In 1880 George Cavalli established the Libreria Italiana and Cavalli Book Store on Stockton Street in San Francisco’s Little Italy. The shop became one of the most important cultural resources in North Beach and the first Italian-language bookstore.
Cavalli was concerned Italians in the neighborhood were not getting the news they needed from their home country. They longed for newspapers, magazines and books that reminded them of their homeland. And now, decades later, local Italians and Italophiles still have this same desire for a connection to Italian culture.
That brings us to a modern day Italian entrepreneur, Joseph Carboni, and his bookstore, Libreria Pino. Joseph is a San Francisco Bay Area native who finished college in Rome returning to the City in 1993 to attend graduate school at the University of San Francisco.
It is no surprise that Joseph, just like Cavalli, decided the best place to locate his shop would be in North Beach, the area in San Francisco doggedly determined to cling to its Italian roots.
L’Italo-Americano asked Joseph what inspired his bookstore. “What began as an idea to build an Italian bookstore in the United States became Libreria Pino, an online Italian bookstore for Italians and Italian speakers. Our goal is to promote Italian culture and language through books, music and film. We aim to provide easy access to Italian literature and entertainment with a customer centric approach.
While my son was still in preschool at La Scuola, I began to notice how difficult it was to purchase Italian language books in the United States and so began a cross country search of foreign language book stores. I realized just how limited the selection of Italian books was. Given the increasing popularity of the Italian language, and the thousands of Italian speakers living in in the States, there should be enough customer demand to support a specialized bookstore.”
When asked why he chose North Beach for the bookstore’s physical presence, Joseph replied, “I have looked at spaces throughout San Francisco and the Bay Area. Of course the only neighborhood for an Italian bookstore was always North Beach, San Francisco’s Little Italy.
In June 2017 we signed a lease for a pop-up store in North Beach. We are so excited to have this opportunity to have a physical presence in the neighborhood. We are looking forward to meeting our neighbors, letting people browse our products, and speaking Italian with our customers. We will be here through December, 2017.”
Joseph describes the types of books, music and films he offers: “in 2011 Libreria Pino began as an online Italian bookstore starting with a limited selection of titles featuring best sellers in Italy and popular children’s books. Our customers quickly began asking for more selection and gave us suggestions for new titles. We now have a broad selection from Easy Readers to Dante; from Elena Ferrante to Luigi Pirandello; and from Francesco Tullio Altan to Gianni Rodari. We have a wide range of music from Lucio Battisti and Mina to Jovanotti, Malika Ayane, and Noemi. We also have a broad selection of films for children and adults.” And an added bonus is that Libreria Pino also offers copies of L’Italo-Americano newspaper!
L’Italo-Americano asked if the bookstore will help bolster interest and participation in Italian language and culture. “I would say that our store has had an effect already to help build interest and participation in Italian language and culture. Many students that have just started studying Italian have stopped by the store looking for additional material. We work with a lot of schools, universities, and libraries looking for Italian literature. I think it has been very helpful to have someone available to talk to in person, or on the phone, that can help. If we don’t have what they are looking for, we can help them find it, or order it.”
What has been the feedback from the community? “Oh my goodness! Everyone that has been to our store has been so excited to see an Italian bookstore in North Beach! We have received lots of compliments on how beautiful the store looks, the wonderful children’s and adult books. They all stop to see the Dr. Seuss titles in the window. All of the people that I have met are glad to have us join the neighborhood, and have wished us well and hope that we will stay beyond the pop-up.
“With a physical bookstore we have the opportunity to host more events such as author presentations and book releases. We are talking right now with Italian schools, museums, and social organizations about partnering for other types of events. Some possibilities include book readings, book clubs, conversational meetups and other events. Our goal is to grow Libreria Pino so that we can continue to support and bolster the Italian community. We hope that the pop-up store is successful enough so that we can return after the building undergoes earthquake retrofitting in 2018.”
The Cavalli Bookstore has faded into history. Now Libreria Pino helps fill the void. Libreria Pino is located at 1412 Grant Avenue and online at https://www.libreriapino.com. The email address is info@libreriapino.com.
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