transom" comes from two places, according to Steib: an architectural term for the cross section over a doorway and, in the publishing industry, when an author sends a manuscript unexpectedly.

"I always loved the idea of a bookstore as like you're crossing into another world," Steib said. "There's all these ideas, possibilities, narratives. People come in from the street and pause for a second and it's like you've entered a special place."

Transom Bookshop sells new books in a mix of genres including fiction, literature, poetry as well as a "cross-section of psychology and self-help" books. Steib also sells "book adjacent" items like stickers, stationary, bookmarks and apparel.

Go: 23 Main St., Tarrytown; hi@transombookshop.com; bookshop.org/shop/transom.

Amy Hall, owner of Hudson Valley Books for Humanity, a new independent book store in Ossining, photographed Dec. 7 2021. Along with selling books, the store also sells locally made artisanal goods and crafts.
Amy Hall, owner of Hudson Valley Books for Humanity, a new independent book store in Ossining, photographed Dec. 7 2021. Along with selling books, the store also sells locally made artisanal goods and crafts.

Hudson Valley Books for Humanity, Ossining

When Amy Hall was cleaning out her house, she realized she had a lot of unwanted books. As someone with a history in environmental consciousness — Hall works at Eileen Fisher where she advocates for ethical supply chains — she didn't want to throw them out.

"There was an opportunity to bring this sentiment of people and planet; the idea to extend the lives of books that we'll buy and read once or twice," Hall said. "I want this place to be a hub for Ossining, which is so diverse. People gather in their likeminded groups and I'm hoping this place will bring people together across their differences."

Hudson Valley Books for Humanity is the home of "pre-loved" books as well as new books revolving around social and environmental issues, as well as those written by women and people of color. The store also carries artisanal gifts and Hall is planning to have events on the shop's freshly built stage.

A seating area at Hudson Valley Books for Humanity, a new independent book store in Ossining, photographed Dec. 7 2021. Along with selling books, the store also sells locally made artisanal goods and crafts.
A seating area at Hudson Valley Books for Humanity, a new independent book store in Ossining, photographed Dec. 7 2021. Along with selling books, the store also sells locally made artisanal goods and crafts.

"Most everything is sourced locally which gets back to that 'we're not Amazon' idea," Hall said. "We want to focus on supporting local businesses and artists and build the economic fabric of the community."

Hudson Valley Books for Humanity hasn't held it's grand opening yet, but they're planning one, hopefully, in January. They're currently in a soft opening phase and are accepting book donations.

"I feel like Ossining is on the verge of a rebirth," Hall said. "I wanted people to discover Ossining."

Go: 67 Central Ave., Ossining; 914-847-0773; 914-847-0774; amy@hvbooksforhumanity.com; hvbooksforhumanity.com.

A look inside By-the-Dam Books in Croton-on-Hudson.
A look inside By-the-Dam Books in Croton-on-Hudson.

By-the-Dam Books, Croton-on-Hudson

Andy DeRado, an adjunct professor at Mercy College, has worked with books for the better part of a decade, including at two New York City stores. When he and his wife moved to Croton two years ago, he remembers visiting the Black Cow's gift shop, The Village Gallery, which closed in December.

"I kept looking at that space," DeRado said. "I said to my wife 'I have a crazy idea: let's open a bookstore.' My wife literally said 'yeah, you should do it.'"

By-the-Dam Books specializes in new releases, backlist and children's books. DeRado hopes to become "a space for sharing general interest" and host local artists as well as events for children, book clubs, and author talks.

"Croton is such a wonderful town," DeRado said. "It's such a great place and community and the Black Cow is the center of that. Hopefully (By-the-Dam Books will be) a continuation of the community space of the Black Cow."

Go: 4 Old Post Road South, inside The Black Cow, Croton-on-Hudson; 914-274-5888; facebook.com/bythedambooks.

And don't forget these:

Heather Clark covers business openings and closings throughout Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties. Keep up on the latest comings and goings by joining our Facebook group at What's going there Westchester, Rockland, Putnam. Contact Clark via email, hclark@lohud.com.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Buy the book: 3 new Westchester independent bookstores set to open