On a crisp Wednesday afternoon in the fall of 2025, curiosity led me down to Buena Vista, a small town tucked between the Blue Ridge and the Maury River in Virginia’s Southern Shenandoah Valley. Word had spread about a new plant studio and bookshop called Leaf & Lore, and I couldn’t resist finding out what kind of magic was brewing there. Sitting on a corner next to an art gallery and a coffee shop, the storefront simply reads Plant Studio & Bookshop. I was not prepared for what awaited me on the other side. Spread out on the large community table sat Jen Carpenter, one of the owners of Leaf & Lore. She was deep in documents and her computer but didn’t miss a beat to welcome me with a warm smile. I instantly felt at ease. As it turns out, Jen is not only a bookseller but also the director of Main Street Buena Vista, a first-time author herself, and a community champion for her small town. (Her novel, by the way, was inspired by life in Buena Vista itself.) We opened our shop for the community. We opened it for booklovers and plant lovers. We opened it so we can help economic growth and revitalization in our downtown district. If you’re not familiar with the Main Street America movement, it helps small towns like Buena Vista reenergize and strengthen their historic downtowns through place-based economic development. Leaf & Lore is a shining example of what that looks like in practice: a small business that brings life, beauty, and belonging back to Main Street. Main Street is about making a movement and small business is at the heart of it. Jen shared that during Buena Vista’s “mobilizing phase” with Main Street America, the community had been surveyed to identify what downtown was missing. While we were in our mobilizing phase of the Main Street America journey, the community was surveyed to see what they thought was missing in our downtown. Among the top ten answers was ‘a bookshop’. At the time, Executive Director Brooke Dalton came to me and pitched to me the idea of a coop bookstore and I said, ‘You already know my answer, I’m in. And I’ll do whatever it takes to make it happen.’ And since I am an author and love convening other writers, I jumped at the opportunity to create a bookshop right here in Buena Vista. And she didn’t do it alone. Jen gathered four others equally passionate about the idea, and together they opened the bookshop as a co-op, with seven owners in total. Two manage the plant section, four oversee the fiction department, and one coordinates inventory and orders. It’s an uncommon, communal model for a bookstore, and it feels perfectly aligned with Leaf & Lore’s spirit of collaboration. We specialize in cozy. With plants and books (new and used), we create the vibe every booklover and plant lover can feel at home with. We're a community committed to building a community. And cozy it is. Instead of standard categories like “Fiction,” “Non-Fiction,” or “Poetry,” Leaf & Lore invites you to browse The Visionary’s Path (business), The Soul’s Compass (self-help), or Whispers of the Past (history). Every shelf feels intentional, lush greenery spilling between books, soft light filtering through leaves, and handwritten shelf talkers from the co-op owners themselves.  With three colleges within an eight-mile radius, Leaf & Lore has quickly become a gathering place. Since opening in March 2025, they’ve hosted multiple book signings with New York Times bestselling authors like Julie Berry (If Looks Could Kill) and Jason and Kodi Wright (Christmas Jars). They’ve launched a monthly book club that meets every third Wednesday and even host “Write All Night” sessions where writers stay late to create together after hours. Sometimes, someone comes into the shop and is really, really low in life. They are desperate for a book that can help them focus on more than just the disasters they feel prevail in their lives. A few times, I've suggested my book based on what they like to read, and then they are THRILLED to come back and tell me how it made them laugh and left them feeling lighter. That makes it worth it every single time! Leaf & Lore is one of those rare places that feels both intentional and effortless; the kind of space that makes you want to linger, sip coffee next door, and start imagining how you might help your own community flourish. Jen’s book recommendations
What I bought at Leaf & Lore
Driving home through the valley, my tote bag was a little heavier and my heart a little lighter. Leaf & Lore is more than a bookstore: It’s a testament to what happens when neighbors dream together. Every small town deserves a place like this, where community takes root and stories bloom.
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