'May this Season Show You All The Ways You Are Valued by Your Communities'
"Happy holiday season, dear friends and bookselling colleagues. I know that wherever you are, whether the winds blow snow or rain or sea breezes and humidity through that front door of the shop, we are all answering the same phone calls, asking the same gentle questions of customers to help them find what they need, and wondering, collectively, why all the misremembered books of the season were 'BLUE, and it was RIGHT HERE.'
"The practice of bookselling, in spite of our seasonally crowded stores and all those malapropic conversations with customers, can often be a lonely profession. There's sometimes a feeling of 'us against the world' (or us against tariffs, book banning, shipping and damage woes, product shortages, unrelenting event schedules, and the ever-present conversation about where the customer can 'get it cheaper') and it's even more pronounced when we NEED this season to work.... We see you, friends. We are here, and you are not alone.... Be well, take good care of yourselves and your teams, and may this season show you all the ways you are valued by your communities. This is hard work, but may it also bring you joy this year and always."
