Backstory started in the Foster-Powell neighborhood in Portland. I am the owner, but the shop is really an amalgam of its readers, supporters, crafters, and friends. I use the term “we” as the point of view of the shop, because it is made of so many of us.

Taking a few tentative steps in late 2014, Backstory opened in a weird little building at the Carts on Foster food cart pod. In October of 2015, we moved to 6010 SE Foster. Here, we had art shows, poetry readings, a few classes, and craft nights. Foster-Powell is a wonderful neighborhood and many of the good neighbors we had there continue to be dear friends.

In the summer of 2018, we were able to make a synergistic move to the previous home of Hawthorne Boulevard Books. The owner of that shop remained in her home, becoming our new landlady, in a mutually beneficial relationship.

Then in April 2020, we created an online space to accommodate for the challenges of living in a world with the novel coronavirus. The bookstore missed you all - bookstores require readers and talkers and books flowing to and from.

I continue to meet new readers, crafters, booksellers, and weirdos everyday. Thank you for being part of Backstory and its community.

Amanda Doimas