Independent Bookstore Day, an annual a celebration of local, independent bookshops, is coming up on April 29, and Upshur Street Books is all in, with lots of events, discounts and more. Sounds like a lot of fun!
Here’s more about the event, which is running 10am-10pm.
The goal is to celebrate everything that is wonderful about independent bookstores: quirky, diverse, personalized, kinda nerdy, and of course connected to the community and to the literary world.
Here are some of the activities planned:
- Kids games: an activity area set up for kids to do puzzles and draw their favorite characters
- Bookish prizes: Upshur Books swag and books as prizes for social media posts tagged @bookstoreday & @UpshurStBooks
- Blind Date with a Book: at the register, we’ll have wrapped books with brief descriptions on them. With a purchase, you can take a look and bring one home for a free literary surprise
- Indie Get Lit: next door at Petworth Citizen’s Reading Room we have an ongoing series of cocktails-inspired-by-literature, and this Saturday, all the books will be from our favorite indie presses
- Surprise discounts: each hour of the day, we will discount a different genre
- Special displays: some of our favorite authors are sending us a list of the three books that most influenced them, and these will be on display. Our staff will each have shelves of their must-reads
- IBD banner: in the front of the store, we’ll have a banner with markers for customers to write a story about Upshur Street Books or share their favorite thing about indie bookstores
Finally, the store will be decked out with balloons and stocked with tasty treats (pastries, literary themed snacks, and coffee). It will be a great time from 10am to 10pm.
