Send Her Back and other stories
by Munashe Kaseke
Mukana Press, July 2022
ISBN13: 9780578353128, $17.95,
Multicultural fiction/Short story collection
In Send Her Back and other stories, Munashe Kaseke offers an awfully intimate, fresh telling of the immigrant experience of black women in the United States. Equally awash with the joys of exploring a new world as well as a myriad of challenges, her complicated, and often tangled, female Zimbabwean protagonists navigate issues of identity, microaggressions, and sexism in vibrant, indelible settings. Yet again, these are not only stories of navigating an at times tense US political climate, they are also marked by characters who rise to the top of their professional fields, seize the American dream, and travel the world in glee. Kaseke peels back on the inner wranglings of characters caught between two worlds, be it by stories of dating outside one’s culture and race or failing to assimilate upon returning home after spending time abroad.
Part-Time Sales Position with SIBA
Responsible for presenting and selling SIBA promotions to our industry partners and new markets. This role will pitch partnerships, sponsorships, and promotions to existing customers, as well as target new partners to reach new and diverse audiences. This role will work closely with the SIBA team to schedule, invoice, and provide any requested stats on promotions sold. Perfect for someone who is highly motivated, imaginative, attentive to detail, team-oriented and a pro at customer service and sales. Commission-based salary. Send resume and cover letter to Linda-Marie Barrett at lindamarie@sibaweb.com.
The Southern Bookseller Review launches thematic monthly issue
The Southern Bookseller Review is a reader-targeted website and weekly newsletter showcasing book reviews and staff picks from Southern indie booksellers. Reviews come from store websites, newsletters, social media, and submissions to Edelweiss Plus, the book industry platform for marketing and ordering new titles. Since SBR was first delivered in January 2021, the newsletter's readership has grown almost twenty percent. Bookstores are using their posted reviews as "staff picks" on their own store websites.
This year SBR is launching a monthly thematic "special edition" of the newsletter, featuring bookseller reviews of books around a specific topic. The February edition "Celebrating Black Voices" released February 18, generating an open rate of over 50%,, and a click through rate of 28%.
Reservations are now being accepted for future Special Editions:
March: Women's History (sold out!)
April: Poetry Month
May: Motherhood
June: Pride Month
July: Summer Reads
August: Cooking/harvest
Sept.: National Hispanic Heritage/Latinx Voices
Oct: Spooky!
Nov: Regional Holiday Reads
Dec.: Winter Reads
Each edition is published mid month, on the Friday of the week of the 15th. To be eligible for inclusion, a book must have a positive review from a SIBA bookseller, and must be available at industry standard terms. Pre-orders are accetable. Cost for inclusion is $399 per review.
SIBA is hosting an in-person “Come Together” celebration of our amazingly creative and resilient SIBA bookselling community in historic Winston-Salem, NC on Wednesday, Apr 27, 2022. This is an excellent opportunity to reconnect with booksellers you have only seen via video screen for the past two years!
There are both sponorship and author appearance opportunities, and Come Together will also have its own virtual galley room. We invite you to attend our celebration, and sponsor one of the day’s activities:
Note: partial sponsorships may be possible, email lindamarie@sibaweb.com to discuss opportunities.
Bookstore Tour of Winston-Salem & Greensboro
with stops at important historic sites. Sponsor our tour and we’ll thank you in our event promotions, online program, and on the bus! Also includes 10 titles in our virtual galley room and two free promotions in our Southern Bookseller Review Cost: $2500
Come Together Reception
Conveniently located next to Bookmarks, our last stop on the bookstore tour. Time: 5-7 PM, includes drinks and hor d’oeuvres. Location:Footnote, an event space that opens up into Bookmarks. Cost: $2500
AUTHOR APPEARANCE OPPORTUNITY! Noir at the Bar
Eight crime, thriller, and mystery authors will read from their works in an event hosted by author and veteran Noir at the Bar MC, Eryk Pruitt. Noir at the Bar follows our opening welcome reception, and will feature literary-themed cocktails and a fun, raucous environment for readers and writers alike. Location:Footnote , an event space that opens up into Bookmarks. Author appearance fee: $500 (includes ten minutes reading time and admission to our Come Together Welcome Reception).
Also requires a minimum of 50 ARCs or finished books
Virtual Galley Room:
All registered SIBA bookseller attendees will have access to our virtual galley room, which will be promoted directly to them via email and eBlasts through May 1st. Promote featured spring, summer and fall 2022 titles directly to an engaged audience of indie booksellers. Cost per title: $25
Welcome Bag for Booksellers
Welcome SIBA booksellers with an item-arc or finished copy, special book-themed swag, totebag, gift sample, or an out-of-the-box surprise with your branding. They’ll appreciate you! Cost per item: $250 ( minimum qty per item: 50)
Share your insider-information with booksellers on the east coast. Two days of Editors Buzz and Pick of the Lists at the time booksellers are making their buys for Fall and Holiday titles.
How to use NVNR to your advantage:
Use Your Studio Space!
Announce the Fall & Holiday releases.
Broadcast seasonal promotions.
Share links to genre Edelweiss catalogs to help bookstores fill out special sections
Post videos of editors talking about their projects. Link to an Edelweiss catalog.
Post videos of author interviews and promotions.
Apply for an Editors Buzz and / or Pick of the List session: We have more of those sessions in two days than anywhere else in the industry. All these will be recorded and available for booksellers for three solid months. Register to apply
Take advantage of NVNR breakout rooms to invite a limited number of booksellers to meet an author. The online version of an author luncheon. Unlike author panels, booksellers will have the chance to engage with the author.
Galleys in the Readers of the Last ARC: Share print and digital copies of the new releases you want booksellers to handsell. Don’t worry if the ARC is not ready yet. Post it now, we’ll provide you with a request list, and you can send it later. Register to reserve a listing.
All this content will be promoted continuously to the booksellers until NVNR August.
NVNR: a long & fruitful promotional shelf life for books.
We live in a rapidly changing world, and that is as true for the book industry as it is for anything else. Changing times demand creative and innovative responses. For that reason SIBA has transformed its popular "Put Your Money Where Your South Is" marketing brochure into an Opportunities Gallery.
Sortable and searchable, and always up to date, publishers can find details of all SIBA promotions including cost, ad specs, descriptions, deadlines, and sample promotions. Filter by format, vehicle, and target audience. Visit the Opportunities Gallery
Posted By Nicki Leone,
Thursday, February 10, 2022
SIBA in the Springtime 2022: Come Together!
Join us for an in-person “Come Together” celebration of our amazingly creative and resilient SIBA bookselling community. It’s been two long years since we’ve been in company, and we can’t wait to see you in historic Winston-Salem, NC on Wednesday, Apr
27, 2022
12-5PM: Bookstore Tour of Winston-Salem & Greensboro, with a stop at the International Civil Rights Center & Museum (website) Cost per person $20
5-7 PM: Come Together Reception at Footnote Conveniently located
next to Bookmarks, the last stop on our bookstore tour. Enjoy drinks and hors d'oeuvres as you mix &
mingle & catch up with your bookseller colleagues and other industry friends. Cost per person $25 (includes Noir at the Bar)
7-9 PM: Noir at the Bar Eight crime, thriller, and mystery authors will read from their works in an event hosted by author and veteran Noir at the Bar MC, Eryk Pruitt. Noir at the Bar follows our welcome reception,
and will feature literary-themed cocktails (cash bar) and a fun, raucous environment for readers and writers alike. Includes ARCs for bookseller attendees.
Health Guidelines: All attendees must be fully vaccinated, and abide by local mask mandates for the safety of our community. Registrants are required to upload or show their vaccination cards to attend.
Event Hotel: Courtyard by Marriott Winston-Salem Downtown, reserve by 3/26 for special rate. Event Reservations Link
Posted By Nicki Leone,
Thursday, February 10, 2022
VIDEO AVAILABLE TO WATCH
Pursuit of Racial Justice: A Conversation with Laura Coates and Steven Wright
This is the last call! SIBA's 21-Day Racial Equity Challenge begins on Monday, so there is still time to sign up. Registration will close on Sunday the 13th.
SIBA’s 21 Day Challenge is designed specifically for its member booksellers and draws its format and many of its resources from the 21-Day Racial Equity Habit Building Challenge created by Food Solutions New England (FSNE). It's goal is to make an anti-racist mindset habitual, to raise awareness, change understanding and shift the way we behave.
Watch the Challenge Keynote with Laura Coates and Steven Wright:
The RAMP Winter Catalog (also known as the SIBA Holiday Catalog) is by far the most popular and effective resource SIBA provides for its bookstores. It has become a key part of bookstores' holiday sales plans. Last year's catalog was so well received that stores requested a summer edition for the other major shopping season on their calendars.
Now there are twice as many ways to promote year-round reading across print and digital formats, indie-style! Visit RAMPBooks.com for more info and to sign up! The deadline to place store orders is March 15.
Attend the Information Session on February 17th! REGISTER
Posted By Nicki Leone,
Thursday, February 10, 2022
Bookseller sign ups for New Voices New Rooms May & August have been pouring in since registration opened last week. Stores are especially excited about the addition of the May event, with its focus on new and forthcoming books for the summer and fall season.
Although it is only a two-day event, the NVNR May schedule will have more time devoted to the "Pick of the Lists" rep presentations and the Editors' Buzz sessions that have been one of the most popular parts of the NVNR program. NVNR May will also feature the signature Readers of the Last ARC Galley Room, as well as Bookstore Row and the Studio Gallery -- the latter with a focus on providing resources and materials for the books presented at the event.
NVNR May is timed to give booksellers the information they need to make their third- and fourth-quarter purchasing decisions.
Meet the owners of 44th & 3rd Bookstore at the 21-Day Challenge Keynote Event
SIBA booksellers Warren and Cheryl Lee will be hosting next week's Keynote address with Laura Coates and Steven Wright: In Pursuit of Racial Justice: A Conversation.
Warren and Cheryl Lee are the owners of 44th & 3rd Bookseller in Atlanta, GA located near the historic Atlanta University Center. The bookstore opened in November 2017 and specializes in books written by African American authors and authors from the African diaspora. You can find 44th & 3rd on-line at their website 44thand3rdbookseller.com.
The highly acclaimed virtual industry conference returns this year with an expanded program in both May and August. Attendees can register for either or both programs at the same time. There are discounts for publishers who commit to both conferences.
NVNR May is May 17-18 and is focused on bookseller and author/publisher connections, introducing booksellers to authors through panel programs, keynote presentations, and breakout rooms where authors and small groups of booksellers will enjoy get-to-know-you talks. The very popular Pick of the List Rep presentations, and Editors’ Buzz sessions are a feature of the May event, which is timed to give booksellers the information they need when they are making most of their holiday buying decisions.
NVNR August runs August 8-11, and features a week of education, bookseller retreats, author presentations, new and upcoming titles, and publisher studios, similar to NVNR from the past two years. There will be an added focus on networking and building industry connections among bookselling colleagues and publishers.
Registration for the New Voices, New Rooms Virtual Event is strictly limited to members of the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance, the New Atlantic Booksellers Association, and designated attendees. All staff of member bookstores are encouraged to attend. If you are not a member of either organization or otherwise designated and would like information on membership, please contact event organizers.
Spotlighting Books and Crannies Bookstore in Martinsville, Virginia. “My alma mater was books, a good library…. I could spend the rest of my life reading, just satisfying my curiosity.”— Malcolm X
SIBA promotes six new books every month to readers, the customers of our member stores, in our Southern Bookseller Review (SBR) Bookshelf promotion. These titles appear at the top of our weekly SBR newsletter. We also feature them on our SBR Facebook page, with buy links promoted to our 15,000 Facebook friends, and on our Instagram and Twitter accounts. A different member store is featured with the titles on every new shelf.
For publishers looking to promote their new titles out to readers across the South, the SBR Bookshelf is our greatest value because of high visibility and engagement across multiple platforms. Contact us for more information or to get your titles on “The Shelf” in coming months.
In response to strong bookseller interest, RAMP -- the partnership of SIBA, NAIBA, and GLIBA responsible for the holiday catalog -- is now creating a "Summer Reads" piece scheduled to land on doorsteps May 9th. An indie-designed, indie-spirited Summer Catalog joins our ever-popular Holiday Catalogs. Both are FREE for member stores and are professionally designed, eye-catching, print and digital promotional pieces intended to grow sales.
Now there are twice as many ways to promote year-round reading across print and digital formats, indie-style! Visit RAMPBooks.com for more info and to sign up! The deadline to place store orders is March 15.
The Press Kit Webinar with Maribeth Pelly is now available to view. Pelly uses real store press kits to demonstrative the best practices when creating what could be the single most important piece about your bookstore you can give to publishers. Press
kits are required for stores attending the NVNR Publicity Speed Dating event on March 1-4.
The Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance created the Wanda Jewell Scholarship Fund in honor of its much-beloved former Executive Director who retired in 2020. The scholarship,
which is funded by authors, provides financial support for bookseller professional development through education and networking at in-person SIBA-sponsored events. This scholarship is meant to help defray the costs of travel, lodging, meals, and other
expenses. As part of our commitment to continued training and staff development, we hope to help a dedicated bookseller who wants to attend, but otherwise couldn’t. We urge booksellers from typically underrepresented groups to apply.
Please write a letter of need and desire and email to lindamarie@sibaweb.com Deadline to apply is April 1
The American Booksellers Association has partnered with the American Independent Business Alliance (AMIBA) to create logos and assets in support of Black-owned businesses (either yours or those of others) and celebrate diversity. Download resources.
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 and the ABA is a list of links to some directories of 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 eight online Black-owned business directories which may be useful.
Read This Next!, the seasonal list which highlights forthcoming books receiving exceptional SIBA bookseller buzz, is now a monthly event! Southern indie booksellers have selected five books, their hand-sell favorites for the upcoming month, as February 2022 Read This Next titles.
The chosen books all release in February and represent the full range of reader interests of the southern bookselling community. Each of the selected titles has the enthusiastic support of southern booksellers, making Read This Next! the ultimate "You've got to read this!" reading list for avid readers looking to discover great new books.
The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb
(Anchor) Fiction
There are so many captivating things about this novel...the insight the reader gets as to what it takes to be a classical musician, the background on the history of violins (and one violin in particular) and how they're made, the main character's determination in the face of struggle, family dynamics and expectations, racial issues that rear their ugly heads, and a mysterious theft of a priceless instrument. Brendan Slocumb effortlessly keeps his story flowing, leaving the reader rooting for Ray McMillian while trying to put the pieces of the theft together. Such a great read! . –Mary Patterson from The Little Bookshop in Midlothian, VA
I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys
(Philomel) Young Adult
Ruta Sepetys tackles the little-known subject of communist Romania with the gut-wrenching, suspenseful story of Cristian. He dreams of writing but instead is blackmailed to turn on everyone he loves. His story explores the endurance of the human spirit even in the toughest circumstances. –Chelsea Stringfield from Parnassus Books in Nashville, TN
Nigel and the Moon by Antwan Eady, Gracey Zhang (illus.)
(Katherine Tegen) Childrens
Nigel and the Moon will make your heart swell in the best way! Sure to be a beloved book, Nigel's story resonates deeply with those who are scared to share their dreams. When Nigel looks up at the moon, anything is possible; but in school he's hesitant to share. Career week in school is tricky when you want to be an astronaut, dancer, and a superhero! I loved Nigel and his story, and applaud Antwan Eady on this superb debut!. –Lauren Kean from Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, NC
Delilah Green Doesn't Care by Ashley Herring Blake
(Berkley) Fiction
This is a truly lovely and joyful romance between two women that weaves together conversations of sacrifice, family, and friendship in such a beautiful way. Delilah and Claire are true champions of queer joy, and it was wonderful to read a story where queer women were the only characters. With a focus on second chances in a small town, reckoning with your past, chosen family, and of course, the way falling in love can turn you inside out, folks who enjoy Louise Miller's novels or Casey McQuiston's One Last Stop will fall in love with Delilah and Claire. –Gaby Iori from Epilogue Books Chocolate Brews in Chapel Hill, NC
Funny Farm: My Unexpected Life with 600 Rescue Animals by Laurie Zaleski
(St. Martin's Press) Memoir
Once you open this book, this story will never leave your heart. Laurie Zalenski tells of her mother’s love as the family escapes an abusive husband and father and attempts life with zero money. As the family scrapes by, they adopt and care for others including neglected animals. The love of people and animals shine on every page as the tale leads to the Funny Farm and the 600 abused and neglected animals that thrive on the New Jersey farm. You will fall in love with Laurie, the many animals, and the book as you plan your trip to see for yourself the Funny Farm. –Nancy Pierce from Bookmiser, Inc. in Marietta, GA
Mesha Maren’s thrilling follow-up to Sugar Run takes us from missionaries to wrestling matches to a luxurious cartel compound, and deep into the psychic choices that shape our identities. A sweeping novel that tells us as much about our perceptions of the United States and Mexico as it does about our own natures and desires. Mesha Maren will be in conversation with host Wiley Cash, NYT Bestselling author.
Mesha Maren is the author of Sugar Run. Her work has appeared in the Oxford American, the Guardian, Tin House, the Southern Review, and elsewhere. She was the recipient of the Thomas Wolfe Fiction Prize, an Elizabeth George Foundation grant and fellowships from the MacDowell Colony and the Ucross Foundation. She is an assistant professor at Duke University and also serves as a NEA Writing Fellow at the federal prison camp in Alderson, West Virginia
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Reservations are now being accepted for future Special Editions:
SIBA is hosting an in-person “Come Together” celebration of our amazingly creative and resilient SIBA bookselling community in historic Winston-Salem, NC on Wednesday, Apr 27, 2022. This is an excellent opportunity to reconnect with booksellers you have only seen via video screen for the past two years!
VIDEO AVAILABLE TO WATCH
Bookseller sign ups for New Voices New Rooms May & August have been pouring in since registration opened last week. Stores are especially excited about the addition of the May event, with its focus on new and forthcoming books for the summer and fall season. 
NVNR August runs August 8-11, and features a week of education, bookseller retreats, author presentations, new and upcoming titles, and publisher studios, similar to NVNR from the past two years. There will be an added focus on networking and building industry connections among bookselling colleagues and publishers.
The Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance created the Wanda Jewell Scholarship Fund in honor of its much-beloved former Executive Director who retired in 2020. The scholarship,
which is funded by authors, provides financial support for bookseller professional development through education and networking at in-person SIBA-sponsored events. This scholarship is meant to help defray the costs of travel, lodging, meals, and other
expenses. As part of our commitment to continued training and staff development, we hope to help a dedicated bookseller who wants to attend, but otherwise couldn’t. We urge booksellers from typically underrepresented groups to apply.
Please write a letter of need and desire and email to 
Reader Meet Writer with Mesha Maren, author of Perpetual West
Mesha Maren is the author of Sugar Run. Her work has appeared in the Oxford American, the Guardian, Tin House, the Southern Review, and elsewhere. She was the recipient of the Thomas Wolfe Fiction Prize, an Elizabeth George Foundation grant and fellowships from the MacDowell Colony and the Ucross Foundation. She is an assistant professor at Duke University and also serves as a NEA Writing Fellow at the federal prison camp in Alderson, West Virginia