Indie Bookstore Magic
Indie bookstores. What is it about them that we love so much? I can’t resist them and often make them a must see when visiting a new town or city. I might even make that new town or city a destination because of a particular bookstore. Some bookshops are big, colorful, and contemporary, others, are aged, creaky, and seasoned, and yet they elicit the same tingly good feeling by being inside them. But why? What is this bookstore magic that makes me feel so good and why?
It might be that by walking inside and seeing a book I’ve loved along the shelves feels a bit like running into an old friend. “Hi there. I remember you. How are you?” I pull that old friend off the shelf and feel that familiarity instantly just looking at the cover. We shared something. Maybe something funny or thrilling or inspiring but it was something. I slide my dear friend back onto the shelf and saunter toward the new release table igniting a Christmas morning excitement, full of inspiring possibility, like meeting someone you’ve heard about, someone you’ve been wanting to know. “Well, hello there. So nice to finally meet you.” I pick up each one and read the blurbs on the back to get to know them and decide who I would like to ask to coffee. I narrow it down to one, or two or five when I’m approached by another book lover, someone who shares her excitement for one of the books I have cradled in my arms. Briefly we discuss the author and her other works. The shopper smiles, nods then drifts to the next table, historical fiction. All this happens quickly, this connection. But I’m left wondering if maybe that’s it, at the core. That connection, that reassurance, and acceptance, felt inside the walls of the bookstore. The books offer infinite possibilities to see ourselves on the pages and connect us to the stories and to each other. Maybe that comfort of knowing we are not alone in our thoughts, our feelings, and our world is the book magic we feel inside the bookstore.
For me indie bookstores are the greatest comfort to my soul and without them I know I would be heartbroken. That is one of the reasons why I love celebrating independent bookstore day. This year, April 29th marks the tenth Anniversary dedicated to commemorating Independent Bookstores. If you are lucky enough to live in a community with an independent bookstore, make a visit on Saturday 4/29 to join in the fun. Participating stores often have author signings, book promotions and all sorts of bookish give aways. And of course—BOOKS!!
To find a participating bookstore (There is a searchable map!)click here.
https://www.bookweb.org/independent-bookstore-day
To see some of the bookstores I’ve featured on my Instagram click here: https://www.instagram.com/the_garden_of_reading/
To view my 22 bookstores in 2022 reel click here https://www.instagram.com/p/CmMPFMdDif6/
Regardless of whether you click here or there make sure to visit and support your favorite Independent bookstore this Saturday 4/29 and feel that bookstore magic.