Posted By Nicki Leone,
Wednesday, December 14, 2022
Everybody's New Year's resolution should be to read more books and discover great new authors!
Avid readers can start here, with the five new books on Read This Next! for January, 2023.
Read This Next! books are featured in The Southern Bookseller Review and SIBA newsletter, and on SIBA's social media accounts, highlighting the bookseller reviews for each title. Each month's list showcases not only the books
receiving the most interesting buzz, but also the wide range of reading championed by SIBA booksellers.
Age of Vice by
Deepti Kapoor Epic in scope, but intimate in its presentation of its characters. It’s a master-class in addressing the best and worst aspects of human nature and it does so through the growth and disintegration of the Wadia family and those in service to them. Kapoor’s writing is sharp, quick, and intense… and it makes this full-on saga an addictively dynamic read. – Stuart McCommon from Novel in Memphis, TN
Begin Again by
Emma Lord Hands down one of my favorite YA authors, Emma Lord delivers a story with equal emphasis on family relationships, friendships, and new romances. I will read anything Emma Lord writes! –Kate Storhoff, Bookmarks in
Winston-Salem, NC
Drinking Games by
Sarah Levy I loved Sarah’s very frank and honest recount of her relationship with alcohol. Her self aware and candid writing will be a much needed voice for many who are re-considering the way we look at drinking as a culture. It is also a fantastic memoir about making hard changes for a better life. –Laura Taylor from Oxford Exchange in Tampa, FL
How to Sell a Haunted House by
Grady Hendrix This was a “can’t put down” book for me. Nothing scares me more than creepy dolls. Hendrix always does a fantastic job of writing about the dynamics of southern families. Can’t live with ‘em, Can’t live without ‘em! –Kathy Clemmons from Sundog Books in Santa Rosa Beach, FL
Moonrise Over New Jessup by
Jamila Minnicks Romantic love, familial love, and the love of place play out against the background of late 1950s - early 1960s civil rights era. A beautifully written exploration of just some of the variety of opinions within the civil rights era Black community on freedom, equality, and safety. –Ginger Kautz from Quail Ridge Books in Raleigh, NC
Current Read This Next! books and what SIBA booksellers have to say about them can always be found at The Southern Bookseller Review
Posted By Robin Wood,
Wednesday, December 14, 2022
by Robin Wood, Social Media Coordinator
The winter holiday season is always hectic, but also hopefully joyful, busy with sharing books and products we love with our customers and celebrating indie bookstores as vibrant, unique gathering spaces. It’s also a chance to
show our stores off on social media.
At SIBA, we’ve loved seeing these glimpses of stores and communities. At Novelette Booksellers in Nashville, TN, a whimsical display celebrates snowy weather. At Pressed LKLD in Lakeland, FL, the vibe is cozy and festive. Check
out their recent Instagram reel for Small Business Saturday.
At Books & Books @ The Studios in Key West, FL, they’re getting ready for Hanukkah.
At Burke’s Book Store in Memphis, TN, Brave + Kind Bookshop in Decatur, GA, Page 158 Books, in Wake Forest, NC, San Marco Books in Jacksonville, FL, The Bookshelf in Thomasville, GA, and E. Shaver Bookseller in Savannah, GA,
it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas.
The Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, VA created a dynamic series for their year-end staff picks, Righton Books, in Saint Simons Island, GA shared a photo from a book club holiday get together, and Read It Again Books in Suwanee, GA
created a fun display of local gift ideas.
Share your social media with us by using #SIBAbooksellers and mentioning us @siba_books on Instagram (all the handles on the pictures are Instagram), or @SouthernIndependentBooksellersAlliance on Facebook. We will reshare some of your
posts on SIBA’s social media or on the customer-facing Southern Bookseller Review social media (@southernbooksellerreview on Instagram and @readermeetwriter on Facebook).
Posted By Nicki Leone,
Wednesday, December 14, 2022
by Phil Wall
SIBA holds a special place in my heart. The 2013 convention in New Orleans served as the only stop for my mom on her debut memoir’s book tour. The cancer she wrote about had returned, and as Dad tells it, Mom hit the convention
center floor with her walker and “stole the show.”
Mom was confined to her bed on the day her book was published in March of 2014. She died in December of that year—never once speaking to readers about her work. It was heartbreaking. Would her words and her dream die too?
In an
unexpected and inspirational twist, we learned that some independent booksellers were open to having my dad present in her stead. Dad’s “mini” book tour, as he calls it, ended up taking him to over 225 events
in 30 states.
I’m a filmmaker, and joined Dad in order to make short promotional videos on the book for social media. But, I began to notice something powerful happening.
Dad wasn’t talking about the book. He was using Mom’s words to tell
his love story and share his grief. People responded by sharing their own stories, and I was floored by how much the exchange helped me. So, my own “mini” project turned into a feature documentary film aimed at capturing
the experience, and sparking meaningful conversation on loss and mourning.
I do not have words to express my gratitude and affection for the independent bookstore—especially our SIBA friends. They are at the center of their communities, and offer a space where essential discussions can sneak up on us. We
returned to SIBA in 2017, where Dad presented (again) Mister Owita’s Guide to Gardening written by Carol Wall. I was there to film it, and it is a nice bookend to the documentary.
The film, entitled The Book Keepers, had a fantastic festival and nationwide theatrical run. It is now available on digital and DVD. Our book tour is now a film tour, but the messages of embracing life’s afflictions
and “graciously slipping into Plan B” remain the throughline. Our lives are full, and we are growing and grateful.
Visit www.bookkeepers.movie to learn more about Mom’s book, my film, and booking
an event. We’d love to support your store and community.
Phil Wall is an award-winning filmmaker. He wrote, produced, filmed, directed and edited “The Book Keepers,” which is his third feature documentary. He lives in Brooklyn, NY, where he works on independent and commercial
narrative content.
Posted By Nicki Leone,
Wednesday, December 14, 2022
Revisiting your DEI Statement
In the wake of George Floyd's murder in 2020 and the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement, many business and organizations adopted Diversity statements to show their solidarity with the grass roots movement advocating for change
and also as a promise the enact change within.
As the year comes to a close, it may be the time to ask, have we kept that promise?
Organizations should periodically re-examine their Diversity Statements and policies to ensure they meet their goals. DEI Statements inform policy and provide guidance, so they will evolve with the company while being a compass that
always points towards equity.
A DEI Statement can vary widely, but they usually include some or all of the following:
A statement of the company’s mission
An explanation of how DEI connects to that mission
A best practice when writing your organization's DEI statement is to make it specific to your company, rather than generic and abstract. Use a strong headline, positive language, and include specific examples of how the organization
meets the goals stated in its mission.
At its core, a Diversity Statement is supposed to inspire action and create a sense of community within your organization. If your bookstore's DEI statement was originally adopted from a template, or modeled on another store or organization,
it is worth taking another look at it and making it something that truly represents your store and your values.
Posted By Nicki Leone,
Wednesday, December 14, 2022
Looking ahead to 2023:
In our year-end recap above, SIBA noted that one of the most popular additions to SBR this year was the monthly "special edition" dedicated to a theme. (This year's October SBR was dedicated to Scary Stories)
Here is the thematic schedule for the coming year:
January: Memoir & Personal Stories February: Black History Month March: Women's Voices April: Poetry May: Stories of Nature & the Environment June: Pride July: Travel Stories and Journeys August:
The Harvest
September: Hispanic Heritage Month October: Spooky Tales November: Holiday Stories
Each special edition the standard SBR format and includes at least six books, each reviewed by a SIBA bookseller. Publishers interested in having books included in a specific issue should contact Linda-Marie at lindamarie@sibaweb.com.
SIBA welcomes all bookstore owners to get together virtually on Monday, January 9 from 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm to share, ask questions, and wonder about bookselling in the new year. We will be joined by our NAIBA friends. This is open only to owners of current SIBA members. Registration is free. Space is limited.
The Owners Retreat will be hosted virtually on Zoom, but SIBA booksellers should register here. All attendees will receive their Zoom links the week before the event.
by Jessica Dorman, Director of Publications, The Historic New Orleans Collection
What a treat it was, earlier this fall, to welcome SIBA to The Historic New Orleans Collection—a chance to show off our history galleries and our history books. Last week, we were honored by another visitor: French President Emmanuel Macron, who toured our museum as part of his official state visit to the US. After viewing artifacts illustrating the historic ties between France and Louisiana—including a 17th-
century manuscript establishing the French colony and diplomatic documents securing the Louisiana Purchase—President Macron met with Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards to discuss environmental and educational initiatives. History in the making, right here in our galleries
Our editorial team had a chance to hunker down with the French press corps that accompanied the president on his travels to Washington, DC, and Louisiana. We created a “book nook” as a gesture of cross-cultural friendship: a place for the journalists to relax, file their stories, browse our publications, and take home a souvenir. Among the titles that flew off the shelves were New Orleans: The Founding Era, a bilingual catalog published in 2018 on the occasion of our city’s 300th birthday; Richard Sexton’s luscious photographic survey of French Caribbean architecture, Creole World; and Afro-Creole Poetry in French from Louisiana’s Radical Civil War–Era Newspapers, familiar to SIBA audiences through our VIndie-award-winning poetry video. Several of the French journalists mentioned that the books would make perfect gifts for their families. In this holiday season, we love to think of THNOC books traveling far and wide, bringing with them tidings of joy.
SIBA is grateful to all our industry and author friends who support our booksellers year round, through participation in our programming, direct support of stores, and sponsoring of scholarships to fund bookseller travel to in-person events. Your generosity means so much to SIBA booksellers!
We want to bring special attention to the sponsors of several specific scholarships and awards for their generosity in 2022. Because of you, SIBA was able to provide assistance to every bookseller who asked for support to attend one of our events. Attending a SIBA event can be life-changing; professional development, networking opportunities, mentoring, and friendships happen and deepen. You truly made a difference!
Event Sponsorships: Thank you to Scholastic, Sourcebooks, HarperCollins, Penguin Random House, Blackstone, Ingram, Binc, Shelf Awareness, and Publishers Weekly for supporting booksellers through event sponsorships in Winston-Salem, NC and New Orleans, LA, and through our partnership with NAIBA in New Voices New Rooms . Your funding supported multiple booksellers with lodging and travel needs.
The Wanda Jewell Scholarship Fund for Bookseller Professional Development: Created in 2022 in honor of our much-beloved former Executive Director, this scholarship is funded by authors, and provides financial support for bookseller professional development through education and networking at in-person SIBA-sponsored events. Friends & Fiction (NYT-bestselling authors Patti Callahan Henry, Mary Kay Andrews, Kristy Woodson Harvey and Kristin Harmel) stepped forward to be this year’s author supporters and we thank them so much! Their funding helped support booksellers attending our gathering in Winston-Salem, NC, and in New Orleans, LA.
Macmillan Booksellers Professional Development Scholarship: This scholarship provides funds to booksellers traditionally underrepresented within the industry to attend their regional associations' fall trade show or gathering. This year’s award went to Krystle Dandridge of The Book Bar in Richmond, Virginia, who attended our NOLA gathering in September.
George Keating Memorial Scholarship: This scholarship provides $250 to a bookseller in the New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association (NAIBA), Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance (SIBA), and New England Independent Booksellers Association (NEIBA) for the purpose of professional development. Rachel Ford of the Bookshop in Nashville, Tennessee is the SIBA recipient of the George Keating Memorial Scholarship and attended our NOLA gathering..
The Nancy Olson Bookseller Award: This award honors the legacy of Nancy Olson, founder of Quail Ridge Books in Raleigh, NC. Nancy was a tireless advocate for writers, especially new writers looking for a chance in the publishing world, and a beloved bookseller and colleague. An anonymous admirer of Nancy’s, in conjunction with SIBA, awards two $2000 gifts to special booksellers in her memory each December. The 2022 winners will be announced in the next two weeks.
The McCoy Grant for Bookseller Writers: In 2022, New York Times bestselling author Sarah McCoy established two $1500 grants for unpublished southern bookseller women/nonbinary writers. Recipients will be awarded at the 2023 New Voices New Rooms in-person conference in August.
SIBA is always appreciative and welcoming of funds to support our booksellers, to provide travel assistance and education, including DEI training. If you’d like to support our booksellers in 2023, please reach out to SIBA (lindamarie@sibaweb.com) and we’ll talk about the best ways to do that. SIBA also has a donation link that earmarks your donation for one of our funds.
Be a partner.Join the Shop Black-Owned Businesses Campaign, February 2023
The American Independent Business Alliance invites independent business alliances, neighborhood associations, and local economy-minded business networks to partner with them to grow their Shop Black-Owned Campaign, part of the Shop Indie Local year-round movement.
Becoming a partner is free, nor does your store need to identify as Black-owned to participate.
Indie bookstores understand the importance of creating partnerships with other local businesses in their communities. Such partnerships are often a key factor in raising each other's visibility, and advocating for shared interests. One simple and effective step bookstores with a commitment to anti-racist action is to create partnerships with the Black-owned businesses in their own communities. The AMIBA Shop Black-Owned Campaign provides partners with resources and tools to facilitate those relationships.
Where are the Black-owned businesses in your area?
Creating a display, posting a sign, or sharing social media posts are all simple actions of support to take, but if a customer came in to your shop and asked you where to go to shop at local Black-owned businesses, would you be able to answer? The first step to supporting Black-owned businesses in your own area is to know who they are and where they are. One of the resources provided above by AMIBA is a list of links to some directories of Black-owned businesses and professional associations.
But your own Chamber of Commerce will have more detailed information about your community. The US Chamber of Commerce provides links to online Black-owned business directories which may be useful. A year ago the list included eight directories, now it has fifteen.
Nothing beats your own local knowledge, however. Every bookseller, when asked, can give a list of local authors in their area. That is a talent easily put to use to create your own local shop Black-owned list of businesses.
Incidentally, SIBA would appreciate copies of local Black-owned business directories created by its members. As we transition into holding more in-person events around SIBA territory, one of our commitments is to source from local businesses that have good relationships with our members.
Call for Authors for SIBA’s 2023 March Madness! Nine bookstores, eight states, and everyone’s a winner at SIBA’s March Madness!
In March 2023 eight SIBA bookstores will host one-day gatherings that include bookseller education, a meet-the-author luncheon, networking, and idea shares on what’s working at attendees' stores. Events are within two to three hours driving distance from
a majority of our member stores, and take place over a three week period. We expect booksellers may register for multiple events. We’re so excited to offer this range of programming to our booksellers and would love your authors to be part of it.
SIBA first hosted March Madness programming in 2020, and booksellers raved about it!
Afternoon or evening public event at the hosting bookstore, depending on availability
Host stores and locations below. Dates will depend on author availability and host store’s programming schedule. If you’re touring your author this spring, one of these stores might already be on your radar for an event or conveniently nearby.
The Book Worm Bookstore is owned by Julia Davis, who is also on SIBA’s Board. Her bookstore is sensory-inclusive certified, which means it has made accommodations for those who are autistic and/or have a sensory processing disorder. The Book Worm offers free ear plugs, a clearly posted internet password, a dry erase board available for non-speaking or hard of hearing customers, sensory chairs, and the offer to adjust the volume of music upon request.
The Book Worm is beautifully curated, with creative elements like a Spin to Win wheel that features prizes from other stores in the community, and a bulletin board covered in notes by customers naming the books that changed their lives. Julia plans to expand her store, which is part of a growing town center, with new residents on the horizon at a development being built behind her store.
Next stop, and on the other side of Atlanta, was Charis Books & More, where I met with Sara Luce Look, co-owner of Charis, as well as the book buyer and general manager. Charis’s mission, together with their non-profit programming partner, Charis Circle, is to foster sustainable feminist communities, work for social justice, and encourage the expression of diverse and marginalized voices. The store has worked hard to address accessibility and inclusivity in the physical store, and at their virtual events, which boomed during Covid, and continue on. We shared some laughs as Charis booksellers confessed to recently purchasing “boxes of books” for themselves, something I easily could have done as well in such a fantastic store.
I headed next to Little Shop of Stories, where I met staffers Justin, Heather, Sydney, and co-owner Diane Capriola, who is also on the ABA Board. As a store that mostly caters to children, their in-store operations were modified (including being closed for one year) until vaccines became available for children. During this time, they operated a pop-up in front of the store. They are now fully open, hosting in-person events (which are steadily growing), school visits, and bookfairs. The store is brightly and festively lit, filled with great books for all ages, and staffed by enthusiastic book lovers.
Eagle Eye Book Shop is the third Decatur-area bookstore I visited. Co-owner Doug Robinson showed me around their store. They did quite a bit of renovation over the last few years: moving and expanding their cashwrap and replacing their carpet with new flooring. Dozens of volunteers helped move the books and bookcases each night during three days of reflooring, which is one indication of how beloved Eagle Eye is in their community. Business is better than ever, and Doug is very optimistic about the future.
My last visit was to Avid Bookshop in Athens, GA. I met with Rachel Watkins, director of operations and events. During Covid they added an additional cash wrap near the front door which they’ve kept, and rearranged sections. The store is thoughtfully and delightfully stocked and during my visit was bustling with customers. Avid is mission-driven around ethical, local, and inclusive business practices. From their site: “As the country has become more fraught, Avid booksellers have become more outspoken about standing up for human rights, equality, and the freedom to read. We are a safe space and are proud to serve those here in Athens, Georgia and our website customers nationwide.”
This week SIBA added a voluntary question to the Southern Book Prize ballot. After selecting their picks for best Fiction, Nonfiction, and Children's/YA book, and telling us the name of their indie bookshop, voters are invited to "say something nice about
your local bookstore."
Everyone at the SIBA office then spent the next few days smiling at all the comments that were coming in. Here are some of them:
"My local bookstore is always a wonderful place to visit, and the people who work there are also wonderfully helpful and kind." - a customer of Alabama Booksmith in Homewood, AL
"It’s like a visit with a longtime friend. I often stop in just to browse and end up buying a book to start reading at a nearby restaurant." -- a customer of The Regulator Bookshop in Durham, NC
"Novel is amazing! I have loved this store in it's various versions since I was a child. I am so happy that it is still around." -- a customer of Novel in Memphis, TN
"Literally the sweetest bookstore I’ve ever been in." -- a customer of Parnassus Books, Nashville, TN
"Sweet Home Books is one of my favorite places to go!!!" -- a customer of Sweet Home Books in Wetumpka, AL
"Malaprops sets the standard for what an independent bookstore should be." -- a customer of Malaprop's Bookstore/Cafe in Asheville, NC
"Annie B. Jones and her crew at the Bookshelf are wonderful; they provide great gift ideas and really care about providing great customer service!" -a customer of The Bookshelf in Thomasville, GA
"I love McIntyres books in Pittsboro NC. The staff is always friendly and helpful."
"I am amazed with what Richard Howorth has done at Square Books in Oxford, MS"
"It's a great neighborhood gathering spot" --a customer of Garden District Bookshop in New Orleans, LA
"E. Shaver has everything I’m looking for, and I always discover something I didn’t know I needed to read." --a customer of E. Shaver, Bookseller in Savannah, GA
The Southern Book Prize Ballot remains open until February 1, 2023. SIBA is sharing photos of store displays of the SBP finalists as we see them on social media. Use the SIBA Toolkit of useful materials to help stores promote the ballot and encourage
their customers to vote for their favorites:
Five new handsell-favorites have been chosen by SIBA booksellers as the "Read This Next!" list for December. Each book has received multiple (often exhuberantly) positive reviews from Southern indie booksellers.
Read This Next! books are featured in The Southern Bookseller Review and SIBA newsletter, and on SIBA's social media accounts, highlighting the bookseller reviews for each title. Each month's list showcases not only the books receiving the most interesting buzz, but also the wide range of reading championed by SIBA booksellers.
Never Ever Getting Back Together by
Sophie Gonzales
This is one of my top romances
of 2022! Gonzales’ YA books
are charming and this new adult
romcom is a delight. It has slow
burn, hilarious, sapphic joy on
every page. Gonzales does a
great job with bi representation
and she gets better with every book.
–Andrea Richardson, Fountain Books in Richmond, VA
The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks-Dalton
What happens when nature isn’t
natural? When in the end, Climate
Change is unstoppable?
Lily Brooks-Dalton renders a
shockingly real depiction of this
possibility in the harrowing and
beautiful novel The Light Pirate.
This story could happen. This
story is happening. A must-read. –Laura Simcox, Sunrise Books in High Point, NC
A Wilderness of Stars by Shea Ernshaw
This is an absolute gem of a
book! Part science-fiction, part
romance, Shea Ernshaw delivers
another YA novel that is a delight
to read. For lovers of stars and
post apocalyptic literature! – Hallie Smith, Main Street Books
in Davidson, NC
How Far the Light
Reaches : A Life in Ten
Sea Creatures by
Sabrina Imbler
Wholly original, astonishingly
informative, and powerfully
written. Imbler describes marine
life with reverence and
compelling detail, and deftly
intertwines the lives of the sea
creatures with stories of their
own experiences with gender, queerness, and identity.
–Sarah Arnold, Parnassus Books in Nashville, TN
My Darkest Prayer by
S. A. Cosby
A story where religion, region,
karma, and race intersect,
Cosby dissects the weight of loss
on a person’s moral compass.
This novel is full of twists and
turns that will leave your jaw on
the floor. S.A. Cosby is a force to
be reckoned with.
–Leo Coffey, Union Ave Books in Knoxville, TN
Current Read This Next! books and what SIBA booksellers have to say about them can always be found at The Southern Bookseller Review
Posted By Nicki Leone,
Thursday, November 17, 2022
Land Acknowledgments
“When we talk about land, land is part of who we are. It’s a mixture of our blood, our past, our current, and our future. We carry our ancestors in us, and they’re around us. As you all do.”
– Mary Lyons (Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe) via Native Governance
Of all the official American holidays on the calendar, Thanksgiving is one of the most emotional and intimate. Even though the holiday sometimes feels snowed under by newspaper inserts and Black Friday sales, the day itself has always been primarily about togetherness, family, and food.
How do we honor the values of Thanksgiving -- the togetherness and generosity and gratitude -- and yet still acknowledge what it represents to Indigenous people? We tend to associate Thanksgiving with a somewhat mythical story of Pilgrims and Native Americans sitting down to eat together, but the truth is Thanksgiving was first established as a national holiday by Abraham Lincoln in 1863, as a kind of "thank you" to the advancing Union armies and a call for unity and healing among the American people.
There is a growing movement to "decolonize" Thanksgiving and turn it into something that more meaningfully honors the heritage of all the peoples on this continent. "Meaningful" is the watchword here. One practice that has become more common in recent years is to make a Land Acknowledgment part of important events and celebrations.
A Land Acknowledgment is a formal statement of recognition and respect for the indigenous peoples who were and are the traditional inhabitants and stewards of the specific place of the event. Organizations and groups also create Land Acknowledgments as part of the work they do in their communities. Independent bookstores sometimes create a Land Acknowledgment in recognition of their own role in and commitment to the heritage of their local communities.
A Land Acknowledgment (which is not, by the way, a "Land Welcome," the distinction is important) is not something to be simply copied from some template found online. Every one is unique because the history of every place is unique. There are over 550 Native American nations in the United States. Consider this map of the traditional territories of Indigenous peoples: https://native-land.ca/.
Bookstores looking to create a meaningful Land Acknowledgment for their store should take the time to research what and who should be acknowledged, and why. The Native Governance Center has published a useful guide to creating an Indigenous Land Acknowledgment statement that includes questions to ask yourself as you do your research: Why are you doing this land acknowledgment? What is your end goal?
The guide also offers some tips to writing a land acknowledgment statement that is truly meaningful and intentional. For example: be specific about the names and history of the Indigenous people to whom the land belonged and belongs -- including the history of the land itself and any treaties, honored or broken. And be scrupulous about correct spelling and pronunciation for the names of Tribes, places and peoples. Also include the names of living Indigenous peoples from the community. There is a tendency to talk about Indigenous peoples in the past tense. They are not. They are active, vibrant, contemporary cultures.
A Land Ackowledgment will not minimize or dismiss past crimes by avoiding accurate terms: genocide, forced removal, ethnic cleansing. But neither is it simply an accusation:
"Land acknowledgments shouldn’t be grim. They should function as living celebrations of Indigenous communities. Ask yourself, “How am I leaving Indigenous people in a stronger, more empowered place because of this land acknowledgment?” Focus on the positivity of who Indigenous people are today." --The Native Governance Center (via)
In the end, a Land Acknowledgment is a first step, an expression of gratitude to those who have been here long before us, and also a promise, a commitment to take action and effect change. It is a promise we can't break.
Posted By Nicki Leone,
Thursday, November 17, 2022
Two SIBA booksellers were among the recipients of professional development scholarships from the Book Industry Charitable Foundation (Binc) and its partners:
Krystle Dandridge of The Book Bar in Richmond, Virginia received a Macmillan Booksellers Professional Development Scholarship, which provides funds to booksellers traditionally underrepresented within the industry to attend their regional associations' fall trade show or gathering.
Rachel Ford of the Bookshop in Nashville, Tennessee is a recipient of the George Keating Memorial Scholarship, which provides $250 scholarships to a bookseller in the New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association (NAIBA), Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance (SIBA), and New England Independent Booksellers Association (NEIBA) for the purpose of professional development. Ford used her scholarship to attend SIBA's in-person event in New Orleans this summer: “I was so grateful and excited to be awarded the George Keating Scholarship for SIBA territory. This event deepened my understanding of the bookselling industry and I appreciated learning best practices from other indie booksellers.”
Posted By Nicki Leone,
Thursday, November 17, 2022
The final recap of the finalists on the 2023 Southern Book Prize Ballot, as reviewed by booksellers on The Southern Bookseller Review. Here is what they have to say about the Nonfiction finalists:
This Boy We Made by Taylor Harris
This is heart-wrenching. As a mother I was absolutely enveloped in the author’s journey through this incredibly difficult time in her life. At every turn I was in awe of her grace in dealing with what life continued to throw at her.
–Rayna Nielsen, Blue Cypress Books in New Orleans, LA
Beyond Innocence by Phoebe Zerwick
Once upon a time, a man was unjustly imprisoned. DNA and dogged work freed him after 19 years. He lived happily ever after. Sorry, that last part didn’t happen. Zerwick details Hunt’s journey from teen to convicted killer, innocent freed man, and activist with many twists.
–Rosemary Pugliese, Malaprop’s in Asheville, NC
Spine Poems by Annette Dauphin Simon
I love that the concept of this book seems so simple, but author and creator Annette Dauphin Simon turned it into something complex and spectacular.
–Johanna Albrecht, McIntyre’s Books in Pittsboro, NC
The Hurting Kind by Ada Limón
Poems of movement, of worry, of a recognized grief and the subsequent small joys that can bloom out of dirt like small flower heads...Limón never, ever disappoints.
–Aimee Keeble, Main Street Books in Davidson, NC
Child: A Memoir by Judy Goldman
In her lovely memoir, Judy Goldman reflects on what it was like to be a young Jewish girl raised by a Black nanny in the 1940s and 50s. Mattie Culp became a part of the Kurtz family. Now in her 80s, Goldman reflects on what Mattie had to give up—including her own child—in order to make the Kurtz family’s life easier.
–Linda Hodges, Fiction Addiction in Greenville, SC
Bomb Shelter by Mary Laura Philpott
Thank you, MLP, for making all of us worriers feel seen, and for helping us put into words the emotions (so very many emotions) that go along with being not just a parent but a person.
–Lady Smith, Snail on the Wall in Huntsville, AL
Posted By Nicki Leone,
Thursday, November 17, 2022
The winners of the 2022 VIndies were announced at the fun and often touching virtual ceremony held Wednesday evening. The VIndies, created by SIBA and NAIBA to celebrate "the best in bookstore video," honors the spirit and voice of indie bookstores, and highlights exactly why indie booksellers are the heart and soul of their communities.
About fifty people attended the event, genially hosted by Penguin Random House rep Michael Triebwasser, to cheer for their favorite stores. With the exception of the "Animated" category which only received one nomination, two winners were selected for each VIndie category -- one each from SIBA and NAIBA territories.
2022 VIndies Winners:
ANIMATED
"Book Club Bar" -- from Book Club Bar in New York, NY (NAIBA)
AROUND THE STORE
"We Have Named the Whale!" - White Whale Bookstore in Pittsburgh, PA (NAIBA)
"Welcome In!" - Ernest & Hadley Booksellers in Tuscaloosa, AL (SIBA)
COMEDY/MUSICAL
"Well-Read Bronx Woman" -- Bronx Bound Books in Bronx, NY (NAIBA)
"The Book" -- Scuppernong Books in Greensboro, NC (SIBA)
COMMUNITY WORK
"Books Recs for Other Small Businesses on Capitol Hill" -- East City Bookshop in Washington, DC (NAIBA)
"The words are felt always in the walls here" - Rohi's Readery, West Palm Beach, FL (SIBA)
DRAMA
"Audio IS Reading" -- City Books in Pittsburgh, PA (NAIBA)
"Shire, the Magic of Reading" -- Underground Books in Carrollton, GA (SIBA)
STAFF PICKS & BOOK RECS
"Hidden Treats" -- BookTowne in Manasquan, NJ (NAIBA)
"Rediscovering Slept-on Authors" -- RVA Book Bar in Richmond, VA (SIBA)
TRENDING SOUNDS
"You'll Be Back" -- Park Books and LitColLab in Severna Park, MD (NAIBA)
"All I Wanna Do Is Read a Book Today" -- Quail Ridge Books in Raleigh, NC (SIBA)
Of the 120+ videos nominated for this year's VIndies, 36 were chosen as finalists, and the winners selected by a panel of members of the book industry. As each category was awarded, booksellers from the winning stores came up to the virtual stage to talk about the inspiration for their videos, and why they felt video was an important tool for their stores. In fact, "Inspiration" became the theme of the event, as fellow booksellers in the audience shared ideas and takeaways for their own stores.
Posted By Nicki Leone,
Thursday, November 17, 2022
SIBA is thrilled to welcome Candice Huber as our Membership Relations Coordinator. They are the owner of Tubby & Coo’s in New Orleans, LA, and formerly a member of the SIBA Board. They are an instructor for the Professional Bookseller School, on the ABA’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, and Programming Committee for Margins Bookselling Month. They are actively engaged in the regional and national bookselling scene, and bring a unique perspective on bookselling, with special insight into marginalized booksellers and bookstore owners.
"I’m so excited to join the SIBA team," says Candice "and I look forward to getting to know all of you better! One of my biggest goals as a board member was to communicate better with membership and find out the best ways SIBA can offer support, and this position will allow me to do that much more directly. I can’t wait to connect with you all, and of course please reach out if there’s anything I can do to help."
Candice will help SIBA better serve our member stores, grow our membership, and be a resource for SIBA members who need assistance, including facilitating communication with other members, the board, or industry contacts. In the coming weeks, you’ll be hearing from Candice as they introduce themselves and check in on your needs. In the meantime, you can reach Candice at candice@sibaweb.com.
What's in your TBR stack? The Pen Report, Part III:
Challenging Stereotypes in Publishing and Bookselling
At the root of the charge that the publishing industry is inequitable is the simple, statistically valid observation that it just does not publish books by writers of color in numbers that in any way reflect the number of people of color in the country:
And yet, the recent census estimates 42% of the country are people of color. The first step to fixing this discrepancy is to increase the number of diverse staff among the "gatekeepers" -- the people who decide what books to publish, the acquisitions scouts, the editors, the imprint publishers, and so on. But it is already well-documented that hiring diverse employees does not magically erase the racist bias in a company's culture. For that to truly change, the people who created it and benefit from it have to change. That means letting go of some assumptions. For example:
1. Writers of color have a smaller, limited audience. This is basically saying that white people won't buy or read books by writers of color because those books aren't about them.
2. On the flip side, the "ideal reader" is always white, even for an author of color. The book won't be a success if it doesn't appeal to white readers.
3. Including one book by an author of color is enough to dispel the perception of bias, while not being much of a commercial risk. Also implied in the "one is enough" rule is the assumption that writers of color only have one kind of story to tell:
"Speaking to The New York Times in December 2020, former Simon & Schuster editor Michael Strother recalled a 2016 meeting at which he tried to authorize a large bid for Angie Thomas’s The Hate U Give, which went on to achieve massive commercial success and a Hollywood adaptation. He said he was asked, “Do we need Angie Thomas if we have Jason Reynolds?”
4. White readers only want to hear one kind of story from writers of color -- a story they have already heard and has already been a commercial success. The people interviewed by the Pen Report used the phrase "identity trap". The Pen Report quoted bookseller Marva Allen of Hueman Books, who said that Black authors who want contracts “have to write about slavery or Black Lives Matter or racism.” Worse, writers of color are expected to write about their trauma and pain because those stories are the easiest for publishers to capitalize on. They understand those stories, and they know how to market those kinds of stories.
"Writers of color often have to struggle with that idea—that something traumatic can then be monetized and that it’s a good thing that something bad happened because it gives you material. There’s a hunger for those stories from writers of color, and that hunger comes from a complicated, politicized place. It gets very difficult for a writer to approach that story and to be able to tell it from a place of your own desire to tell it." --Ingrid Rojas Contreras
When publishers reduce writers to stereotypes of race or ethnicity or identity, they miss or outright erase the complexity of the stories those writers are telling -- complexity which is there because of the simple fact that the writers are human beings, and all human beings are complicated.
The problems caused by the biases of gatekeepers in publishing are also present in the gatekeepers in bookselling; the store owners and book buyers, who decide what books to stock, and store staff, who decide what books to hand to customers. Every bookseller should cast a critical eye over their TBR stack and ask how much the books we read reinforce our own biases, and what books we could be reading that would break those biases down.
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Everybody's New Year's resolution should be to read more books and discover great new authors!
Avid readers can start here, with the five new books on Read This Next! for January, 2023.
Dad wasn’t talking about the book. He was using Mom’s words to tell
his love story and share his grief. People responded by sharing their own stories, and I was floored by how much the exchange helped me. So, my own “mini” project turned into a feature documentary film aimed at capturing
the experience, and sparking meaningful conversation on loss and mourning.
Revisiting your DEI Statement 
SIBA welcomes all bookstore owners to get together virtually on Monday, January 9 from 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm to share, ask questions, and wonder about bookselling in the new year. We will be joined by our NAIBA friends. This is open only to owners of current SIBA members. Registration is free. Space is limited.
Our editorial team had a chance to hunker down with the French press corps that accompanied the president on his travels to Washington, DC, and Louisiana. We created a “book nook” as a gesture of cross-cultural friendship: a place for the journalists to relax, file their stories, browse our publications, and take home a souvenir. Among the titles that flew off the shelves were 
Creating a display, posting a sign, or sharing social media posts are all simple actions of support to take, but if a customer came in to your shop and asked you where to go to shop at local Black-owned businesses, would you be able to answer? The first step to supporting Black-owned businesses in your own area is to know who they are and where they are. One of the resources provided above by AMIBA 
Next stop, and on the other side of Atlanta, was 
I headed next to 
Eagle Eye Book Shop
My last visit was to 
What your customers are saying about your store
The winners of the 2022 VIndies were announced at the fun and often touching virtual ceremony held Wednesday evening. The VIndies, created by SIBA and NAIBA to celebrate "the best in bookstore video," honors the spirit and voice of indie bookstores, and highlights exactly why indie booksellers are the heart and soul of their communities. 
SIBA is thrilled to welcome Candice Huber as our Membership Relations Coordinator. They are the owner of Tubby & Coo’s in New Orleans, LA, and formerly a member of the SIBA Board. They are an instructor for the Professional Bookseller School, on the ABA’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, and Programming Committee for Margins Bookselling Month. They are actively engaged in the regional and national bookselling scene, and bring a unique perspective on bookselling, with special insight into marginalized booksellers and bookstore owners.