After 42 years in business, Books West, Kalispell's "shop around the corner," is closing Nov. 30.

In the 30 years Jo Ann Jensen has owned Books West, she has seen much change in Kalispell.

Jensen recalls a bustling downtown Kalispell whose slow decline is most evident in empty storefronts and sidewalks. The little bell on the door to her shop used to ring incessantly.

"When downtown was really busy, before the mall came, the streets used to be full of people," she said. "Christmas was really fun. There's always a Christmas parade the day after Thanksgiving. We always gave hot apple cider on our corner. It was a gathering place for friends. There was a lot of everything downtown."

Few stores have such established tenure on Main Street as Books West. Jensen named Wheeler Jewelry and Flowers by Hansen as fellow longtime retailers. When Jensen retires to spend more time visiting her children and checking books out from the library, Main Street will lose an anchor.

BEFORE SHE purchased Books West in 1979, Jensen worked for previous owner Karlann Coughlin for 8 years. The person who owned the store before Coughlin moved it from Bigfork and changed its name from River House to Books West.

For a number of years the bookstore occupied a space on the ground floor of the Kalispell Grand Hotel. After several expansions, the store moved across the street to its current location at 101 Main St.

Her husband, Marlyn "Huz" Jensen, a favorite with students when he taught American history at Flathead High School, was "social director of the bookstore," Jo Ann said.

"My husband was a fixture at Books West for 25 years because he was always out sweeping or cleaning the sidewalk," she said. "People would always stop to talk to him."

Huz Jensen died five years ago.

JENSEN, WHO always has liked to read, is something of a matchmaker.

"I thought it was important to get the books and the customer together," Jensen said simply.

Her favorite book is "To Kill A Mockingbird" by Harper Lee. She also enjoys E.L. Doctorow's work, as well as books by Anne Tyler, Richard Russo and Montana author Ivan Doig. On a trip to New Orleans she bought another favorite, "The Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole, as a memento.

Regional books are the most popular and oft-requested. Employees Susan Truman and Owenna Cassan are quick to recommend a good read for customers.

"People really like them. Any new book about Montana is a hit," Jensen said. "A lot of people like western history in general."

She hopes the Museum at Central School will be able to fill the void Books West will leave in its passing.

BOOKS FOR everybody is the motto of the little shop and Jensen said she tries to stock all sorts to give the store a different flavor: literature, science fiction, children's books, nature guides, poetry, do-it-yourself.

"We know about books," she said. "Independent bookstores reflect the things that the buyer likes. That's why book lovers like to go to independent bookstores. Not only did they become friends, but your customers are your best scouts on what's what and what to order. They're the best indication of good stuff to have in your store."

Long before Harry Potter books and "The Da Vinci Code," Jensen remembers "Trains, Trails and Tin Lizzies" as particularly popular.

"I remember it flying off the shelf at the time," she said of the book that featured old photos of Glacier National Park made from glass negatives that had been restored.

Yet Jensen has been in the business long enough to become a keen observer of trends in the industry. She has watched the decline of the independent bookstore with a faint resignation to the machine of progress.

"Independent bookstores are closing across the country," she observed. "There's a lot of competition. There's the large bookstores, the Internet. Every box store has books that are sold at cost. We can't compete."

She also noted the bookstore's demise - the time is fast-approaching when the little bell will ring no more - as part of a slowly rebounding downtown area.

"I think [downtown] might come back sometime. There's just not the traffic - all the box stores have taken traffic away from downtown," Jensen said. "The tourist trade has dwindled, but people who have come are very enthusiastic to find an independent bookstore. Tourists loved our little old downtown."

Books West is offering a 25-percent-off closing sale. Books that don't sell will be donated.

Reporter K.J. Hascall may be reached at 758-4439 or by e-mail at kjhascall@dailyinterlake.com