Bookworms feel at home at Collected Works. A woman’s nose is buried in a slim volume of poetry. Tourists thumb through New Mexico hiking guidebooks. Laptop screens glow in the shop’s coffeehouse. The front desk clerks are discussing not last night’s ballgame but medieval allegory. Welcome to where it feels good to be a reader.

The Santa Fe Literary Festival’s official bookstore, Collected Works opened in 1976 and was already a success when East Coast native and current owner Dorothy Massey bought the business in 1998. Recently widowed and itching to escape life in a tiny New England town, Massey was game when her daughter suggested that they partner and open a bookstore someplace else. They searched bookshops for sale across the country and found Collected Works.

“I knew this was a very matriarchal society, and for someone who was not husband hunting, Santa Fe would be an open and welcoming place to live. So I jumped for it,” Massey says.

The shop moved from its original San Francisco Street address to its larger, present location on Galisteo Street in May 2009, adding a coffeehouse space and a small stage for author events, which average two to three per week. Events manager Cecile Lipworth curates these events.

The intuitive duo has forged a deep trust and loyalty with the local clientele, authors, and fellow indie booksellers. “I’m cognizant of the other shops in town, and we work in a very collegial way. We call each other when we don’t have a title that another store might. It’s a good, open community,” says Massey.

How does a general new stock bookstore stand a chance against Amazon? “I have no idea how we compete with the Internet. You’d have to interview Mr. Bezos about how he’s doing,” Massey says. She’s proud the store thrives “the oldfashioned way,” with well-read employees who’ll point you in the right direction.

Collected Works has a fully stocked bookstore at the Santa Fe International Literary Festival, with several thousand books on the shelves, including titles by every festival-featured author. The festival bookstore also hosts author autograph sessions. Collected Works’ resident bookstore dog, Elizabeth Barrett Brownie, is unable to attend the festival due to the convention center’s no-pets policy. Massey recently adopted the mixed terrier from the Santa Fe Animal Shelter, which pegs the sweet poet pup’s age at 14. But she doesn’t believe that. Nor should you.

COLLECTED WORKS BOOKSTORE & COFFEEHOUSE 202 Galisteo St. I 505-988-4226 I collectedworksbookstore.com