Once upon a time, there was a lady who loved books.
She loved them so much that she built a special home for them in the Bainbridge woods and named it the Magic Book House.
The lady is Islander Dawn Ream and her book house serves as a free library similar to those dotting the island’s neighborhoods—only much larger. It’s also a book shop and community gathering space.
Ream stocks the book house, which is located in the Beachcrest neighborhood, with donated and used books, as well as some more collectible and specialty books. The book house has been well received by the local community, especially by children who love to read and play board games there.
Ream built the book house with Tony Dattilo, a creative contractor who likes a challenge. Together, they crafted the 150-square-foot house using mostly salvaged materials.
Tony built the building and used maple from a tree that had come down on his property in a storm and had it milled for the bookshelves,” said Ream. Other friends and neighbors also pitched in.
Ream has found that maintaining a light touch and trusting the community to self-govern has worked well, creating a cozy and welcoming environment for all who visit.
Magic Book House invites readers to find their next favorite book from its wide-ranging selection, including children’s, young adult, middle reader, gardening, nature, mythology, folklore, fairytales, crafting, cooking, local Bainbridge Island and poetry. The house is the perfect place for reading, playing a board game with friends and, of course, leaving with a book in hand.
My lifelong love of children’s fairy tales, folklore and mythology made me want to collect the childhood picture books whose images had such an impact on me as a young person,” said Ream. “I spent hours at the Seattle Public Library and at bookstores like Shorey’s to see the rare and wonderful books that were displayed in their glass cases.
Shifting algorithms, an abundance of AI content and the chaos of an ever-looming TikTok ban led the Perra's to consider dipping their toes into something a bit more visceral. The idea of a laundry service came after they moved to Bainbridge and began to consider what was missing in the community.
Eventually, her passion became a business, with Ream selling books online, starting in 2018. “I saw myself not only as a bookseller, but also a connector of memories,” she said. Her dream of using books to connect people came to life when she received an email from an 82-year-old woman who told her that she had been searching for years for the childhood book she had bought recently from Ream. She was so happy to find it and have it on her shelf at her home, said Ream. “I knew exactly how she felt to be reunited with these images from her youth.”
Ream now pursues bookselling full-time and her membership in the Cascade Booksellers Association enables her to get support and guidance from other like-minded booksellers.
I’ve been having a good time with the book house and so have its visitors,” said Ream. “It’s going to continue to organically morph and evolve as I learn more and I see what people want.“I hope it will just continue to grow
