April 25th is Independent Bookstore Day, and many of us readers honor and celebrate it by making pilgrimages to our favorite local shops to add more books to our already teetering TBRs.
And you know what? A day devoted to books, bookstores and booksellers, somehow … just got better.
The reason? Dogs.
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But before we get to the pups, have you made your plans for IBD: The store(s) you want to visit, the books you’ll be shopping for, the T-shirts, bookmarks, totes and merch you’ll be carrying out of the store?
If not, check out the map I put together of more than 90 independent bookstores from Santa Barbara to San Diego. Start planning now.
OK, so last weekend at the LA Times Festival of Books, I spoke with Lauren Salerno, the owner of The Undead Bookshop, about her plans for Independent Bookstore Day. And these plans involve adoptable dogs.
The Undead Bookshop is a traveling bookstore specializing in horror, sci-fi and fantasy, and it pops up all over Los Angeles and the surrounding areas, including Pasadena, Whittier, Long Beach, Highland Park and more.
“We will basically go anywhere, honestly,” laughs Salerno. “We just like to talk about books. We like to be around people who are excited about books.”
SEE ALSO: Where’s the nearest bookstore? See our map of 90 SoCal bookshops
The six-month-old store isn’t a bookstore on wheels like The Fleuria, Orphan Books or All Booked Up.
“We move around; we just haul everything. We set up the shelves, we set up the tables, we put the books on the shelves and haul everything back out when we’re done,” says Salerno, a former librarian just like the folks at Black Cat Fables in Monrovia.
So, I can hear you through the computer: WHAT ABOUT THE DOGS, ERIK?
“April 25th is Independent Bookstore Day across the nation, and as a part of that, we’re also participating by popping up at Pup Culture Dog Rescue in Pasadena,” says Salerno.
“We’re going to have all of the adoptable pets coming over, so people can come pet some puppies. We’ll have our whole bookstore set up so you can shop for books. We’ll have a coffee vendor, some tarot readers, some signing authors. So it’s gonna be a really fun afternoon from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.”
And to catch up with the Undead Bookshop in the future, check out its schedule online to find one of the shop’s upcoming events.
“We’re kooky, we’re a little weird,” says Salerno. “I mean, I think everyone’s a little bit weird at heart. Everybody has a little curiosity they would like to satiate, and books are the best way to do it.”
SEE ALSO: Get book recommendations and stories about bestsellers and authors in our book section
There are plenty of other Independent Bookstore Day events to check out, and even another map, too! So whether you fancy morning mimosas in Manhattan Beach or a bookstore crawl across the San Gabriel Valley, find something that sounds good to you.
Also, once again, Libro.fm is sponsoring its Golden Ticket event with more than 1,500 golden tickets—each good for 12 free Libro.fm audiobooks— hidden in participating bookstores (including around Southern California). And they are having a sale on audiobooks. Go to libro.fm/ibd for more info.
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Thanks, as always, for reading!
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