Lifeway Christian Store in Tyler

January 8th, 2010

I recently visited Lifeway Christian Store, something I’d not done since before the name was changed from Better Books Christian Center. In the past several years the store has undergone a makeover. The inside is quite large and very well stocked.

Lifeway is something like a Christian Barnes and Noble. They carry any literature, music or movies currently in demand in church circles. The store also offers all kinds of support materials for pastors and youth ministers. They carry a full selection of vestments and choir gowns as well as supplies for administering the Eucharist.

The children’s section in particular, is excellent. There is a corner equipped with a television showing the latest cartoons where kids can sit while their parents shop. The book selection is current but not real deep; meaning that I expected to find more classic Christian literature than I actually did. The store carries a huge variety of Bibles; however much of the theology and commentary has a fairly narrow target audience. Baptists, or something closely akin will probably find what he or she is looking for, but the more orthodox among us may find it necessary to special order what we need, something the staff will gladly do. All this being said, Lifeway is a beautiful Tyler Texas book store, and the staff is helpful and very friendly.

So whether you’re looking for a particular item or are just seeking a cool place to spend a summer afternoon, Lifeway is a great place to take the family. For more information, see their website: www.lifewaystores.com . Located in the Old English Village on South Broadway, in Tyler.

Tags: Baptists, Barnes and Noble, Barnes Noble, Better Books, Bibles, Book Selection, Choir Gowns, Church Circles, Classic Christian Literature, Cool Place, Lifeway Christian, Lifeway Christian Book Store, Makeover, Pastors, South Broadway, Summer Afternoon, Support Materials, Target Audience, Tyler Texas, Tyler Texas book store, Tyler TX Christian Book Store, Vestments, Youth Ministers
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A Large Bookseller With Local Appeal

January 8th, 2010

While the Barnes and Noble chain is often seen as the Walmart of the bookselling world, the benefits of having one in Tyler are innumerable. Even though B&N is far from a local business, it has become something of a social and cultural center here. Not only does the store boast thousands of titles for sale, but since its opening, countless musical presentations, author signings, and other events have taken place within its doors.

The Starbucks café has served as a meeting place for book clubs, chess players, church groups, and even the occasional college student cramming over a cup of Joe. Sometimes it’s a place for prearranged meetings, and sometimes it’s just a place to kill time. And who can resist wandering the book filled aisles looking for nothing in particular, but finding some volume we can’t live without.

On-line booksellers like Amazon.com or even Barnes&Noble.com and others are useful tools for locating those hard to find or out of print books. But they cannot replace the bookstore experience. It is one of the pleasures of life to sit on the floor and read the first couple chapters of a book before deciding whether or not to make the purchase. And unlike electronic books, a hard copy will never crash or freeze up.

The sympathies of a literary purest aside, the book store turns a tidy profit, both for the company and the community, and with a sizable staff employed there a certain amount of the dollars do stay in Tyler. So even though our neighbor B&N isn’t company headquarters, and its not a mom & pop style business it is nevertheless a staple of our local community, one we are fortunate to have.

Tags: Aisles, Amazon, Author Signings, Barnes and Nobles, Barnes and Nobles Tyler Texas, Bookseller, Bookstore Experience, Chess Players, Church Groups, Company Headquarters, Couple Chapters, Cup Of Joe, Electronic Books, Line Booksellers, Musical Presentations, Pop Style, Starbucks, Starbucks and Barnes and Nobles, Style Business, Sympathies, T Company, Tidy Profit, Walmart
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Hastings experience

January 2nd, 2010

With the many advancements in east Texas it still baffles me how a store like Hastings can stay in business. Hastings (in case you don’t know) is a multimedia store, that hosts a large selection of music, videos, books and more. Though the selection is worthy of recognition, the prices alone make me want to venture to the local walmart for my purchase and still be able to buy lunch on the way home with the money I saved.

Hastings has video renting with their very own membership card, but with redbox and netflix and for those who have still not caught up, Blockbuster, the idea of having video renting is almost irrelevant. They have a good book selection, but like the rest of the store is very overpriced. They also have a large music section which contains a great many ridiculous items such as ozzy posters and strobe lights at, you guessed it, ridiculous prices. The new movies they have for sale are pricey and the used movies are priced around the same.

On my way to the register with my Kiss dolls and Misfit monopoly in my shopping cart, I stop by and grab a movie to rent. As I wait in line I grabbed a packaged pickle and a container of popcorn to properly enjoy my movie watching experience. After my purchase I stop by to use their facilities and am shocked to find one of the vilest restrooms outside of truck stops in Mexico, that I had ever seen. I noticed on the wall there is the ‘bathroom cleanliness board’ with every hour up to and including the hour of my visit, checked and initialed.

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Although my experience is not necessarily what you will encounter, it is something to watch for if you are planning on shopping there. With the advancements in video rentals and mp3 players Hastings is on the verge of becoming obsolete, but if you must have a new cd or movie I would suggest Walmart or Best Buy.

Tags: Tyler TX Hastings, Tyler TX Movie Rental
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Holiday Reading

December 17th, 2009

Well, Christmas is upon us again and we’re all busy rushing around looking for those perfect gifts for the people in our lives. As someone who grew up in a family of teachers, books have always been a huge part of our holiday giving. For our family a welcome part of the holiday experience has always been taking the time to sit down crack open some new reading. I’ve written fairly extensively about Tyler’s area bookstores, but given the season I thought it might be advantageous to our readers to quickly revisit some of our better establishments for those looking for some seasonal literature.

Barnes and Noble

B & N in Tyler always has some great deals for Christmas. If you’re looking for the latest best sellers you can’t do much better the retail giant. They usually offer about a twenty or thirty percent discount on whatever happens to be hot at the time. They also have a huge selection of calendars, cards and other gifty items. Another advantage of shopping there is the café. The Starbucks franchise sells everything any coffee addict might want, from travel mugs to bags of coffee beans. The one disadvantage (if it bothers you), are the crowds. As with most retail stores; the Barnes and Noble does a large percentage of its business at this time of year. If you don’t mind the rush however, this is always a great place to check out.

Fireside Books

For those looking for literature on the more unique side I would suggest Checking out Fireside Books at 110 East Houston. This is a locally owned bookseller specializing in used and rare books. The store is not as trendy or seasonal as B & N, but for those on our Christmas lists who value those more obscure or hard to find titles this is good place to check out.

Pea Picker Books

I my opinion Pea Picker is not a store for those bigger gifts. The business carries largely paperback books of varying quality and is probably not the place for nicer purchases. If you’re looking for stocking stuffers or more last minute items you may have some success, but don’t expect to find too many gems.

Lifeway Christian Stores

Lifeway is another good seasonal store (not unlike B & N actually) with a Christian theme. The store carries the latest Christian literature, music and gifts. They also sell mugs and coffee. The new location is a beautiful store, and will undoubtedly be a busy place in Tyler this Christmas.

The Scroll

I must confess that the Scroll is one of my area Favs. It is a Christian bookstore with a wide variety of literature. They carry all kinds of music, gifts, mugs and other items with a religious theme. The staff is there to offer any assistance the customer may require. This area business has been a staple in Tyler for a lot of years so expect a busy store.

There are a few other Booksellers in town but these are probably the best ones to visit for the holiday shopping. For those who require a more detailed description of the stores listed above, visit the Tyler Blog section of this site and look for the following titles: A large bookseller with local appeal, Still think there are no are no old bookstores in Tyler, The Scroll Christian Bookstore in Tyler, Pea Picker Books in Tyler, and The New Lifeway in Tyler.

Tags: Barnes and Noble, Bookseller, Christmas Books, Christmas Lists, Coffee Addict, Coffee Beans, East Houston, Fireside Books, Holiday Experience, Holiday Reading, New Reading, Paperback Books, Pea Picker, Perfect Gifts, Rare Books, Retail Giant, Retail Stores, Starbucks, Starbucks Franchise, Teachers Books, Time Of Year, Travel Mugs, Tyler TX Books
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Green Acres Baptist Church Library

December 8th, 2009

After having been so disappointed by the Tyler Public Library and vowing never to return, I was stuck in a quandry: How do I relive the joy of childhood library visits and impart an enthusiasm for literacy in my own young preschoolers when I dread the thought of returning to the library? (Trumpets blare. The hero has arrived.) Another mom passed on a secret source for hours of golden literary adventures: The Green Acres Baptist Church’s (GABC) library. What? They have a library? I knew about the bowling alley, the Early Education Center, the roller coaster, (What? It doesn’t actually include an amusement park?) but I wouldn’t have thought to look for a library.

This little library is tucked away by door #1 in the Worship Center and includes a nice gift shop. As you walk in, you’ll see on one side, a smaller version of the Scroll Christian bookstore, and on the other, a modest, well-organized library of literary gems, DVDs, and audiobooks/dramas for young and old and in between. You may not find every resource you might need for a research paper, but they pack quite a bit in this small space.

The biggest relief for me as a mother, was that there was nothing I had to steer the kids away from (no Goosebumps, no No David) and very few Disney reworks. Everything we encountered was uplifting and positive if not blatantly Christian. As well as providing hours of quality read-aloud snuggle time, these books were an excellent springboard for discussions on handling difficult situations, our values, theology, Christian character, and all kinds of educational themes.

The staff at the Green Acres Baptist Church Library was always very friendly and helpful. I felt comfortable hanging out to read a few books with my two preschoolers and infant in tow. Because of the small size, I could even look for an inspiring craft book and woman’s devotional for myself just a few rows over while my kids perused their selections at a small table nearby.

If you’ve read my earlier review of the Tyler Public Library, you will undoubtedly figure out that part of what thrills me about this library is that it’s free!!! Whether you live in Tyler TX, or in a different county altogether, you will not have to purchase a rental punch card here. All I had to do to receive a card was fill out a little information paper, and I received three cards, one regular card, and two smaller ones to place on our key rings. How convenient!

Don’t forget there’s a great little bookstore in there too! It’s a convenient place to pick up a gift, or try (in the library) before you buy to find out whether your child will enjoy a video, audio, or book series before you make the investment!

After a year of going to the library almost every week, we had not yet exhausted the GABC Library’s selections, and the kids were still just as excited to head to the Library (snow, sleet, or hail)!

So, if you, like me have been disappointed by the Tyler Public Library, or you just want a more welcoming, less overwhelming space to let your kids’ nurture their love of books and explore positive, fun, life-shaping materials, I recommend that you check out the Green Acres Baptist Church Library.

Tags: Acres Baptist Church, Bowling Alley, Childhood Library, christian bookstore, Christian Character, Church Library, Craft Book, Early Education, Educational Themes, GABC, Green Acres, Green Acres Baptist Church, green acres library, Library Visits, Literary Gems, Little Library, Organized Library, Quandry, Roller Coaster, Secret Source, Tyler Public Library, tyler tx library
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