speaker recommendations?

Are you sure the 8' X 8' dimensions are correct? If so, the most difficult thing is that you don't have a "fairly small room", you have an incredibly small room. So small as to not be able to overcome the room issues that will present themselves.

While it may be surprising to many of us here, because we tend to deal with 4 to 5 figure pricetags, you can pick up a lot of good loudspeakers in your pricerange. You just need to play in the used speaker lot. Early 1970s Japanese loudspeakers from the likes of Sansui would be something to look at, they are very easy to drive and have a really engaging, yet not harsh, tone. Also, maybe a pair of used Vandersteen 1, Dahlquist, ESS, or Fried loudspeakers.

I second Macrojack good suggestion.

I'll give a third nod to Macrojack, especially if you have a standard 8' ceiling.

Problems associated with square rooms can be mostly alleviated by using a setup arranged on the diagonel .
Setup your speakers in one corner firing to the opposite corner where your listening position is . I learned this from an amp and speaker designer , it works for me in a 10'X10' room . The trade off , there is always a trade off , is that your soundstage will be compromised somewhat .

Good luck .

chuck, hate to repeat myself...but, you really should find a pro and have a good conversation with him before you start stuffing speakers into that space. it will save you tons of wasted time and $. dont be embarrased to talk to dealers in the know, they love to talk stereo and show their knowledge. Plus most of them work all day waiting for someone to ask for honest advice as opposed to being treated like salesmen. find a higher end shop and go at off hours.