Join the daylong party celebrating your indie bookstore!
Just what are we celebrating? Independent bookstores are not just stores, they’re community centers and local anchors run by passionate readers. They are entire universes of ideas that contain the possibility of real serendipity. They are lively performance spaces and quiet places where aimless perusal is a day well spent.
Indie bookstores, whether dusty and labyrinthine or clean and well-lighted, are not just stores, they are solutions. They hold the key to your love life, your career, and your passions. Walking the aisles of a good bookstore means stumbling upon a novel from India that expands your heart. It’s encountering an art book that changes the direction of your life. It’s the joy of having a perfect stranger steer you toward the perfect book.
In a world of tweets and algorithms and pageless digital downloads, bookstores are not a dying anachronism. They are living, breathing organisms that continue to grow and expand. In fact, there are more of them this year than there were last year. And they are at your service.
We'll have books and art pieces created exclusively for (and available only at) indie bookstores, including signed copies of Kate DiCamillo's Raymie Nightingale, Curious George plush "Read with Me" toy, Literary Tea Towels, Anthony Bourdain's Perfect Burger Print, Bad Citizen Stencil, and more.* For general information and a complete list of all the wonderful exclusive and limited offerings, visit indiebookstoreday.com.
*Note: These are limited edition items available only at indie bookstores -- not on the Internet, and not for special ordering or holding. First come, first served! So get on down to Mrs. Dalloway's early on April 30!
All day:
Bring your dog by for a homemade treat made from DIY for Your Dog: 30 Toys, Treats, and Treasures to Make by Rachelle Blondel, and get Rover ready for his close-up! We'll take pictures and post them on our website.
Grab the kids and try your hand at drawing some of your favorite illustrated book characters. We'll have a big table set up with paper, pens, and pencils. Best drawing will win a free copy of Draw Me! Aimed at ages 6-12, it includes step-by-step instructions on how to draw characters like Mo Willem’s Pigeon, Raina from Smile and Sisters, Curious George, Fly Guy, and many more. Also includes instructions for creating a flipbook and a multi-panel comic book.
And while you're at the drawing table, pick up a copy of The Neil Gaiman Coloring Book which includes 20 pieces of black-and-white art by Chris Riddell and quotes from Neil Gaiman—taken from the pages of Coraline, The Graveyard Book, and Fortunately, the Milk—all ready to be colored in by YOU with a set of colored pencils!
4PM: Join us for a beer/wine/pizza pairing and tasting. We'll have a handful of unique brews and wine chosen by our neighbors at Vintage Berkeley to go especially with the delicious pizza made by our neighbors at the newly revived Nabalom Bakery. Booksellers Katherine Proctor and Nick Pauley will be on hand to pour tastes to connoisseurs over 21 years old. We'll also have some of our favorite pairing books on hand, of course!