In the countdown to Labor Day and the unofficial end of summer, bookstores were busy: from Politics and Prose, which will handle book sales for this year's Library of Congress National Book Festival in the nation's capital this weekend, to Books-A-Million, which held a ribbon cutting for its newest store in West Virginia.
Several independent booksellers were honored this week. Books & Books owner Mitchell Kaplan was asked to reveal this year's National Book Award finalists on NPR's Morning Edition later this fall. And The Magic Tree Bookstore received a proclamation from its town after it received a James Patterson grant.
Openings
2014 Library of Congress National Book Festival: The 14th annual book festival will take place at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C., with an independent bookstore handling book sales for the first time, Politics and Prose.
BAM Ribbon Cutting in Beckley: The West Virginia bookstore in the Cranberry Creek Shopping Center is officially open for business.
Transitions
Lyon Books in Chico for Sale: After 11 years, founder Heather Lyon wants to take a break from retail.
Internationalist Bookstore on the Move: The nonprofit bookstore and community center will move from Chapel Hill to Carrboro, N.C., at the end of September.
Prairie Books in Mount Horeb to Close: Owner John Stowe, who is nearing 70, will close the Wisconsin store if he can’t find a buyer by the fall.
Brand Bookshop Closing in Glendale, Calif.: The 29-year-old used bookstore is closing because of the health of 86-year-old owner Jerome Joseph.
Kudos
Magic Tree Bookstore Receives Proclamation: The town of Oak Park, Ill., honored the indie bookseller for hosting children’s authors and illustrators after it received a grant from author James Patterson.
Books & Books Owner to Announce National Book Award Finalists: Mitchell Kaplan, who received a National Book Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award in 2011, will make the announcement on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Indies Thrive in North Carolina’s Triangle: New bookstores continue to open in Raleigh-Durham like 300 sq. ft. So & So Books, while older stores like 30-year-old Quail Ridge successfully change hands.
Hitting the Books
Recent Grad Starts Canadian Book Swap Website: Gabrielle Jacques put her courses in management at Concordia University to use with the launch of SwapMyBooks.ca.
Tax-free Textbooks Boost Sales at NCSU Bookstore: By creating its own tax-free holiday and paying the tax on textbooks during the month of July, the North Carolina bookstore saw sales rise.
Paying in Bitcoins: Simon Fraser University bookstore in Metro Vancouver will begin accepting payment in Bitcoins for textbooks and other items this fall.
Crowdfunding
Laurel Book Store Launches Indiegogo Campaign: To help pay for its upcoming move to a larger space, Laurel Book Store in Oakland, Calif., hopes to raise $50,000.
Upshur Street Books in DC: Paul Rupert, who is behind several Washington businesses, including this new bookstore slated to open in the fall, turned to Kickstarter for $17,000.
