"2026 has been a busy year for CALIBA and certainly one of growth," said Hannah Walcher, executive director of the California Independent Booksellers Alliance, during the association's annual meeting yesterday at Fall Fest 2026 in San Diego, Calif.

Bookstore membership has grown by 33 stores, Walcher reported, from 185 at the time of last year's Fall Fest to 218 currently. Forty-one of the current members are provisional bookstore members, and there is a 90% retention rate. Based on pre-registration numbers, Walcher said CALIBA expects to have around 200 booksellers attending this year's Fall Fest, with about 60 first-time attendees.

Hannah Walcher

It has also been a year of growth for CALIBA's programs, Walcher continued, noting that the association held its first ever owners' retreats in the spring, with one in Oakland and the other in Pasadena; redesigned the winter catalog; and made significant changes the schedule for its Golden Poppy book awards. Walcher also joined 10 CALIBA booksellers in a meeting with the mayor of San Francisco and took a trip to Sacramento with four CALIBA members to speak in favor of the COMPETE Act.

Elaborating on the changes to the Golden Poppy program, board president Mary Williams (Skylight Books, Los Angeles) explained that the schedule has been moved forward to help bookstores "catch more fourth-quarter sales." Previously, nominees were not announced until the fourth quarter; this year, nominees were announced in August and winners announced this week, and a new Golden Poppy Awards banquet has been added to the Fall Fest schedule. CALIBA also overhauled its online marketing strategy for the awards, and there will be a new Readers Choice Award category, where members of the public vote on their favorite category winner.

Williams also discussed CALIBA's bookstore map, which will launch in time for Independent Bookstore Day 2027. It will feature a map of California on the front, with pins for 200 CALIBA member stores, and information about each store on the back. The map will be revised annually with a new version in time for IBD each year. Williams called it a nod to the fact that IBD began as California Bookstore Day.

Topics of discussion during the town hall portion including the sustainability of the bookselling profession, ways of dealing with the proliferation of AI, and surveying members anonymously about whether sales are up or down. During the discussion of AI, CALIBA board member Claire Bone (Wild Sisters Book Company, Sacramento) said she's planning to create a contract for event partners and others to sign stipulating that no AI was used. The best thing anyone can do right now, Bone said, "is go on the honor system."

Board member Katerina Argyres (Noe Valley Books, San Francisco) pointed out that for the Golden Poppy awards, anyone who submits a title must sign a contract saying the work was not created by AI. And board member Jhoanna Belfer (Bel Canto Books, Long Beach) said her store has created an "AI ethics book club," which has proven very popular and brought people who were not regular customers into the store.

At the close of the session, Williams announced that next year's Fall Fest will return to South San Francisco, September 15-16. --Alex Mutter

The Crowded Bookshelf hosted a grand opening celebration on September 12 at 2519 S. Shields St., Ste. 1M, in Fort Collins, Colo. The Rocky Mountain Collegian reported that owner Renee Becher launched the bricks-and-mortar store after years of operating a pop-up bookstore and partnering with local businesses to set up temporary spaces.

Renee Becher

Becher began her bookselling career by working at both a local publisher and a bookstore. "I actually got a job at a local publishing house for a few years and then also got a job working at Old Firehouse Books in Old Town," she said. "That's kind of where I got my bookseller education.... I was there for about seven years and learned the industry. And then, when I left there, it was kind of that moment of, 'What else do I want to do?' And I was, like, 'I don't really want to do anything else. I want to keep bookselling.' " 

In its earlier incarnation, the Crowded Bookshelf "gained attention thanks to its unique collection of content that focuses on more serious, mature themes," the Rocky Mountain Collegian noted, adding that Becher found the pop-up model taught her an important lesson about choosing her material carefully and thinking about the experience of her customers.

"The pop-up was a really good experience because it forced you to really think about what you were offering," she said. "I had people that would come up sometimes and say, 'This is actually kind of nice because some stores are so big and overwhelming.' " 

Eventually, however, Becher realized it was time to expand to a more permanent location: "For about four years... I was going around to local breweries and makers markets and building a following. Last summer was when it finally hit, and I was, like, 'OK it's time to not move books every weekend. I just want to have a space. I want to be able to do more. I want to be able to offer more.' " 

A successful $10,000 Kickstarter campaign has helped with the launch. "There were definitely people (who) were excited," Becher said. "It's kind of nice for the people that donate.... It makes them feel more involved in this thing that they're helping to support and create."

Frances Stonor Saunders, a British writer, broadcaster, and documentary filmmaker, died August 31, the Guardian reported. She was 60. Her 1999 book Who Paid the Piper?, an exposé of CIA-funded cultural espionage during the Cold War, "single-handedly established a new branch of sub-history," author Ian McEwan said.

Translated into 17 languages, the book established Saunders, then in her early 30s, as "one of the most exciting nonfiction writers of her generation," the Guardian wrote. "Through trawling declassified documents and countless interviews, Frances revealed how the CIA, under the guise of the Congress for Cultural Freedom, was behind thousands of books, magazines, exhibitions and concerts. She showed that many of the intellectual elite of the time--including George Orwell, Hannah Arendt and Jackson Pollock--had, knowingly or otherwise, become tools of the American secret service."

Saunders began her career in television, and it was her work on a 1995 Channel 4 documentary series about the connection between abstract expressionism and the CIA that set her on the trail toward her first book. 

Who Paid the Piper? won the Royal Historical Society's Gladstone book prize and was followed by Hawkwood (2004), a history of a 14th-century mercenary, and The Woman Who Shot Mussolini (2010), the story of Anglo-Irish aristocrat Violet Gibson, who attempted to assassinate the Italian dictator in 1926.

The Suitcase, Saunders's final book, which grew from a series of essays for the London Review of Books, "was her most personal, tracing her father's journey as a boy escaping Romania to his descent into Alzheimer's in his 50s," the Guardian noted." It won the PEN Ackerley prize for memoir in 2022.

Lisa Allardice, who worked with Saunders when the latter was arts editor of the New Statesman in the early 2000s, wrote in the Guardian: "Frances was made a member of the Royal Society of Literature in 2018.... An intellectual in a dumbed-down world, she was in some ways out of her time. She refused to submit to the tyranny of digital culture and loathed the Smartphone she was given during her illness.

"She was thrilled to know that Who Paid the Piper? is being reissued next month. A new foreword calls it a 'masterpiece of investigative history.' Nearly 30 years after it was first published, the book's warnings about the weaponization of culture for political ends are all too timely."

This past week, Shelf Awareness sent our Kids & YA Pre-Order E-Blast to more than 360,000 of the country's best book readers. The e-blast went to 361,464 customers of 86 participating independent bookstores.

The mailing features four upcoming titles selected by Shelf Awareness editors and three advertised titles, one of which is a sponsored feature. Customers can buy these books via "pre-order" buttons that lead directly to the purchase page for the title on each sending store's website. A key feature is that bookstore partners can easily change title selections to best reflect the tastes of their customers and can customize the mailing with links, images, and promotional copy of their own.

The pre-order e-blasts are sent the second Wednesday of each month; the next will go out on Wednesday, October 14. This is a free service for indies. Stores interested in learning more can visit our program registration page or contact our partner program team via e-mail.

Ad spots are also available in the Kids & YA Pre-Order E-Blast. For more information contact sales@shelf-awareness.com for details.

For a sample of the September Kids & YA Pre-Order E-Blast, see this one from Dudley's Bookshop Cafe, Bend, Ore.

The titles highlighted in the pre-order e-blast were:

Rising Thunder by Neal Shusterman (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)
The First Flame by Lily Berlin Dodd (Farrar, Straus and Giroux Books for Young Readers)
Duckling Gets a Valentine! by Mo Willems Workshop (Union Square Kids)
Jalen Plays It All by Jalen Brunson, illus. by Neely Daggett (Feiwel & Friends)

Books & Books Literary Foundation, Coral Gables, Fla., welcomed Marlon James in conversation with Kei Miller for an evening celebrating the release of James's sixth novel, The Disappearers, hailed by the New York Times as a "masterpiece, the novel of the decade and possibly of the century thus far." Margaret Alvarez, director of marketing for Books & Books, said: "Two remarkable writers. One unforgettable conversation. The kind of literary afternoon that reminds us why we gather: to be changed by the stories we share."

Eight prospective bookstore owners from seven states attended the Business of Bookselling workshop at Story & Song Bookstore Bistro on Amelia Island, Fla., facilitated by the Bookstore Training Group of Paz & Associates. Over the course of three days, they learned best practices for daily bookstore management, from buying and inventory management to links to key book industry sources, staffing, and marketing.

Pictured: (back row from left) Rochelle Harris, Anna Harvey, Hannah Harlee, Kevin Shinick, Mark Kawar, Michael McVey, (front) trainers Mark and Donna Paz Kaufman, Nicolette Hagey, Michelle Gardner, J.L. Mcvey.

Another "Day in the Life" workshop will take place March 21-23, 2027. For more information, visit OpeningaBookstore.com.

The project: "We've been busy crafting Lorax-inspired truffula trees from our recycling--we have grand plans to hang (plant?) them in our big front windows," Newtonville Books in Newton Centre, Mass., posted last Friday. "If you stop by this weekend, we might enlist you to help with the finishing touches: painting the bands on the tree trunks, sculpting the tufts, engineering them to hang in the windows, etc. You never know what kind of project you may stumble upon at the bookstore."

And the results: "Thank you to all who helped craft our window truffula trees. It was a labor of love, and we are thrilled to have them up in our windows. Sit down and read The Lorax and remember our duty to speak for the trees."

In Simon & Schuster's special markets team:

Rylee Mahnesmith has joined as sales coordinator.

Sebastian Ospina has joined as sales coordinator.

Tomorrow:
Today: Colin Kaepernick, author of The Perilous Fight (Legacy Lit, $32.50, 9781538777879).

Also on Today: Justin Ellen, author of Better Than Grandma's: Comfort Desserts We Grew Up Loving (Rolling Pin Press, $34.99, 9798995539704).

The View: Ke Huy Quan, author of Never Say Die: A Memoir (Grand Central, $32.50, 9781538776995).

Tamron Hall: Tisha Campbell, author of The A Word: A Mother’s Journey Through Autism and Love (Amistad, $29.99, 9780063446489). 

Tonight Show: Benny Blanco, author of F*ck Failure (Simon & Schuster, $28, 9781668205242).

At last night's primetime Emmy Awards celebration, book-related productions had a good night, with Remarkably Bright Creatures and Slow Horses picking up some major category hardware. Bookish Emmy winners included: 

Remarkably Bright Creatures, adapted from the novel by Shelby Van Pelt: Outstanding movie; lead actress in a limited or anthology series or movie (Sally Field)

Slow Horses, based the Slough House novels by Mick Herron: Directing for a drama series (Saul Metzstein, "Scars")

Palm Royale, adapted from Juliet McDaniel's novel Mr. & Mrs. American Pie: Choreography for scripted programming; period costumes ("Maxine Is Ready to Single Mingle"); period or fantasy/sci-fi makeup, non-prosthetic ("Maxine Drinks Martinis Now")

The Librarians: Exceptional merit in documentary filmmaking

Love Story, inspired by the book Once Upon a Time by Elizabeth Beller: Casting for a limited or anthology series or movie (Nicole Daniels, Courtney Bright, Jennifer Brooks)

Bridgerton, based on the novel by Julia Quinn: Character voice-over performance (Julie Andrews, "The Waltz"); period or fantasy/sci-fi hairstyling ("The Waltz")

Margo's Got Money Troubles, based on the novel by Rufi Thorpe: Contemporary costumes for a series ("Grudge Match"); contemporary hairstyling ("Buddies"); contemporary makeup, non-prosthetic ("Grudge Match")

The Writers' Trust of Canada unveiled finalists for this year's C$75,000 (about US$53,945) Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for Nonfiction, which honors works published in Canada that demonstrate "a distinctive voice, as well as a persuasive and compelling command of tone, narrative, style and technique." Each finalist receives C$5,000 (about US$3,595). The winner will be named November 10. This year's finalists:

Decadence by Richard Kelly Kemick 
In Trees: An Exploration by Robert Moor 
Black Bear: A Story of Siblinghood and Survival by Trina Moyles 
We Survived the Night: An Indigenous Reckoning by Julian Brave 
Our Wild Familiars: How Animals Are Adapting to Cities and Reshaping the Natural World by Dan Werb 

Pulitzer-winning architecture critic Paul Goldberger (Building Art) takes a fascinating, in-depth approach to seven cities as evolving spaces that reflect historical, political, and architectural ideas, bounded by their geography. His wit, intelligence, and insight may inspire readers-- even lifelong residents--to see these cities in an entirely new light: New York City, Paris, Chicago, Amsterdam, Rome, Singapore, and Los Angeles.

New York and Los Angeles serve as Goldberger's bookends, and he celebrates Manhattan's 1811 grid as "a brilliant exercise in flexibility and permissiveness." Just as the IRT subway line opened the way for Broadway theaters and newspapers such as the New York Times to relocate uptown in Manhattan, so, too, did the mid-20th-century freeways become the catalyst for further development in Los Angeles.

His specific examples point to world events. As Georges-Eugène Haussmann laid out the boulevards of Paris in the 19th century, he "reinvented... a route that was also a destination." Paris has given birth to the fláneur ("urban wanderer"), which encapsulates the Paris experience: "a city in which the act of observing the city embodies the essence of being in it." Consider that by 1870, Paris "had become the most modern, technologically driven city in the world." Yet Rome in 1870 was still ruled by the Vatican, and Italy had only just unified its various kingdoms. Goldberger points out that Rome is "a city of monuments without monumental settings." One stumbles upon the Trevi Fountain or Michelangelo's Piazza del Campidoglio. "The randomness of the city's urban fabric," Goldberger writes, "expresses the essence of Rome more powerfully than even the Colosseum."

Urban planning often reflects a country's view of its citizens. Amsterdam built Grachtengordel, the expanded area of canals and streets that radiates outward "in an unusual and precise geometric pattern of concentric semi-circles," while it was the center of world commerce in the 17th century. Here the rich, the middle class, and the poor lived side by side. Singapore, too, has dedicated public housing, and it's "rigorously integrated" with Chinese, Indian, Malayan, and Western citizens. Lee Kuan Yew, who won the country's first election as a self-governing nation in 1959, established this approach as a reaction against the segregated Singapore under the British. Chicago "is to architecture what Florence is to Renaissance art," Goldberger asserts. A boat ride down the Chicago River allows one to more fully appreciate its post-Great Chicago Fire architecture. He also notes that "there is no other American city whose entire waterfront is public."

With The Imperfect City, Goldberger offers architecture aficionados a robust consideration of how these cities evolved, but also a new angle for history buffs and a pleasure for both world and armchair travelers. --Jennifer M. Brown

Shelf Talker: Paul Goldberger celebrates smart city planning as well as serendipity, as he contemplates how people live in cities, and how those cities and its people shape one another.