It was written, directed, shot, co-edited and co-produced by filmmaker A.B. “Adam” Zax of West Stockbridge.
The feature’s title, “Hello, Bookstore,” is Tannenbaum’s standard phone greeting.
The docu traces the daily existence of its missionary owner-curator, Matthew Tannenbaum, a jaunty boomer who runs the place as if it were more than a library–a communal fun party.
Some residents call Matthew “The Living Legend of Lenox” and you can see why: He has owned The Bookstore in Lenox since 1976.
For Matthew that’s not idle flattery. It reflects the independent bookshop’s role as a literary salon, a center of community conversation for multi-generational locals and visitors who have flocked to the Housatonic Street storefront for books, readings, good company, a beverage at the Get Lit wine bar. That is, before the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
