Quarter Moon Bids Topsail Adieu

ON SATURDAY NIGHT, the building was full of music, conversation, laughter.

And hugs.

The beers were flowing.

And the tears were flowing.

After 30 seasons, Quarter Moon Books — I don’t care what the full name became; I shall always know it as Quarter Moon Books — went out with neither a bang nor a whimper. It went out with shared memories and anguished smiles.

Several hundred friends — yes, a bookstore can have friends — squeezed into the iconic Topsail Beach shop to personally thank owner Lori Fisher for all she and Quarter Moon had meant to them over the years and . . .

I NEED TO INSERT a little background here first.

Quarter Moon opened in May 1994. The original owners who came up with the idea of a small bookstore on Topsail Island, N.C., must have found the challenge more intimidating than envisioned. After that first summer season they were ready to move on. By November they had sold it to Lori, a transplanted Minnesotan. Within a few years, she had moved it to a nearby location, where it would reside for the next quarter century, luring locals and vacationers alike. Quarter Moon Books & Gifts slowly reduced the number of its books over the years, adding more and more displays of clothing and gifts, but still maintaining a solid supply. A coffee bar eventually was added, then a wine and beer bar, necessitating a name change to Quarter Moon Books, Gifts & Wine Bar. Lori’s right-hand woman, Claire Braxton, who had come to Quarter Moon in 2002, became more or less the co-manager.

Our family first began stopping in Quarter Moon in 2004, our first year of visiting Topsail. I wrote a book about the island, Topsail Island: Mayberry by the Sea, that was first published in 2006 and has sold terrifically well because of the love people have for the island — and because of support from local shops. Not surprisingly, Quarter Moon has been the largest seller. The same for the four Topsail-based children’s books written by our daughter, Lindsay.

But everyone has had a reason for loving Quarter Moon.

SO ON SATURDAY NIGHT, December 28, 2024, fans packed in for one last time. More could fit now that the goods had been sold and the display racks mostly were down. Emotions were flowing. A family of close friends was one of the early arrivers. A bottle of champagne was poured from. As the woman hugged Lori, she burst into tears. She said she had told her husband she didn’t think she could last long without crying. By my count, she lasted three seconds.

The stories were legion. Of repeated visits during vacations. Of Lori’s or Claire’s book recommendations. Of the store’s cat, Socks. People wandered in and out of each other’s conversations, nodding their heads or adding their own takes.

LOCAL MUSICIAN DOUG McFARLAND provided the entertainment. I talked to him before he set up and found he had been first to play Quarter Moon when it began offering live music. That was 13 years ago. He had played frequently there ever since, often on Tuesday and Thursday in the same week. It seemed fitting to have him close the store.

An hour into the event, McFarland called for and finally got quiet in the room. (No easy task that night, I assure you.) He asked Lori to sit near the front and played a song dedicated to Quarter Moon. You can see/hear a portion of it in my bad video below.

IT WAS A GREAT AND MEMORABLE evening for everyone. I haven’t covered even a fraction of it here — though I did get some memento photos for myself (see below).

With the doors now shuttered, there is just this to say to Quarter Moon.

Job well done.

We’ll miss you.

A few pics I got my wife Vicki and others to snap on closing night, from upper left: Out front of Quarter Moon, with owner Lori Fisher, with Claire Braxton, with event musician Doug McFarland, with Lori and Doug, with musician Jim Ellis and Share the Table’s Dawn Ellis. Note I’m wearing a sweatshirt of the island’s fabled Swing Bridge, which was replaced six years ago. Another icon lost.

P.S. MEANT TO ADD that I recently updated and expanded the Topsail book, adding a little info on Quarter Moon. The book is still new, but already that segment is out of date.

Which is fine.

Quarter Moon should live for a while longer.

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