Behind every good book is a writer with something to say and a talent for saying it.

Booksellers like Peter Keat know this. They make a living finding these people and making their voices more accessible on the shelves of bookstores.

But not all the great stories are written down.

Starting this month, Keat and his tiny staff at Time Tested Books are offering a series of monthly talks and lectures from Sacramento's living and breathing cultural icons, thinkers and experts — and people who have just led intriguing lives. The free series, which will be held every third Sunday, is called the Sacramento Living Library

"We wanted to straddle the line between books and people," Keat said, standing behind the counter of his store at 1114 21st St. "There are legendary people here in Sacramento who are a storehouse of information and culture, knowledge and expertise."

The series begins Jan. 17 at 7 p.m. with a rare appearance by Tower Records and Books founder Russ Solomon, now owner of R5 Records & Video, discussing the companies he created and the music business. Sacramento journalist David Watts Barton, who is editor-in-chief at Sacramento Press, will be interviewing Solomon. Doors open at 6 p.m.

"I don't think (Solomon's) spoken that much in public, and we knew there were a lot of people out there who'd be interested in what he had to say," Keat said.

The series also will feature a panel of former Sacramento mayors Heather Fargo, Anne Rudin, Burnett Miller and Phil Isenberg; architect David Mogavero; wine expert Darrell Corti; and journalists Peter Schrag and Ginger Rutland. Midtown Monthly Editor Tim Foster will host the rest of the series.

Keat has operated Time Tested Books since 1981 — originally, in a small space just down the block, at the corner of 21st and L streets. Today, the store sits in a retail loft converted from a garage that housed Lehr Auto Electric from 1947 until 1980.

More than 10,000 books fill wooden bookcases lining walls and sitting on wheels in the middle of the room, which is dominated by exposed brick walls and a wooden ceiling supported by trusses. As many as 40,000 more books sit in storage. The store is warmed with rich wool rugs, a six-foot totem pole and a cozy reading area created with a pair of wooden chairs, a small table and an antique floor lamp.

Keat fell in love with books and second-hand bookstores before he was even in high school. He began collecting books, starting with some of his favorite authors: Leo Tolstoy, Fredric Brown and Henry Miller. He collected so many, he decided it was best to go into business trying to sell some of them.

"I had a shopkeeper mentality and a lot of books," he said. "I've always been kind of a recycler and concerned about conservation, and I have an appreciation for the past."

The store is filled with books on just about every subject, from arctic exploration and science fiction to children's books and detective novels. Time Tested Books emphasizes the arts, humanities, history and politics, Keat said.

Rare and collectible books include a $100, turn-of-the-century "Hans Andersen's Fairy Tales" illustrated by W. Heath Robinson, a first-edition "Silver Chief: Dog of the North" by Jack O'Brien, and "Arnold: The Education of a Body Builder" by both Arnold Schwarzenegger, before he became California governor, and Douglas Kent Hall. Among the store's oldest books is a $200 two-volume set, "The Ancient History" by M. Rollin, published in 1826.

Keat builds the bookstore's stock via his own reading tastes, book reviews and customer recommendations. He's gone to hundreds of second-hand bookstores throughout the world and perused hundreds of thousands of books.

He and his staff worked together to come up with the idea for the Living Library series to highlight Sacramento culture and some of the people who create it, as well as draw people into the store.

"Sacramento has kind of viewed itself, until recently, as a cultural backwater. That isn't the case at all," Keat said. "It has a rich historical tradition and a rich cultural tradition that have been overshadowed in the past. This is an opportunity to highlight that it shouldn't be."