For the two owners of Recluse Books, their business is literally a labor of love, meaning not just their love for each other, but also of bookstores in general. They met working at Book Culture, an independent bookstore in the publishing capital of the U.S., New York City. They moved to Fort Worth working remotely for a publishing company before they opened this new chapter in their lives.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were living on Rosedale and watching the construction of this building happen and we just thought, \u2018This would be the perfect place for a bookstore, we should figure out how to make it happen,\u2019\u201d said James Webster. \u201cAnd so we did.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The small-ish (13,000 square feet) store fits in with the New York City vibe of the whole area along South Main. There\u2019s a Pilates studio on the second floor, the busy Summer Moon coffee shop a block away and Birdy\u2019s Bagels<\/a> nearby.\u00a0<\/p>\n Knowing their neighborhood has proven to be an effective tool in providing the books people are seeking, said Josie Smith-Webster.<\/p>\n \u201cIt helped that we understand the area. We live here,\u201d she said. \u201cWe eat here and hang out with friends. Still, it\u2019s a bit of a guess and hope.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n The store leans heavily into books from smaller, independent presses as well as a lot of books originally written in languages from around the world and translated into English.\u00a0<\/p>\n Fort Worth Bookstore Crawl\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n April 24-26\u00a0<\/p>\n The bookstores crawl features:\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cA lot of customers are searching for something a little more eclectic,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Smith-Webster also knows the joy of finding something unexpected in a bookstore.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019d like to be the place where people can find a book they hadn\u2019t heard of, rather than or in addition to the book they came in looking for,\u201d she said. \u201cThat\u2019s what I\u2019ve always loved about bookstores. Coming up on the table and seeing covers and authors I\u2019ve never thought about before, and then it ends up being one of your favorites. I love that feeling.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Webster said they opened at a fortuitous time for independent bookstores: People now want to spend less time online.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cAs more and more of the world has become sort of algorithmically curated, or AI-generated, or whatever, people are looking for something that has a sort of a human or a hand-picked touch to it,\u201d he said. \u201cThat has resulted in people becoming naturally more curious about things in a way that has been really exciting and fun for us as the owners of a bookstore.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n The pair are quick to recommend titles. Smith-Webster said she is excited by \u201cQuestions 27 & 28\u201d by Karen Tei Yamashita, a fictionalized narrative based on the experience of those in Japanese-American internment camps during World War II.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s smart, it\u2019s an adventure. She\u2019s just a great writer,\u201d said Smith-Webster.\u00a0<\/p>\n Webster said he is often surprised by what customers ask for.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cA trend I\u2019ve seen recently (is) people looking for very niche history books,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n A surprising number of people come in looking for books on the history of the calculator, such as author Keith Houston\u2019s \u201cEmpire of the Sum: The Rise and Reign of the Pocket Calculator.\u201d<\/p>\n Independent bookstores have been on the rise since the pandemic, said Heather Duncan, executive director of the Mountains & Plains Independent Booksellers Association, an organization that helps bookstores with backend processes and advocates for the association\u2019s more than 300 members across 14 states in the West and Midwest.\u00a0<\/p>\n In Texas, 11 new independent bookstores that are members of the organization have opened thus far in 2026. Last year, 25 opened.\u00a0<\/p>\n Duncan sees two key trends in the world of bookstores. The first is an increase in customers wanting to physically interact with books. The second is a trend of more specialized bookstores catering to science fiction, horror, African-American authors and experiences, LGBTQ issues, children\u2019s books or romance.\u00a0<\/p>\n Romance bookstores are a particularly steamy category at the moment, Duncan said.\u00a0<\/p>\n In North Texas, romance readers in Arlington got hot and bothered when Daydream Bookstore Cafe<\/a> began to offer up romance books in a cafe setting. Last year, The Plot Twist<\/a> opened in Denton, and according to a report from WFAA<\/a>, the small shop has plenty of lovers, with 1,400 people visiting on opening weekend.\u00a0<\/p>\n Not all bookstores have happy endings. Pantego Books in Dalworthington Gardens<\/a> closed last year after three years in business.\u00a0<\/p>\n Duncan said her organization works to help bookstore owners understand how to operate their stores.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIf we can get them as members before they actually open, we can usually save them a lot of headaches,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Chain bookstores are also getting a sequel, said JLL\u2019s Franks.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cBarnes & Noble is also in the midst of a major expansion,\u201d he said. The company\u2019s push is fueled by strong sales in existing locations and a \u201clocal bookstore\u201d strategy that gives more autonomy to individual store managers, he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Barnes & Noble opened three Dallas-Fort Worth area locations in 2024, in Allen, Flower Mound and Richardson. The company expects to open more than 60 new bookstores nationally in 2026, Franks said.\u00a0<\/p>\n The New York-based chain once had three stores in Fort Worth, including a popular one in Sundance Square. It now has one location on South Hulen Street, a recently opened one in Burleson and has unveiled plans for another in Montgomery Plaza in the former Office Depot location at 401 Carroll St. The chain is also set to open a location in Mansfield in the Shops at Broad development.\u00a0<\/p>\n Work to convert the site to a bookstore with a cafe at the 20,000-square-foot former Office Depot should be complete by October, according to a filing<\/a> with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.\u00a0<\/p>\n Franks said bookstores are actually seeing some benefit from social media, particularly in attracting young people to the stores.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cBookTok, the books community on TikTok, is a major driver, sending younger shoppers into physical stores to browse curated displays,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n While the customers drawn to bookstores by social media are bringing in a crowd looking for new titles, Webster said some old favorites always sell.\u00a0<\/p>\n He cites the \u201cFrog and Toad\u201d series of children\u2019s books, written and illustrated by Arnold Lobel.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWho can\u2019t relate to a character that says, \u2018We\u2019ve got to stop eating,\u2019 as he eats another cookie,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s just classic.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Bob Francis is business editor at the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at bob.francis@fortworthreport.org<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"(Maria](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/0423-IndieBookstoreDay-MC-05-1024x683.jpg\")
Recluse Books is located in Fort Worth’s Near Southside neighborhood on April 23, 2026, and is an independent book store in the community. This weekend, they are one of five book stores taking part in a Fort Worth mini-crawl for National Independent Bookstore Day. (Maria Crane | Fort Worth Report\/CatchLight Local\/Report for America)<\/p>\n![\"(Maria](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/0423-IndieBookstoreDay-MC-02-1024x683.jpg\")
Recluse Books is located in Fort Worth’s Near Southside neighborhood on April 23, 2026, and is an independent book store in the community. The store was designed with the space in mind, including moveable furniture in the center to provide a larger space for gatherings and events. (Maria Crane | Fort Worth Report\/CatchLight Local\/Report for America)<\/p>\n