Come with me to celebrate Indie Bookstore Day (and also gossip about the drama that happened)
A day filled with books and tea (yeah, that kind of tea).
The article of my dreams would have involved me taking you along on a bookstore crawl while I visited every indie bookstore in the Hudson Valley, bought 25 books to support the community, then we’d get coffee and take pictures of the spring trees blooming and I’d have no allergies at all and no where else to be except curled up outside on some beautiful wicker furniture reading as long as the sun was out.
But I am a real person who had allergies and a full weekend of non-bookish commitments to take care of. So instead we’re going to spend about two hours of my Saturday afternoon together, and then I’ll drop you off at the coffee shop down the street where you can read and I can do all the dumb things I agreed to.
In case you missed my post from last week, this past Saturday was Independent Bookstore Day. Over 1600 stores all over the nation participated in hosting special events, food, drinks, and vendors at their stores to celebrate the fact that bookstores still exist and book people still support them. Basically each store just threw a little party for themselves and invited us to come.
But did you hear the gossip? The absolutely unhinged drama that also happened this weekend? Amazon decided to run their book sale the SAME weekend, offering discounts of 40-60% off books.
I received an email from the CEO of bookshop.org simply entitled “Amazon is shameless.” Oof.
Yeah, that’s pretty bad. Amazon did put out a statement that said the overlap was completely unintentional and the dates were set far in advance, but no one is having it.
I buy books through Amazon. I buy books through independent bookstores. I buy books through Barnes & Noble. I buy books at second-hand stores. In an era when so many have to be on a budget and are doing the best they can, I think reading in any way you can is a win, and I will never fault anyone for the way they consume books.
But forget I said that for a minute because I bought into the drama (I always do), complained about Amazon all weekend, and marched proudly into a local bookshop on Saturday.
My bookstore of choice was Page and Petals in Wappingers Falls, NY. I’ve featured them often and adore their feminine, bright, cheery aesthetic. They are a fiction-only bookstore and have done a lot to promote community events and local authors.
Their indie bookstore celebration lasted all weekend, with various vendors, events, and activities. On Saturday they had a floral bar, a photography stand, and a make-your-own friendship bracelet table, all run by locals. Not to mention a 10% store discount.
Sure, it was pouring rain for most of Saturday, but the vibe was fun, girly, and a ton of people came out to support the event. Every purchase entered you in a raffle to win a gift basket of bookish things (I’m still patiently waiting to hear if I won anything, even though I believe that ship has sailed).
I drug my husband out to this very not-him event, and he faithfully wandered around with me until I entered my ‘what book should I get’ spiral, and he opted to support from a corner-of-the-store comfy chair he had found. I loved that this event still made him feel welcome, and everyone was there supporting with their families, kids and friends.
The book I finally decided on was First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston, a thriller I had read last year and loved. I tend to only buy books once I’ve read them, decide I adore them, and want them on my shelf like little trophies I can lend out to friends. My own personal library, filled with only my top recommendations.
Thank you for coming with me on this bookish afternoon, I hope you had a great time and whether you visited a bookstore of your own choice (or accidentally bought a book off Amazon because you didn’t know we boycotted them for a random weekend this April) I hope you have some great reads ahead of you.
I would also love to hear if anyone else participated in Independent Bookstore Day in any way! Please share below.
