It wasn’t all that long ago that if you were in the Greene County Catskills and wanted a new book to read, you’d be facing almost an hour’s drive to Woodstock or Saugerties. Since July of 2018, though, that’s changed, thanks to Jen Schwartz, whose love of Windham and love of literature converged to form a dream she had barely thought possible.
Briars & Brambles is that magical thing—a truly great indie bookstore where they’ll learn your name, get to know your taste, and welcome you with delight. Nestled in Windham’s mixed-use Alpine Garden Village, the store is the perfect solution to a rainy afternoon in the mountains—or any day when you just want a great read to take along to the base camp or the B&B.
Schwartz grew up in Chappaqua, down in Westchester County, and fell in love with Windham Mountain and its surroundings on family ski trips. “When I wanted my kids to learn to ski, it was going to be at Windham,” she says. “About ten years ago, I was up here with them, and I finished the book I was reading. I wanted a new book, but I knew it was at least 40 minutes to a bookstore; there was a snowstorm coming and a mountain in the way. I thought, ‘I wish there was a bookstore right here,’ and right after that, I thought, ‘Well, I should open one.’”
“I thought, ‘I wish there was a bookstore right here,’ and right after that, I thought, ‘Well, I should open one.'” – Owner Jen Schwartz
She’d become a second-home owner up here, and at first it seemed a little unrealistic to think she could pull it off. But alongside her passion for skiing lived a passion for good reading. In Westchester, she was a library volunteer and had been library president for a while. “So when I got back downstate, I spoke to the library’s book buyer and said, ‘I have this really crazy idea.’ She said, ‘That’s not crazy at all!’ She knew a husband-and-wife team based out of Florida whose whole business was helping people open bookstores. So I consulted with them, and it was off to the races.”
On one of the first Fridays that Briars & Brambles was open for business, she had an experience that still gives her goosebumps to recall. “There was this kid standing outside, and I said ‘Hello! C’mon in!’ and he said, ‘Oh, I couldn’t. I’m too dirty; I’ve been working on the mountain all day.’ I said, ‘Seriously, please do come in.’ And he choked up. He told me he’d been waiting his whole entire life for a bookstore to open in Windham.”
"The one ironclad rule I have here is confidentiality, because it’s nobody’s business, especially in such a small town, what anyone else is reading."– Owner Jen Schwartz
The young customer headed straight for the sci-fi/fantasy shelves, grabbed three titles and amazed Schwartz—who hadn’t been particularly focused on the genre—by saying her selection was better than the one at Barnes & Noble. Checking out, he told her it was payday and that he couldn’t possibly think of a better use for his money than books.
That young man has been back many times, along with a host of others who’ve come to love the Briars & Brambles experience: arrive as a customer; leave as a friend. He wasn’t by any means the last born-and-raised Catskills local to delight Schwartz by being overjoyed to find her. “I have stories like that over and over,” she says happily. “Every time, I almost have to pinch myself and make sure I’m not dreaming, and then I think, ‘Wow, I can’t believe I’m lucky enough to get to participate in this.’”
Schwartz, like many a downstate transplant, soon found her life centered more and more in these enchanted mountains. The logistics were a little challenging at first, and she credits her staff with helping to make the dream real. “I have an amazing team—two of them have been with me since I started eight years ago. One was just 18 at the time.
“We cherish our role in the community, and we love being able to turn people on to the new arrivals that fit their specific interests.” – Owner Jen Schwartz
The one ironclad rule I have here is confidentiality, because it’s nobody’s business, especially in such a small town, what anyone else is reading.” Knowing that their book-buying habits are safe in Briars & Brambles has made the store a safe zone for all.
“It means the world to us that people can come in and confide, without worrying that, for example, their mother-in-law will know they just grabbed a book on pregnancy or that they were looking for books on addiction recovery. We cherish our role in the community, and we love being able to turn people on to the new arrivals that fit their specific interests. We know Amazon’s not really able to do that, not the way we can.”
Schwartz has had the honor of—with permission, of course—helping people connect over just the right book when they were facing life challenges and became one another’s impromptu support group. “There are all kinds of conversations that happen because of books,” she says.
“Books are the magic connective tissue. So I’ve listened closely to our customers and let them guide my curation, without judgment. Some people have been shocked to find that we carry, for example, books from both sides of the political spectrum. I can’t say, ‘I don’t believe in censorship’ and then censor what books to sell, and it’s not for me to determine anybody’s value system. That’s on them. I’m not going to say, or even imply, that I should be telling anyone how to live.”
Some things are absolute unifiers—like the store’s great selection of local and regional lore and its support of local authors. If there’s anything a customer wants that’s not on the shelves, she’ll order it in. It’s all part of being the community’s very own bookstore, as are a few other policies.
“I’m open seven days a week, all year round; even on a slow sales day, people may stop in just to chat or browse, and we need to be here for that. And when you reach $125 in purchases, you get a 10% discount after that; it’s my way of saying thank you for shopping local.” The name, the decor, and the conscious choice to be a place for people to decompress are all inspired by the nature that Schwartz loves.
There’s a sitting area with a fireplace but no coffee for sale, another conscious choice in support of the coffee shop right across the street; you’re welcome to bring theirs in, and it’s delicious. Dogs are welcome, and there’s a cozy children’s area, Let’s Read Together, with beanbag chairs. And with Windham Mountain’s robust Adaptive Sports Foundation thriving nearby, Schwartz takes care to include relevant reading for people of all ages with all sorts of ability levels. “It’s part of what makes Windham so special, and it happens to be near and dear to my heart as well, so in every section, you’ll find books that center that experience. Inclusion isn’t just a box to check, either on the mountain or in this store—it needs to be inclusion with excellence baked in.”
“We’re not just a store, just like Windham is not just a ski mountain,” she says. “We’re a destination.” – Owner Jen Schwartz
Briars & Brambles hosts frequent author events, as well as art and photography installations, and participates joyfully in the Windham Path Story Walk program with the Windham Arts Alliance. There are also gifts, puzzles, and games, another niche that Schwartz helps to fill for local residents—and for people from all over who have the good fortune to be in the Catskills. “We’re not just a store, just like Windham is not just a ski mountain,” she says.
“We’re a destination.”
briars & brambles
Alpine Garden Village, Windham
518-750-8599, briarsandbramblesbooks.com
