This Saturday, April 30, is Canadian Independent Bookstore Day — an opportunity to celebrate the indie bookstores in your community and the passionate booksellers that keep them running.
Earlier this week we spoke to the owners of Type Books and Mabel’s Fables, two of our favourite bookstores in Toronto, about the importance of independent bookstores and falling in love with reading.
We also wanted to hear from some local authors! Farzana Doctor, Bryn Turnbull and Carrianne Leung expressed their admiration for independent bookstores and why they are pillars for the community.
Farzana Doctor
Farzana Doctor is an award-winning Canadian author of four novels. Her debut poetry collection, You Still Look The Same, will be released in May.
In your opinion, why are independent bookstores important? What do they bring to a community?
As an author I am indebted to indie bookstore staff—they’ve hosted my launches, invited me to sign books, and have connected readers to my books. Indie bookstores don’t just focus on bestsellers and books from large presses, but champion marginalized writers and those publishing with smaller presses.
Describe the feeling you have when you walk into an independent bookstore.
I feel instant calm when I walk into an indie bookstore, as well as a sense of anticipation for a new experience. It’s like going on a mini-vacation.
Bryn Turnbull
Bryn Turnbull is a historical fiction writer and the author of The Woman Before Wallis and The Last Grand Duchess.
In your opinion, why are independent bookstores important? What do they bring to a community?
Independent bookstores are driven by the passion of their staff and community of readers, and that passion is felt from the moment you walk in the door. There’s something wonderful about going into an independent bookstore and finding titles that are off the beaten path, so to speak — those that are on the front table not because the sales algorithm says they should be, but because the person on the other side of the cash register wanted to share it with their fellow readers.
Describe the feeling you have when you walk into an independent bookstore.
When I walk into an independent bookstore, my favourite thing to do is to find that one little nod that make the experience they offer entirely unique. It might be the model planes they’ve hung from the ceiling in the travel section, perhaps, or the resident store cat that watches over all transactions with an air of complete superiority.
One time, it was the owner’s cups of cold tea that he’d absent-mindedly left on the shelves after being pulled away in the middle of a task to help a customer; another, it was the out-of-tune grand piano on the second floor. I must have sat there, in the used-book section for the better part of an hour, listening as a customer played a truly beautiful rendition of a Beethoven sonata. Those are the moments that make independent bookshops truly special: those little touches that make you feel like you’ve come home.
Carrianne Leung
Carrianne Leung is a fiction writer and educator. She is the author of The Wondrous Woo and That Time I Loved You.
In your opinion, why are independent bookstores important? What do they bring to a community?
Independent bookshops are so important in building literary culture and giving books life. They champion titles that may not be included or have a short cycle at big box stores. Indies stay committed to their local communities, forming relationships with readers, schools, and organizations and acting as a bridge to resources, books and writers. They feed, excite, and foster intellectual, artistic and social spaces.
Describe the feeling you have when you walk into an independent bookstore.
When I enter an independent bookshop, I walk into a unique space where I know the staff are knowledgeable and enthusiastic about books. I know that this is not a mere monetary transaction. It is a conversation, an exchange of ideas, the building of community in a well-curated space. Many indies offer excellent programming and a slate of events that showcase writers, inviting an engagement beyond what is between the covers.
Canadian Independent Bookstore Day (#CIBD2022) is on Saturday, April 30. Join readers, writers, illustrators, publishers, and other industry supporters to celebrate indie bookstores across Canada. For more info and event listings, head to the CIBD site.
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