7 Reads From Independent Bookstores To Get “Shelf Aware”
For the last six months we have been staring at our screens longer and harder as we moved online for work, school, and entertainment. We wanted to help you escape the dull routine of screen time and dive into an imaginative literary journey, expand your worldview through an educational publication or even take on a “Shy Monster.” Check out these three fantastical book stores and what they have lined up for your next literary adventure.
As we enter the fourth quarter and holiday season, the American Bookseller Association is encouraging readers to shop early with the motto “October is the new December.” Shopping early is paramount and will not only help bookstores and other small businesses make it through the end of the year but ensure that you get the books you want. There is a high demand for books and the potential for supply chain disruptions and delayed inventory shipments. Help support Arizona bookstores; shop early and local!
Tucson:
Antigone Books
Antigone Books is currently open to the public in a number of ways. You can trade in your old books, make an appointment to take a tour around the store or order for curbside pick up. They have stringent COVID policies and want to keep you reading and safe.
“La Voz De M.A.Y.O: TATA RAMBO is based on the oral history of Ramon Jaurigue, an orphan and WWII veteran who co-founded the Mexican, American, Yaqui, and Others (M.A.Y.O.) organization, which successfully lobbied the Tucson City Council to improve living and working conditions for members of the Pascua Yaqui tribe. Thanks to this period of activism, the Yaquis were federally recognized as one of the remaining Native American tribes. Meanwhile Ramon's home life suffered as his focus was pulled from family to wider community, and from domesticity to the adrenaline of the campaign.A resonant, neglected slice of American history is told for the first time with art by J. GONZO, letter art by BERNARDO BRICE, edited by CLAIRE NAPIER. LA VOZ DE M.A.Y.O boasts a script by HENRY BARAJAS, the great-grandson of Ramon Jaurigue, a.k.a. Tata Rambo.”-Nadia from Antigone Books
“Kali Fajardo-Anstine’s magnetic story collection, Sabrina & Corina, breathes life into her Latina characters of indigenous ancestry and the land they inhabit in the American West. Against the remarkable backdrop of Denver, Colorado—a place that is as fierce as it is exquisite—these women navigate the land the same way they navigate their lives: with caution, grace, and quiet force.
In ‘Sugar Babies,’ ancestry and heritage are hidden inside the earth but tend to rise during land disputes. ‘Any Further West’ follows a sex worker and her daughter as they leave their ancestral home in southern Colorado only to find a foreign and hostile land in California. In ‘Tomi,’ a woman leaves prison and finds herself in a gentrified city that is a shadow of the one she remembers from her childhood. And in the title story, ‘Sabrina & Corina,’ a Denver family falls into a cycle of violence against women, coming together only through ritual.
Sabrina & Corina is a moving narrative of unrelenting feminine power and an exploration of the universal experiences of abandonment, heritage, and an eternal sense of home.”-Kate from Antigone Books
Flagstaff:
Bright Side Bookstore
Bright Side is currently open to the public for in store shopping or curbside pick up. For in store shopping, masks and social distancing are mandatory. If you’d like to just pick up you can choose the “curbside pickup” option when checking out on their online store!
“Sustainability: A Love Story, by Nicole Walker, provides a compelling series of essays that will provide a sense of relief to anyone who has faced the dilemma and struggles of attempting to be a ’good environmentalist.’ Through her personal observations, reflections, and experiences, she reminds us of how our complicated world will often provide seemingly insurmountable barriers to our lofty intentions. She will leave you smiling and nodding in agreement one moment and wincing in sympathy the next. Ultimately, she kindly reminds you to be kind to yourself while trying to be kind to the planet and that it is worth the heartache to keep trying.”
-Cori Cusker from Bright Side Bookshop
Are you attempting to be a “good environmentalist”? Perhaps you should check our Sustainability: A Love Story from Bright Side Bookshop.
“Pure Land, by Annette McGivney, provides an intricately woven story of trauma, regional history, and culture. What begins as a quest to understand why Tomomi Hanamure was murdered by a young Havasupai, quickly transforms into a personal memoir walking alongside the story of two young people who struggled to find their place in a complicated world. This journey begins at the bottom of the Grand Canyon, but will take you to far flung places around the West and also to Japan. Unflinchingly, Annette delves into how the development of the West and the Grand Canyon National Park established a history of trauma for an entire group of people that is still very present today.”
-Cori Cusker from Bright Side Bookshop
If you want to check out this journey, Bright Side Bookstore can help!
Phoenix:
Grassrootz Books and Juice Bar
Grassrootz is all online to prioritize the health of their team. They have their entire selection on their site and can ship their books out to your home quickly!
“The Shy Monster is a story about a little girl who struggles to overcome her shyness. Her shyness is depicted as a mean monster who bullies her, making her scared to speak up and go after her dreams.
I recommend this book because it empowers children to become more self-confident and brave by showing them how to overcome fear & shyness. The book also includes some very helpful discussion questions and tips for parents and teachers of shy children.
Another thing that I love is that the main character is Black, the author is Black, the illustrator is Black, and the book was produced by DG Self-Publishing, a Black-owned self-publishing company. Buying this book provides my children with the opportunity to see positive images of characters who look like them and also helps with circling money through the Black community.
The Shy Monster is my daughters' favorite book and definitely a children's book that I highly recommend.”
-Ali, owner of Grassrootz
“Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community is the last book from Martin Luther King, Jr., written before his assassination in 1968. It’s a series of essays in which Dr. King addresses the status of the Civil Rights movement, its progress, what has held it back and what he believes it will take to move it forward.
While it was written 50 years ago, I was surprised by how much of his writing is still relevant today. Not just because we have much yet to accomplish in the realm of race relations, but because we have much to accomplish in the realm of justice.
King vividly walks us through his experiences and thinking at such a pivotal moment in his life and the history of the country. It was both inspiring and disheartening to read the visions and ideals he held that could benefit all of humanity. The internal struggles he experienced during this time gave a sobering view the harsh realities of those who fight for justice. It also laid out a very clear path forward if we are going to heal and move forward together as a global society.
In many ways history is repeating and, for me, it's very important that we go back and look at the solutions that were laid out by those who paid the ultimate price and recommit ourselves to the struggle for freedom.”
-Ali, Owner of Grassrootz
How to Resist Amazon and Why
“This is an excellent, concise resource for persuading the unconvinced and assisting those who ‘would if they knew how’.” - Delaney from Antigone Books