The Storybook Garden sits on a corner of Texas Boulevard just a moment’s walk from Business 83 in Weslaco.
It’s main street Weslaco and an appropriate place to find an independent bookstore with deep ties to its community. The historic hotel site suits the purposes and goals of Sarah Cuadra, the bookstore’s owner.
“We want to be a place for families to come and meet and develop a love for learning,” said of her bookstore that features children’s books. “We talk books, share ideas and celebrate reading.”
The bookstore has been a labor of love for Cuadra for the over two decades she has run and owned The Storybook Garden. Since opening in 2001, Cuadra has put in “a lot of blood, sweat and tears” into the store, surviving everything from digital reading and online bookstores to an avalanche of market changes.
A Teacher’s Touch
Being an educator and assistant principal at an elementary school in Weslaco, Cuadra’s interest in reading is deeply rooted. In her youth, she arranged and put some order to piles of books at a thrift store in Mercedes, where she grew up the daughter of small business owners. As a teacher, she specialized in improving the reading skills of children as a dyslexia interventionist.
Cuadra is grateful for her public educator salary in that she says it has at times kept her bookstore afloat. Her sister has also been instrumental to her success, tending to the store during challenging times. Cuadra is hopeful that The Storybook Garden is on a good path. It was the host of a recent South Texas book festival with authors stopping in to promote their books with public readings and meet their fans.
“We’re trying to find new customers,” Cuadra said of the store’s reemergence. “It looks promising.”
She is looking forward to again hosting events connecting books to current events and happenings. She recalled a children’s book about luchadores (Mexican wrestlers) and how a small ring was set up adjacent to the bookstore. Children made masks like the ones worn by wrestlers, and had fun discussing the sport and its place in border communities.
“How can we create events that relate to topics written about in books?” Cuadra asked. “It’s how we can create a unique experience in our community.”
Adapting & Connecting
These community gatherings and Cuadra’s experience with helping young readers is what keeps The Storybook Garden relevant and a place to go during changing times and eras.
“Thank you for always helping my son and being so kind,” said Sarai Garcia in a Facebook post on The Storybook Garden’s page. “He loves your place!”
It’s the kind of bond and personal touch that can’t be replicated at larger chain bookstores in bigger cities. Cuadra has a classroom teacher’s experience in connecting with young readers and knowing that many of them prefer holding a book in their hands over a computer tablet. The quest for learning and love of a good book continues through the changes in times.
“We’ve had to adapt,” Cuadra said. “What keeps us going is our local customers who shop local and support a business like ours. We don’t make a ton of money, but I’m a big believer in having a bookstore in the community.”
