Once upon a time ...
Alex George, Founder
Alex George (he/him) has published seven novels, which have been translated into more than ten languages. A Good American was a #1 Indie Next List pick, a Barnes and Noble Discover New Writers Pick and a national and international bestseller. Setting Free the Kites was published in February 2017 and was also a bestseller (it also won the Missouri Prize for Fiction in 2018). His most recent novel, The Paris Hours, was published by Flatiron Books, an imprint of Macmillan, in May 2020, and was an instant national bestseller. All three books were chosen by the nation’s independent booksellers for the “Indie Next List”. He has written for, among other publications, The Washington Post and LitHub. Alex is also the founder and director of the Unbound Book Festival. He is also an attorney. A native of the UK, he moved to the States twenty-one years ago, not that he’s counting. In 2022 he was named Midwest Bookseller of the Year by the Midwest Independent Booksellers Association. He now divides his time between Columbia and Boston.
Carrie Koepke, Founder
Carrie (she/her) is obsessed with dark chocolate, turtles, climbing things, books, and naming her pets after brilliant authors. She happened into a bookselling job as a teen and knew she found her people. A few life adventures later, she is happy to be back . . . for good. Yes, you have probably seen her walking downtown while reading, how else would she find enough time? She tends to have several books going at once, including working on her own (very slowly). Favorite genre's include picture books, science, poetry, short stories, and translations (esp. Japanese literature!). She also has a major soft spot for books that are hard to shelve due to defying genre. In 2022 Carrie was elected to the board of the Midwest Independent Booksellers Association.
Matthew May
Matthew (he/they) was born and raised in southern Missouri. His love of books was kindled by his elementary school librarian. Since those days he is rarely out of arm's reach of a good book. Though most at home in the pages of cosmic horror, cyberpunk, or a new collection of poetry, Matthew loves books of any stripe. Whether he is doing a deep dive into something cerebral and thought-provoking or relaxing in the pages of a comfort book, Matthew loves to hear and share new suggestions for the next great read.
Liz Fleming
Liz (she/her) is originally from the St. Louis area, where she spent most of her life drawing, spending time with her friends and family, drinking coffee and reading any book she could get her hands on. She has a degree in Art Education from Southeast Missouri State University that she used to teach art at an elementary school before moving to Columbia, Missouri. While reading has always been one of her passions, working in a bookstore surrounded by books has always been a dream. This dream led her to start her own YouTube channel where she can talk all about books and explore her love of video editing and design. Some of her favorite genres include romance, fantasy, and mystery/thrillers.
Caroline Kobitz
Caroline (she/her) is a current college student at Mizzou pursuing a degree in English, with the goal of becoming an editor at one of the big publishing houses and eventually writing her novels. She also teaches elementary and middle school art at a nearby school. When Caroline is not at Skylark, on campus, or teaching, you can find her cozied up with her dog and cat, crocheting or reading a book. Her favorite genres include fantasy, translations, and classics. She is also know to dabble in graphic novels or manga. Her love of books has led her to making the occasional tiktok video, rambling about anything and everything book related.
Christopher Brown
Christopher (he/him) is a recent transplant to Missouri and brings 25 years’ experience as a bookseller to Skylark. His favorite genres include fantasy, science fiction, horror, children’s literature, classic literature, and erotica; books about cinema, theater, music, and art; LGBTQ+ history and issues, feminism, gender theory, queer theory, social justice, and reproductive justice. He is also an O.G. geek and loves Disney, Star Wars, Star Trek, The Lord of the Rings, Pixar, Dune, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the works of Jim Henson more than is probably healthy. Christopher publicly thanks his partner for his patience with sharing their home with thousands of books and the enormous effort that was required to move those books across the country to their new home in Missouri.
Rilla Patterson
Rilla (she/her) was born and raised in Columbia, Missouri and is the youngest of three siblings. Though she has lived her whole life in Columbia, her dream is to end up in New York, eating bagels and drinking iced coffee every morning. She is presently a freshman at Stephens College. Rilla is a lover of fiction, mystery, and is always up for a good romance. If she's not scrapbooking or sewing a new project, she is most likely sitting outside, reading her favorite books.
Kara Cheslock
Kara (she/her) is a lifelong booklover, tik-tok enthusiast, and a self proclaimed rom-com expert. While she has lived in many places, Kara considers herself an honorary Columbia native after living here for most of her life. She has recently graduated from Mizzou with degrees in Political Science and International Studies-Peace Studies. She is currently getting her Masters degree in Atlantic History and Politics through the Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy at Mizzou. She is active in community and political organizing, especially in regard to reproductive justice. When she is not lurking about downtown, you can usually find her at home watching Pride and Prejudice with her mom or spending time with her animals
Henry Nguyen
A recent high school graduate from Rock Bridge, Henry (he/him) is an aspiring linguist now matriculating at Swarthmore College. He loves all things language, especially concerning the classics or the history of English. He likes to read, play tabletop games and trading card games, and play piano, among other hobbies. He most enjoys speculative fiction, especially fantasy — his favorite authors are Sir Terry Pratchett and J.R.R. Tolkien — but he has dipped his toes in all sorts of other genres.
Sky Koepke
Sky (she/her) loves dark chocolate, cats, baking things, books, and making things out of yarn. She discovered mythology in elementary school and knew she wanted to learn more. Now, she is happy to be studying classics at Knox College. There have been allegations that Carrie, her mother, experimented with cloning during her days as a biology major. Unfortunately, we have to tell you that these allegations are false - Sky is indeed her daughter and not her clone. Her favorite genres include fantasy, sci-fi, mystery, mythology, and books related to classics. She also enjoys a smattering of books across other genres.
Mary OMalley
Mary O'Malley (she/her) is a Ridiculously Enthusiastic Bookseller. An avid reader all her life, Mary has been known to mildly stalk her favorite authors through social media, and reads across a large range of genres. When not reading and reviewing books, Mary also works as a Program Coordinator for The BINC Foundation. She and her husband live outside Chicago tending to their little suburban homestead with dogs, a cat, chickens and a few random fish. You won't meet Mary in the shop as she lives in another state (details) but you will see and hear a lot from her on our social media pages and we are proud that she is Skylark’s Roving Bookseller at Large. You can also find Mary blabbing about books on FB and Instagram: @Blurb_Your_Enthusiasm.
Theo
Nobody is quite sure how old Theo (he, him) is, but then nobody really cares, either. He is a friendly soul, and will be delighted to administer a brief but affectionate welcome on your arrival in the shop – if he’s not hard at work snoring behind the counter, that is. He loves swimming, playing with his friend Ivy, and turkey. His favorite book is 101 Uses for A Dead Cat.
Carti-B
Carti-B (she/it) really pulls her weight around here at Skylark. A well known contortionist, she enjoys being on the go and sharing books with people all over Columbia. She is pretty no-nonsense and refuses to let obstacles keep her from her destinations. Her favorite genres are book-fair, big-event, and travel.
We're not currently looking for any more booksellers to join our team, but if you're interested in knowing more about working at Skylark, click here.
