Two years spent in pandemic-land has resulted in seismic shifts across the industry. Expectations have become harder to manage. Traditional timelines and schedules have gone awry. Supply chain issues have been rampant. Retail has been unpredictable. Press coverage has lagged. With my seventh novel, Small World, set to release from Dutton in January, I really didn’t know what to expect come launch time. The one thing I knew for sure was that I wouldn’t be doing my usual national in-person tour—and that made me sad. The book business has always been about people for me. But this time around, it just wasn’t in the cards.
That is until my dear friend, and the greatest book rep in the history of publishing, Kurtis Lowe of Book Travelers West, called me with a proposition. Kurtis offered to taxi me all over Washington State to indie booksellers for (masked and vaxxed) stock signings of Small World. He would work with my publicist, Emily Canders at Dutton, to iron out the details. What would I do? Show up and talk Kurtis’s ear off.
I pointed out that this was a ridiculously generous offer—and one that seemed to present very little upside for him—but Kurtis was adamant. These are my people, he told me. How could I argue with that?
All told, we’d visit 24 stores in three days, covering over 500 miles. We kicked off with an event at my hometown bookstore, Eagle Harbor Books on Bainbridge Island. After a rousing evening attended by friends and family, Kurtis insisted on hosting me at his place in West Seattle so we could get an early start the following morning.
Kurtis had breakfast and coffee waiting. Caffeinated and ready to see our people, we hit the road, starting at Kurtis’s West Seattle local, Paper Boat Books, where we were greeted by Eric and Desirae Judy in their beautiful little space. I could talk books and music with these two all day long. Next up, was Third Place Books in Seward Park, a beautiful retail space soon adding a brew pub and eatery; Kim Hooyboer was there to greet us. After a sneak peek at the new pub, we were off to Island Books on Mercer Island, where Laurie Raisys awaited us. Next, we were off to see James Crossley at Madison Books in Madison Park, a tiny, gorgeous, and meticulously curated space. After a great visit, we were off to Elliot Bay Book Company on Capitol Hill, where Holly Myers, who has been at EBBC since 1988, gifted me a pen that has changed my life—a Signo Uni-ball Impact 207. Never have I knocked out 150 signatures so effortlessly!
From there we were off to University Bookstore for a scheduled signing, hosted by Grace Rajendran and general manager Pam Cady, where a handful of masked stalwarts showed up to have their books personalized. Next, we visited Queen Anne Book Co., where we were greeted by the whole crew, before proceeding to Magnolia Bookstore, then Secret Garden Books in Ballard—a special stop because Mary Elliott is a superfan. In addition to stock, Mary brought her entire personal Evison collection, and I had the pleasure of personalizing all seven of them!
Then we were off to another great neighborhood store, Phinney Books. Owner Tom Nissley is an old friend and curates a beautiful store. After a pleasant stop at Ravenna Third Place, we made it to Edmonds Bookshop, where we met new owner Michelle Bear. We ended the first leg of our tour with an event at Third Place Books in Lake Forest Park, hosted by my longtime pal, owner Robert Sindelar.
Leg two started in Port Angeles at Port Book and News the following morning, where, alas, we missed owners Alan and Cindy but signed a ton of stock. We made the hour drive to Imprint Bookstore in Port Townsend, where we met new owner Samantha Ladwig. Then, a ferry ride to Whidbey Island for a stop at the lovely Moonraker Books, before visiting two all-time favorite book people, Meg and Brad Olson at The Kingfisher. After a brief stop at the Book Rack, we arrived surprisingly fresh at my home away from home, Village Books in Bellingham, for a live event hosted by Claire McElroy-Chesson.
The following morning, we began the journey back to Port Angeles, but not before drop-ins at Invitation Bookshop in Gig Harbor, Ballast Books in Bremerton, and Liberty Bay Books in Poulsbo. I arrived home late in the afternoon, exhausted but strangely refreshed. Ah, what a lovely little taste of normalcy our whirlwind tour proved to be. Actual people! Stores!
While the pandemic has been tough on all of us, it’s been particularly challenging for indie bookstores, with unforeseen closings, staffing issues, supply chain snafus, and a general lack of clarity regarding the future. Thus, I encourage all of you to mask up and drop in on your local indie bookstores and spend some cash!
Jonathan Evison is the author of Lawn Boy, Legends of the North Cascades, and, most recently, Small World.
