The new Folio space in the Pike Place Market is absolutely gorgeous: a great hall that will be perfect for readings, a stately library room with a terrific view of the Sound, and a whole lot of Seattle history on and around the shelves. On our website today, you can find an interview with Folio founder David Brewster about the space.

A post shared by The Seattle Review of Books (@seattlereviewof) on Jul 18, 2018 at 5:11pm PDT

Okay, so here's how you get to the new location of Folio: when you're facing the Pike Place Market sign, walk straight toward the fish-throwers. Then, take a left. You'll see some stairs up. Take them. You'll pass the offices for the newsstand and the doughnut stand. At the top of the stairs, you'll run into Folio. The Market is pretty picky about who gets to put signs where and why, and so a lot of people at the party to celebrate Folio's grand re-opening last night were grumbling about getting lost trying to find the place.

But oh boy is it worth the hunt. The new Folio space is gorgeous. There's a big hall with skylights and a great sound system that will be perfect for readings, and then there are two stately library rooms with comfortable seating and stunning views of the Sound. (If you look directly down from the windows, you'll see the world-famous Gum Wall in Post Alley.) Everywhere, there are books: displays of oddly shaped books; selections from Madeline DeFrees's library, which was donated to Folio; free books for the taking on a cart outside the front door.

Though it was located right downtown, Folio's first location in the belly of the downtown YMCA always felt somehow removed from the city. The new location places it right in the heart of Seattle. This is a venue that can remind you why you live in this town. This is a place you'll want to be.