The corner of Joseph Campau and Caniff has had several lives. The 1920s building started as a bank, with stately limestone and ornamental tile that the present tenants kept intact. After the bank closed, it cycled through cafes and a tap room.
Most recently it was a Chinese takeout spot. Now, on the same corner, a 14-person cooperative runs Book Suey, a curated independent bookstore that opens four nights and two afternoons a week. The 14 member-owners do not draw paychecks.
They are artists, teachers, librarians, and at least one lawyer. Sabrina Balgamwalla, who directs the Asylum and Immigration Law Clinic at Wayne State University Law School, is among the member-owners and has described the operation as a community within a community. Everyone has a day job.
The store is the thing they do for love. The inventory is hand-curated. Local and regional poetry, graphic novels, literary fiction, and zines from independent publishers occupy most of the shelves.
Detroit-themed books rotate through the front display. The store's bestseller in late 2024 was Alex B. Hill's "Detroit in 50 Maps." The space doubles as a meeting room.
A flash fiction club meets there. So does a textile mending club. So do various reading groups.
Hours are limited and structured around what the volunteer-owners can sustainably offer. Wednesday through Friday from 6 to 9 in the evening. Saturday and Sunday from 2 to 6.
Mondays and Tuesdays are dark. The cooperative model is rare in retail bookselling. Most indie bookstores are sole proprietorships or family operations.
Book Suey is structured to outlast any one member-owner's interest. People rotate in and out. The shop continues.
The original bank tile, polished and lit, is still on the floor. Book Suey, 10345 Joseph Campau Avenue, Hamtramck.
