By Morf Morford
Tacoma Daily Index

In early October the legendary Seattle Elliott Bay Book Company announced a new collaboration with Hudson News that will bring a booknerd traveller’s feast of reading material to Terminal C (near Beecher’s Cheese, one of several local provisioners that now showcase their wares and services at the airport).

The shop even does its best to look a bit like the flagship store, with wood paneling, tall wooden bookshelves, triangular wooden braces across the ceiling and an “exposed brick” wall (or at least a bricklike facade).

I don’t know about anyone else, but I am always rushing/waiting for a flight when I am at the airport. A glimpse of wood among the sleek sheen surface of the walkways will certainly be a welcome sight.

As you might know, the airport’s SubPop records shop hosts occasional live music events, no word yet on whether Elliott Bay will be holding their readings at the gates. You never know, maybe we will be able to catch a haiku or flash fiction series, so passengers won’t miss their flights.

If your reading tastes run a bit beyond the trendy best-sellers, take some time in an actual bookstore at the airport.

My experience in air travel is that reading a physical book is vastly more relaxing than staring at a screen for multiple hours.

And holding a book is far more restful to the eyes than any e-book.

You may have noticed that airports are shifting away from the generic globalist (if not brutalist) architectural theme and moving towards a more “local” feel.

For those passing through Sea-Tac on their way to connecting flights, a little taste (sometimes literal) of the Pacific Northwest can be found – and sometimes even taken home.