One of the highlights of every year for the Nashville chapter of the Women’s National Book Association is Larry and Saralee’s terrific presentation of the new titles by authors who will be appearing at the Southern Festival of Books every October. They really know their stuff, no matter how much you read, they will convince you that you haven’t read enough until you finish the new Lee Smith or Kaye Gibbons, or the latest by James Lee Burke. It’s always the best-attended program of the year! Having two such great book experts to call on has spoiled us for sure. Nancy Stewart, President, Women’s National Book Association
 It's not often you find speakers who combine vast knowledge with charm, wit and good humor. Larry and Saralee Terry Woods always give lively, outstanding programs. Our events with them are among our members' favorites. Polly Rembert, Program Chair, Women's National Book Association
“BookMan/BookWoman Bookstore will quickly become your first and final stop when seeking a good read for yourself or a collectable book for a friend. The avid reading owners possess a rare talent for stocking more books of varied interest per square foot than can be imagined. We never start a road trip without several of their books on tape. The miles seem to magically vanish as we listen to the taped books that we never seem to find time to read.” Susan Gentry Tarpy
“BookMan is the first place I go when my bibliomania kicks in. I'm particularly drawn to their decorating and gardening sections–they have a wonderful selection of books of those that are often out of print. And if I'm looking for something specific, they've never failed to find a copy for me. Saralee and Larry are extremely knowledgeable as well as just fun to talk to." Martha Lou Deacon
"BookMan/BookWoman has the best selection of fiction classics available in stock. And the variety of contemporary fiction is nothing short of amazing. They have everything you need for half the price and no waiting. The salespersons are knowledgeable and patient. If it's to be had, they can find it for you–and always with a smile." Debbie Runions, writer, teacher and activist
“Nashville is a great book town, and has been for over 200 years, starting when 22-year-old John Buchanan, one of the original settlers, hand-printed an arithmetic book in 1782. We've had many great bookstores, libraries, printers, publishers and even a few pretty good writers around these parts, and the evidence is still right here. Hillsboro Village, a neighborhood on the edge of the Vanderbilt University campus, has long been a hotbed of word noodlers, whether they're writing or selling books, or just working crossword puzzles over their morning coffee. And right there, right now, you'll find BookMan/BookWoman, one of the liveliest nests of old and out-of-print tomes between Lower Manhattan and Portland, Oregon (that's a far stretch). A visit to Nashville without a visit to Larry and Saralee Woods' BookMan/BookWoman is like a trip to New Orleans without a bowl of gumbo. So check it out. You'll go home with a satisfied mind and a bag full of books.” John Egerton, author
“In the fall of 2000, while he was Distinguished Visiting Grand Pooh-Bah at Vanderbilt, I prowled all over Nashville for weeks with the English author and shameless polymath Jonathan Miller. Several times we visited BookMan. I especially remember prowling through the art section with him, as he kept pulling books off the shelves and saying things like, ‘My God, you haven’t read Gombrich?’ and ‘This is absolutely Panofsky’s best.’ As we walked out with my armload of books, I didn’t tell Jonathan that I hadn’t finished reading the last few books I’d bought at BookMan. It didn’t matter: my education was proceeding through conversation and books, as usual. I’ll get to most of the books. Or not. And if I die tomorrow, somebody else will read them—and they’ll find in many of them my name, the date of purchase, and the scribbled words ‘BookMan, Nashville.’ A literary community is not composed of authors signing their books for each other; it is composed of readers talking about their discoveries. I remember many happy bookish moments with friends at BookMan. More than once I have found Davis-Kidd’s ambassador-at-large Roger Bishop, that walking encyclopedia of all things literary, looking through Gorbachev’s letters or Churchill’s memoirs. In BookMan I have discussed Paracelsus with Jim Young and The Secret Garden with Sally Schloss. I smile especially at the memory of walking to BookMan after lunch with my friend Laura Patterson. She is photographed in my mind sitting in a tiny alcove in the back of BookWoman, with a stack of books in her lap. And always Saralee or Larry or Sue or Aimee or someone else helpfully points the way when I get lost among the double- and triple-shelved books. Friends of the Woods book team predict that eventually they will take over Hillsboro Village and make it into another Hay-on-Wye. And now a brief sermon: Tyrants burn books and kill authors because they truly understand the power of the written word. Books are dangerous. Bookstores are dangerous. Do you remember those animated cartoons in which a character who was in pain but needed to be quiet might yell into a paper bag and then run outdoors and open the bag and let out the scream? That’s what books are: the record of our thoughts, joys, struggles, pains, and dreams. You open one and the voice of the author—from Hesiod to Stephen King, it doesn’t matter—starts speaking inside your head. Explicitly or implicitly, the voice says, ‘I was here. This is how life looked to me.’ And at some point practically every book out there washes up on the shore in a used bookstore. For me, visiting BookMan is like walking on the seashore; you’ve walked there before but every day is different. Even on a normal day, you find wonderful things. But now and then you find a treasure.” Michael Sims, former bookseller and author of Darwin’s Orchestra and the forthcoming Adam’s Navel
"This bookstore of used and rare books is nestled in the heart of Hillsboro Village near Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a treasure-trove for casual bookworms, book scouts and collectors. The ambiance is reminiscent of the organized clutter and confined spaces of antiquarian bookstores in bygone eras. Most of the shelves hold books two-deep, and there are stacks of books in nearly every available space. If you only have time to visit one bookstore when passing through town, this store will be your most rewarding and only logical choice. You’ll find one of the best selections of literature, science fiction, mystery and history east of the Mississippi." Tom McGee, McGee's First Varieties, Brentwood, Tennessee
"BookMan/BookWoman is a delightful store that always reminds me of 84 Charing Cross Road. Everything you could want is there and often in gently-used or notated hardbacks. BookMan/BookWoman even has first editions, though those are a tad more costly. And the service is warm and the owners and staff knowledgeable!" Sue Bredensteiner |
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