In This Issue

Tomorrow is the 13th annual Independent Bookstore Day, so it's a perfect time to celebrate local bookstores, even the ones that aren't participating. I could wax poetic about my passion for these booksellers, and the years I spent on the sales floor myself, but I think Booker Prize-winning novelist George Saunders put it best: "I don't think I'd have a career if not for indie bookstores--they gave me so much support in those early days, especially through employee recommendations and the chance to come to the store and read. I think the curation aspect is so vital--to have someone who loves books and knows them and is alert to related titles a given customer might like. It's concierge guidance, really, and in the most important aspect of a person's life, i.e., how they go about growing."