Vroman’s to buy Book Soup

Two major independent bookstores in Los Angeles are about to become partners: Pasadena-based Vroman’s has signed an agreement to purchase Book Soup in West Hollywood.

Glenn Goldman, Book Soup’s longtime owner, began looking for a buyer when he fell severely ill, and the fate of the store has been up in the air since his death in January.

“Glenn and I had talked about it,” Allison Hill, Vroman’s president and chief operating officer, told The Times on Friday night, “and we’ve been in conversations with the seller since January.”

Book Soup and Vroman’s are landmarks of L.A.’s cultural life. The 115-year-old Vroman’s is east of Old Town in Pasadena and a branch of the store opened in the Hastings Ranch area of the city in 2001.

Book Soup is on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood. It was founded by Goldman in 1975 and shaped by his eclectic, artistic sensibility.

“I don’t believe that just anyone could have come in and taken over Book Soup,” said Hill.

“There is an authenticity to what Book Soup is that we intend on honoring. We would be crazy to do this otherwise.”

Closure of the deal is still pending.

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carolyn.kellogg@latimes.com