Fern & Fable Books, a new and used bookstore with an all-ages inventory, has opened in Ormond Beach, Fla., the Observer reported.

Located at 600 S. Yonge St., Suite 7B, the store welcomed customers for the first time last week. Owner Rayna Dunlop carries books in a wide variety of genres along with an assortment of house plants. Her event plans include storytime sessions, book club meetings, sales for local students, and more.

Rayna Dunlop

The store has an emphasis on accessibility and literacy, with books available at many price points, and Dunlop prominently features banned and challenged books. This fall Fern & Fable will partner with educational nonprofit the Early Learning Coalition of Flagler and Volusia to raise money for Dolly Parton's Imagination Library; Dunlop also intends to support local schools and PTA groups and to donate books to children in the area.

A lifelong reader, Dunlop told the Observer that she decided to open a bookstore of her own last fall. Initially she considered opening a mobile bookstore, but then found the "perfect little spot."

The recent surge of book bans in Florida and around the country also underscored the need to have books that were accessible to all budgets and to advocate for reading and literacy. She added: "that's a big piece of our heart and why we're here."

Dunlop has a ribbon-cutting ceremony scheduled for Thursday, August 31, with the Ormond Beach Chamber of Commerce.

Books for Maui, "a bookish auction for Maui relief efforts," is being held this week, through tomorrow, Friday, August 25, midnight Hawaiian time, on 32auctions.com. Among the nearly 1,000 items that can be bid on are a variety of books, many signed by the authors; virtual school visits by authors; author and literary agent critiques and consultations; Libro.fm audiobook credits; and more. The goal is to raise $100,000; as of this morning just over $90,000 had been raised.

All donations from the silent auction will go to the Hawaii Community Foundation--Maui Strong; Kamehameha Schools--Ho'ōla Maui; the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement--Kāko'o Maui; and the Maui Food Bank.

The organizers noted: "On Tuesday, August 8th, a wildfire swept through Lāhainā on the island of Maui. It quickly consumed hundreds of structures and destroyed families. Although seen by some as a tourist destination, Lāhainā has deep ties to Native Hawaiians as the former capital of the Hawaiian Kingdom and a place of great political power, history, and cultural significance. It is home to a vast number of Native Hawaiians, who are currently in great need and are leading much of the disaster relief efforts. Due to gentrification of Lāhainā, there are clear disparities between residents and we want to support those with familial connections to this 'āina (land)."

In the face of financial struggles, A Seat at the Table Books in Elk Grove, Calif., is inviting community members to support the bookstore on an ongoing basis through a sponsorship program, the Sacramento Bee reported.

The program offers a monthly sponsorship option for $50 per month, as well as annual sponsorships ranging from $200 to $1,000. Sponsorship benefits include receiving curated selections of advanced reader copies, free rentals of the store's conference room, reserved seating at author events, an annual sponsor party, and more. The store officially launched the program with an event Wednesday night.

Store owner Emily Autenrieth told the Bee that she believes "shopping local is a form of activism," and she and her team hope the community rallies around the store. "We live here and our kids go to school here. We are a member of the community, as well as trying to lead change in the community. We know this community in a way that a corporation does not."

A Seat at the Table, which debuted as an online and pop-up store, opened a bricks-and-mortar store in 2021. It "features a cafe and espresso bar, a conference room, a play area for kids and a quiet room for people with sensory needs or nursing mothers," the Bee noted. Its events schedule includes book clubs, a Lego Club, and parental support groups, and a number of community organizations meet at the bookstore.

Stephen Williamson, long-time commission sales representative in New England, has retired, effective August 1.

Julie Schaper, v-p, IPS-Consortium, publisher services administration, wrote to Consortium's publishers: "It is with regret that we announce the immediate retirement of Stephen Williamson of New England Book Reps. Stephen was foundational to Consortium joining just one year after we opened our doors in 1985.

"In the early years he was Consortium's sales manager, commuting from his Boston area home to the Twin Cities, and handling all retail and wholesale accounts for the company. He was also on Consortium's board of directors until the board was dissolved in 2005.

"In the early 1990s, he founded the rep group Wilson/Williamson Associates with Stephen Wilson, covering sales from Massachusetts to Maine. After Stephen Wilson retired, he continued repping under the New England Book Reps banner, later partnering with the Rovers Group until those principals retired and he continued as a sole proprietor.

"Throughout that entire time Stephen has been a steady presence and a quiet yet relentless champion for Consortium, our publishers and colleagues.

"We will miss his wry sense of humor, his passion for transgressive literature and his pithy commentary on the state of the publishing industry. Please join me in thanking Stephen for all he has contributed to Consortium over the last 37 years and wishing him all the best as he enters into retirement."

Williamson was also a long-time officer of BPRNE, Book Publishers Representatives of New England.

With his retirement, Parson Weems Publisher Services is now representing Consortium Book Sales and Distribution, the University of Minnesota Press, and the State University of New York Press, in New England.

City Lit Books, Chicago, Ill., shared this sweet bookstore proposal:

"We are so thrilled for David and Alexa! 💍 What better day to propose to your love than on #bookstoreromanceday in an actual bookstore, with a book jacket that you created? Jacket art inspired by @leftbankbooks and rom-coms featuring dogs!

Congratulations you two! We wish you a lifetime of happiness! Thank you for writing us into your story!❤️"

A video from Russell Books, Victoria, B.C., Canada, shows off "An accidentally Wes Anderson day over here on Fort Street!📚✨"

Nicole Sklitsis has joined Blackstone Publishing as publicist.

Last Summer in Outer Space by Joshua S. Levy (Carolrhoda Books).

Tomorrow:
Good Morning America: Alli Worthington, author of Remaining You While Raising Them: The Secret Art of Confident Motherhood (Zondervan, $18.99, 9780310358794).

The View repeat: Rep. Will Hurd, author of American Reboot: An Idealist's Guide to Getting Big Things Done (Simon & Schuster, $17.99, 9781982160777).

Book TV airs on C-Span 2 this weekend from 8 a.m. Saturday to 8 a.m. Monday and focuses on political and historical books as well as the book industry. The following are highlights for this coming weekend. For more information, go to Book TV's website.

Saturday, August 26
6:25 p.m. Jonathan Eig, author of King: A Life (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, $35, ‎9780374279295). (Re-airs Sunday at 6:10 a.m.)

Sunday, August 27
8 a.m. Josh Nussbaum, author of Undelivered: The Never-Heard Speeches That Would Have Rewritten History (Flatiron, $19.99, 9781250245670). (Re-airs Sunday at 8 p.m.)

8:40 a.m. David Neiwert, author of The Age of Insurrection: The Radical Right's Assault on American Democracy (Melville House, $39.99, 9781685890360). (Re-airs Sunday at 8:40 p.m.)

2 p.m. Blair Kelley, author of Black Folk: The Roots of the Black Working Class (Liveright, $30, 9781631496554), at the Rofhiwa Book Café in Durham, N.C.

3:55 p.m. Kristin Hass, author of Blunt Instruments: Recognizing Racist Cultural Infrastructure in Memorials, Museums, and Patriotic Practices (Beacon Press, $25.95,‎ 9780807006719), at Literati Bookstore in Ann Arbor, Mich.

4:40 p.m. Rachel Nuwer, author of I Feel Love: MDMA and the Quest for Connection in a Fractured World (Bloomsbury, $28.99, 9781635579574), at Garden District Bookshop in New Orleans, La.

5:25 p.m. Landon Jones, author of Celebrity Nation: How America Evolved into a Culture of Fans and Followers (Beacon Press, $26.95, 9780807065655), at Politics and Prose Bookstore in Washington, D.C.

6:25 p.m. Simon Winchester, author of Knowing What We Know: The Transmission of Knowledge: From Ancient Wisdom to Modern Magic (‎Harper, $35, 9780063142886), at Lemuria Books in Jackson, Miss.

7:30 p.m. Nadine Strossen, author of Hate: Why We Should Resist It With Free Speech, Not Censorship (Oxford University Press, $16.95, 9780190089009).

Selected new titles appearing next August 29:

Learned by Heart by Emma Donoghue (Little, Brown, $28, 9780316564434) follows two girls in love at a 19th century boarding school.

A Chateau Under Siege by Martin Walker (Knopf, $28, 9780593319819) is book 16 in the Bruno, Chief of Police mystery series.

The Discreet Charm of the Big Bad Wolf by Alexander McCall Smith (Pantheon, $28, 9780593700839) is the fourth book with Swedish detective Ulf Varg.

The Girl in the Eagle's Talons: A Lisbeth Salander Novel by Karin Smirnoff, trans. by Sarah Death (Knopf, $29, 9780593536698) posthumously continues Stieg Larsson's Millennium series.

The Blue Zones Secrets for Living Longer: Lessons From the Healthiest Places on Earth by Dan Buettner (National Geographic, $32.50, 9781426223471) explores areas where people live longer.

Interstellar: The Search for Extraterrestrial Life and Our Future in the Stars by Avi Loeb (Mariner, $28.99, 9780063250871) chronicles the latest searches for non-human intelligence.

The German Baking Book: Cakes, Tarts, Breads, and More from the Black Forest and Beyond by Jurgen Krauss (Weldon Owen, $35, 9798886740615) is written by a contestant on the Great British Baking Show.

The Brothers Hawthorne by Jennifer Lynn Barnes (Little, Brown, $19.99, 9780316480772) is a standalone novel connected to the Inheritance Games trilogy.

Reign by Katherine McGee (Random House, $19.99, 9780593429747) is the fourth and final book in the American Royals series.

Paperbacks:
The Coworker by Freida McFadden (Poisoned Pen Press, $17.99, 9781728296203).

My Roommate Is a Vampire by Jenna Levine (Berkley, $17, 9780593548912).

Mrs. Jeffries Aims to Win by Emily Brightwell (Berkley, $16.99, 9780593101117).

Longevity for Dogs: A Holistic, Individualized Approach to Helping Your Canine Companion Live Longer and Healthier by Gary Richter (Hay House, $17.99, 9781401972790).

From last week's Indie bestseller lists, available at IndieBound.org, here are the recommended titles, which are also Indie Next Great Reads:

Hardcover
Time's Mouth: A Novel by Edan Lepucki (Counterpoint, $28, 9781640095724). "The premise of Time's Mouth--what would you do if you could travel back in time to revisit old memories?--may be speculative, but the characters are beautifully, frustratingly real as they struggle to be good and create lives of their own." --Lizzy Rolando, Salmonberry Books, Port Orchard, Wash.

Camp Damascus: A Novel by Chuck Tingle (Tor Nightfire, $25.99, 9781250874627). "Something as horrible as a gay conversion camp is made even more terrifying in this sinister novel! With the claustrophobia and paranoia of Rosemary's Baby and The Stepford Wives, I will recommend this book to every horror lover!" --Brandy Herr, Arts & Letters Bookstore, Granbury, Tex.

Paperback
Now Is Not the Time to Panic: A Novel by Kevin Wilson (Ecco, $18.99, 9780062913517). "Now Is Not the Time to Panic is a tender coming-of-age novel on the power of art, the short-lived innocence of adolescence, and the nostalgia of first loves. Wilson's beautiful, funny, sad novel is one that I'll recommend again and again." --Alex Brubaker, Midtown Scholar Bookstore, Harrisburg, Pa.

For Ages 4 to 8
I Will Read to You by Gideon Sterer, illus. by Charles Santoso (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, $18.99, 9780316592611). "Sterer's sweet ode to unconditional love features a brave child who reminds us of the power of empathy. I Will Read to You is more than a new spooky favorite for quieting monsters--it's a celebration of storytelling and a bedtime classic."  --Cristina Iannarino, Books on the Square, Providence, R.I.

For Ages 8 to 12
Saving Chupie by Amparo Ortiz, illus. by Ronnie Vazquez (HarperAlley, $19.99, 9780062950284). "What would you do if you didn't believe in monsters, then came across a chupacabra? What if that chupacabra was sweet like a puppy? Violeta must save Chupie and show everyone that not all creatures are monstrous in this heartfelt graphic novel." --Jen Steele, Boswell Book Company, Milwaukee, Wis.

For Teen Readers
Guardians of Dawn: Zhara by S. Jae-Jones (Wednesday Books, $20, 9781250191427). "Jones delivers in the most magical way a shimmering retelling of Cinderella with Sailor Moon vibes--if that didn't make you drop everything to read it, I've got three words for you: You will laugh." --Vania Stoyanova, Brave + Kind Bookshop, Decatur, Ga.

[Many thanks to IndieBound and the ABA!]

In House Gone Quiet, a vivacious collection of 10 short stories, debut author Kelsey Norris contemplates loss, violence, and cultural clashes in settings that include the contemporary South and dystopian landscapes. With "The Sound of Women Waiting," the collection opens on a postwar scene where women--the spoils--are carried across the border in government trucks, "swaying like one weeping mass of sea grass." News and rumors spread of them enacting revenge on their new husbands. "Salt," likewise, employs a shifting perspective to ponder women's power in dystopian states. Alleen's spells are thought to ease death or safeguard pregnancies, but even she won't make the rains come to the dusty salt pan.

Two highlights, "Decency Rule" and "Such Great Height and Consequence," set up playful speculative scenarios. In the former, the mayor decrees that no one is to wear clothes anymore, and society splits into factions: those who adhere to the nudity order and those who resist. Norris imagines that the law finds backing from unexpected quarters. In the latter story, the town of Aberdeen removes a Confederate statue and gives people a chance to take a turn occupying the empty pedestal. It comes to be seen as a form of volunteering, or even a civic duty, and attracts all manner of amusing performances and confessions.

"Certain Truths and Miracles" contrasts superstitious and scientific understandings of underwater lights observed off a tropical island. "Air Shifts" reveals the compassionate connections made by the hosts of two radio shows. In "Choose Bliss," a divorcee meets a professor who's cynical about her self-care addiction. "Stitch," another standout, is about former runners in a makeshift support group for "finder's guilt" over discovering dead bodies. A TV reporter tries to get them to enact a closure they don't feel. Great-aunt MaBeulah's visit with a suitcase full of down-home foods is the basis of "Sentries." "Go Way Back" considers a biracial woman in the Deep South meeting her boyfriend's parents. This final story is the most audacious: it's told in the second person, and the plot proceeds backward to reveal ambivalence about whether the relationship will last.

The sheer variety of genres, settings, and subjects means that the collection resembles a tasting menu--a showcase of the range of this debut writer. It will be exciting to watch her talent develop. This is perfect for fans of Danielle Evans. --Rebecca Foster, freelance reviewer, proofreader and blogger at Bookish Beck

Shelf Talker: Kelsey Norris's enticingly varied debut collection of 10 stories moves between the contemporary South and dystopian landscapes to consider themes of guilt, loss, racism, and women's power.