Suzanne Herz, executive v-p, publisher of Vintage/Anchor Books and executive director of publishing, Doubleday, has accepted Penguin Random House's voluntary separation offer and will leave the company, effective December 15. She will, however, continue to act as a consultant, overseeing John Grisham's frontlist and backlist in coordination with the Doubleday team.

In connection with Herz's departure, the Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group is phasing out the storied Anchor name. As of January 2024, Anchor hardcover titles will be published by other KDPG imprints--which include Knopf, Doubleday, Pantheon, and Schocken--and no more Anchor hardcovers will be acquired. Over time, Anchor paperback titles will be published by Vintage when they are reprinted.

Anchor Books was founded in 1953 by Doubleday as a high-quality trade paperback publisher aimed at the college market and serious readers; a young Jason Epstein outlined the program for Doubleday. In 1999, Anchor was merged with Vintage, which was founded by Alfred A. Knopf in 1954.

Maya Mavjee, president & publisher of the Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, noted in a statement that during the past few years, "we've worked to adapt to many shifts in the paperback marketplace," which has included aligning frontlist and backlist programs, "moving paperback publishing responsibilities to their originating imprints." Now, with Herz departing, the group has "an opportunity to further strengthen our focus on our rich and varied frontlist, which serves as the foundation for our incredible backlist." She called Vintage "one of the most recognizable and legendary imprints in the industry."

As a result of ending the Anchor imprint, Mavjee outlined some personnel changes, with a large group of Vintage/Anchor Books staff moving to other areas within the group.

Suzanne Herz

Mavjee praised Herz's "extraordinary 30 years with the company," which started at Putnam as a publicist. She has also been publicity director, marketing director, associate publisher, and publisher at Vintage/Anchor Books since 2019. "She has touched every aspect of bookmaking and along the way her distinctive reading tastes (especially those as a thriller junkie), penchant for embracing debut writers, and innovative and inventive thinking--on scales both large and small--have centered on a book-and-author-first approach from the very beginning," Mavjee continued. "Suzanne is an enduring and deeply respected member of the publishing community not only because of her dedication to her authors and their books, but to her colleagues as well. She has mentored and guided some of Penguin Random House's brightest lights along with a host of publicists and marketers throughout the industry."

Mavjee also wrote that Herz has worked with a range of authors and their books, most notably 35 books by John Grisham and four novels by Dan Brown. "Suzanne's visionary leadership and innate creativity have not only been valued by her many colleagues but have also been recognized industry-wide: she has been a two-time recipient of Ad Age's illustrious Marketer of the Year award."

Parentheses Books, a general-interest bookstore that raised more than $55,000 through a crowdfunding campaign, is expected to open in Harrisonburg, Va., by the end of this month, the Breeze JMU reported.

Amanda Friss

Store owner Amanda Friss, who previously worked at New York City's Three Lives & Company for around eight years, will carry fiction and nonfiction for children and adults along with cookbooks, poetry, and course books for students at nearby James Madison University.

The store will span about 890 square feet inside the Liberty Street Mercantile, a new indoor market in Harrisonburg, and Friss's event plans include author signings, open mic nights, and more. She had originally planned to have the store open by the start of the summer, but there were construction delays. Now she expects finally to have the store open by the end of this month.

"I'm hoping Parentheses will be a community store where people can come and find things serendipitously," Friss told the Breeze. "I hope they will be able to come in and feel comfortable and welcome in the space."

Story Keeper Bookstore, a general-interest bookstore with titles for all ages, opened a bricks-and-mortar location last month in Selma, N.C. 

Owner Tammy Braglin carries a wide assortment of new and used books in her roughly 1,000-square-foot shop in Selma's downtown. The shop held a grand opening celebration on August 5, and Braglin is starting to roll out more events this month, including book clubs and children's storytime sessions. There is also a special scavenger hunt event planned for downtown Selma this month and, beyond that, Braglin hopes to start hosting authors and planning "tons of fun events."

While Braglin carries books for all ages, one of her major goals is to "really reach out and connect to our young adults," specifically young people between the ages of 13-20. She explained: "I want them to have a place to come and read, and hang out and enjoy each other in a safe and welcoming environment."

Owner Tammy Braglin and her husband, John Braglin.

Prior to opening Story Keeper, Braglin had no experience in bookselling, though she'd always dreamed of opening a bookstore once she retired. She'd previously worked in banking and in senior care, with her most recent job being the program coordinator at a local senior center. She recalled that when she was young, becoming a librarian was not considered important or pushed as a career, so she pursued other avenues. But all along she was "loving books, literature, reading, and history. My true passion."

Last November Braglin opened Story Keeper as an online and pop-up store, traveling to vendor events in Selma and nearby towns. Initially it was "more of a hobby," a way of connecting with people who loved books and reading as much as she did. Braglin is part of a community group called Activate Selma, which works to help revitalize the town, and in April a fellow member of the group told Braglin about a space available next to a popular coffee shop.

She visited the space on the same day and found it to be the "absolutely perfect location and size." Within two weeks she had the store rented, and over the ensuing months she and her husband "gutted the building from top to bottom" and "started over," bringing the store back to "its original beauty."

So far, Braglin reported, "the community has been so supportive and welcoming." It is the second independent bookstore in Johnston County and interest in the bookstore has been remarkable.

"I definitely missed my calling in life so I am grateful for this opportunity at 48 years old," Braglin said. "It's never too late to follow a dream!" --Alex Mutter

Coming soon: Little Gay Bookshop

Little Gay Bookstore and Queer Beans coffee shop will open this fall at 1129 N. High St., in the Short North district of Columbus, Ohio. The business "came about as many entrepreneurial endeavors do," Columbus Underground reported. Owners Reese Steiner and Lauren Branch, partners in life as well as business, "couldn't find the kind of bookstore they wanted, so they decided to build it themselves."

Steiner said the bookstore will also incorporate a coffee shop and create a safe space for people to exist: "We really wanted to foster a space that is going to have every single kind of book, any identity that someone might have, we want to have a book that represents them." With a focus on queer authors and queer stories, they also want to support local authors and writers who might have smaller followings.

The bookstore will be run as a nonprofit because they want to give back to the community, Branch noted. Nonprofit status will allow them to donate to other LGBTQ charities that they value.

Queer Beans, the for-profit coffee shop side of the business, will help support the nonprofit bookstore. Steiner said they want to be able to pay their employees a livable wage and the for-profit will help give the nonprofit a leg up. Branch added that sampling is underway to determine a roaster, and they are looking for a supplier that also values doing good in their community. The menu will be straightforward at first, with coffee and espresso drinks, and will expand over time.

As they gear up for a fall opening, Steiner said, they "like the support for small businesses in the area, the neighborhood events, walkability, and Short North's reputation as the 'gay-borhood.' But there's also a lot of bars, and they want the Little Gay Bookstore to be a more relaxed, sober alternative," Columbus Underground wrote. A GoFundMe campaign is underway to help get the store off the ground.

Elizabeth Webby, a teacher, scholar and editor who "established herself as a leading scholar of Australian 19th-century writing and, as editor of Southerly, Australia's oldest literary quarterly... supported the ongoing publication of creative and critical literary work," died August 6, the Sydney Morning Herald reported. She was 81. During her long career at the University of Sydney, Webby "nurtured the work of many writers and critics and is revered for her generosity to younger colleagues."

Webby's enthusiasm for Australian writing "and her awareness that it was a field of study that had much work to be done" fueled her Ph.D. work on the circulation and reception of Australian literature in the early 19th century and "laid the groundwork for many other scholars who followed her," the Morning Herald wrote.

While her early work on Henry Handel Richardson and the poetry of Charles Harpur explored canonical figures, she gradually developed interests in a range of Australian writers, including Eliza Hamilton Dunlop, Elizabeth Jolley, and Frank Moorhouse. She also supported connections with New Zealand literature.

Her decade as editor of Southerly "brought her in touch with many contemporary writers who appreciated her support," the Morning Herald noted. Webby was appointed to the chair of Australian Literature in 1990 and "brought her own practical approach to the role, not only guiding the teaching and research of Australian literature at Sydney, but also working to build a network of scholars beyond her university."

She served as president of the Association for the Study of Australian Literature in the late 1980s. She was known for her active support of the NSW Writers' Centre and her leadership of the Friends of the State Library of NSW. She judged the Miles Franklin Literary Award for five years, and for nearly a decade, off and on, chaired the judging panel of the Nita B. Kibble Literary Awards for Australian women's writing.

In 2004, Webby became a Member of the Order of Australia for her service not only to the study of Australian literature and for her direct support of writers but also for her work to foster links between the academic study of literature and the general reading community. 

Bookshop Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, Calif., hosted the launch for Nina Simon's debut novel, Mother-Daughter Murder Night (Morrow). Bookshop Santa Cruz is the author's hometown bookstore, and the novel is set 20 miles north, in Elkhorn Slough.

Monkey Wrench Books, Morgantown, W.Va., which will open later this year, shared photos of the shop's storefront window art on Facebook, noting: "We're obsessed with our new window thanks to Morgantown's own Liz Pavlovic Design! I mean Moby Tick?! Come on. Big thanks to Liz and the mega talented Matt Ditchen for capturing Liz's work so beautifully! PS--if you're walking by and have some water on hand, feel free to toss it into our droopy flowers."

The two most popular books in August at Reading Group Choices were One Summer in Savannah by Terah Shelton Harris (Sourcebooks Landmark) and Yellowface by R.F. Kuang (Morrow).

At Zibby Media:

Tracy Massaro joins as chief marketing officer.

Erinn McGrath joins as head of corporate communications from Little, Brown.

Samantha Gregory joins as head of marketing and community for Zibby's Bookshop.

Karen Menzie joins as director of sales from DK at Penguin Random House.

Katie Teas joins as publicity manager from HarperCollins.

Sarah Fradkin joins as publicity and marketing assistant.

My Home Team: A Sportswriter's Life and the Redemptive Power of Small-Town Girls Basketball by Dave Kindred (PublicAffairs).

Today:
Fresh Air: Hua Hsu, author of Stay True: A Memoir (Doubleday, $26, 9780385547772).

Tomorrow:
Good Morning America: Angie Kim, author of Happiness Falls: A Novel (Hogarth, $28, 9780593448205).

A teaser trailer has been released for Goosebumps, a live-action series based on R.L. Stine's bestselling books that premieres October 13 on both Disney+ and Hulu. Deadline reported that the 10-part series from Disney Branded Television and Sony TV will release the first five episodes as part of Disney+'s "Hallowstream" and Hulu's "Huluween" celebrations, with subsequent new episodes streaming weekly. The first two episodes will also air on Freeform October 13 as part of its "31 Nights of Halloween" programming.
 
"R.L. Stine's Goosebumps franchise is a pop culture phenomenon that holds a special place in the hearts of people of all ages," said Ayo Davis, president, Disney Branded Television. "We are delighted to bring this spooky new series to audiences everywhere in a big way on Disney+ and Hulu, which we hope will not only captivate new audiences with its elevated thrills and chills, but also lifelong fans nostalgic for the stories that are a staple of their generation."

Written by Nick Stoller and Rob Letterman, Goosebumps stars Justin Long (Barbarian) and Rachael Harris (Lucifer), alongside newcomers Zack Morris (EastEnders), Isa Briones (Star Trek: Picard), Miles McKenna (Guilty Party), Ana Yi Puig (Gossip Girl), and Will Price (The Equalizer).

The winners of the 2022 Ned Kelly Awards, sponsored by the Australian Crime Writers Association and celebrating the best in Australian crime writing, have been named. This year's winners are:

Crime fiction: Exiles by Jane Harper
Debut crime fiction: Wake by Shelley Burr
True crime: Betrayed by Sandi Logan
International crime fiction: The Lemon Man by Keith Bruton,

ACWA chair Karina Kilmore said: "It's a tough gig writing a book and it's never been more important than now to ensure that we continue to support and celebrate Australian authors as the specter of artificial intelligence threatens the future of human creativity." 

--- 

Sisters in Crime announced the winners of the 2023 Davitt Awards, recognizing the best crime and mystery books by Australian women, are:

Adult novel: All That's Left Unsaid by Tracey Lien
YA novel: Seven Days by Fleur Ferris
Children's novel: The Sugarcane Kids and the Red-bottomed Boat by Charlie Archbold
Nonfiction book: Out of the Ashes by Megan Norris
Debut book: Dirt Town by Hayley Scrivenor
Readers' Choice: The Unbelieved by Vikki Petraitis

Philomena Horsley, the judges' facilitator, commented: "The number of quality entries each year continues to rise as publishers invest in books that showcase the authorial skills and creativity amongst both Australia's established and debut crime writers. And writers are also increasingly going their own way--self-publishing their stories in increasing numbers. The end result is a bonanza for the crime-loving public." 

photo: Christa Harriis

Mitchell S. Jackson won the 2021 Pulitzer Prize for Feature Writing and the 2021 National Magazine Award in Feature Writing. His debut novel, The Residue Years, won a Whiting Award and the Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence. His essay collection, Survival Math: Notes on an All-American Family, was named a best book of 2019 by 15 publications. Jackson's other honors include fellowships, grants, and awards from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, Creative Capital, the Cullman Center of the New York Public Library, the Lannan Foundation, PEN America, and TED. His writing has been featured on the cover of the New York Times Book Review, Time, and Esquire, as well as in the New Yorker, Harper's, the Paris Review, the Guardian, and elsewhere. Jackson is a contributing writer for the New York Times Magazine and a columnist for Esquire and holds the John O. Whiteman Dean's Distinguished Professorship in the Department of English at Arizona State University. Fly: The Big Book of Basketball Fashion (Artisan, September  5, 2023) is a photo-rich lookbook and cultural commentary on NBA fashion.

Handsell readers your book in 25 words or less:

This is the very first book on NBA fashion, the most sartorial-minded sports league. It's also an exploration of the culture that shapes fashion.

On your nightstand now:

What's on my nightstand right now is a bound manuscript of Jesmyn Ward's next novel, Let Us Descend. Both of Jesmyn's last two novels won the National Book Award, and this book is more of what I love and admire about her work--the rich language, her gift for imagery and metaphor, her empathy and acuity. It is also evidence of her pushing herself to write about a different time. (It's set during slavery.)

Another one on the shelf is a galley of Safiya Sinclair's stunning upcoming memoir, How to Say Babylon. It's a memoir that explores Safiya's upbringing in Jamaica, her life in a strict Rastafarian household, and her liberation from those strictures with the help of poetry. Safiya is also one of the most gifted poets writing today, and there's ample proof of that fact in the lushness and lyricism of her prose.

I also have a copy of A. Van Jordan's new hybrid prose-poetry collection, When I Waked, I Cried to Dream Again. (If you can't tell, I love reading poetry.) Jordan usually has a concept organizing his collections. In this book, Jordan draws comparisons between Black characters in Shakespearean plays and the deaths of Black people, particularly Black children, at the hands of police officers.

Favorite book when you were a child:

I never read for pleasure when I was a child. But when I was young, there was a door-to-door salesman hawking encyclopedias. My mom bought me a pair of them, and I studied them the rest of the summer. And it was a pleasure.

Your top five authors:

Toni Morrison, who, as far as I'm concerned, is the GOAT of American letters. James Baldwin for nonfiction; though I also love his fiction, his nonfiction was the paragon of sagacity and prescience. John Edgar Wideman for his excellence in fiction and nonfiction, always pushing himself creatively, and maintaining excellence over a 50-year career. Natalie Diaz for her poetry, her astounding imagery and metaphor, the richness and texture of her work. Junot Díaz for his indelible voice, his formal ambition, and his humor.

Book you've faked reading:

Moby-Dick. That joint is too long. I always feel like I could read two or three good books in the time it would take me to finish it.  

Book you're an evangelist for:

Junot Díaz's Drown was a book I read in graduate school that really blew me away. He was writing about kids and a young man in the Dominican Republic and New Jersey, but those characters spoke to me. Plus, he didn't sound like anyone else. I think I could pick up Junot's work without a byline and know it's him, which to me is just about the ultimate compliment.

The same goes for Denis Johnson's Jesus' Son. Another great voice. Also, the imagery and metaphor in the book are astounding.

The same goes for Joan Didion's The White Album. Didion must be mentioned with all those men considered pioneers of creative nonfiction.

Book you've bought for the cover:

Hmm. I just saw the cover of Justin Torres's new novel Blackouts, and it's amazing. On the surface it looks like a simple cover, but also sophisticated. I'm buying that book for the cover and for the prose. Torres is an amazing writer. I loved his debut, a novel in stories, We the Animals.

Book you hid from your parents:

I didn't have to hide any books from my parents, because I wasn't reading anything but my textbooks. But I did have to hide my Too Short cassette tape. It featured waaaay too much cursing for a 10- or 11-year-old's ears. My mom used to confiscate the tape, and I'd find it in the trunk, sneak it out, and listen to it again until I was busted. Late '80s and early '90s rap music has been a huge influence on my literary voice.

Book that changed your life:

Hmm. The book that stands out as a measure of literary greatness is Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon. I think it's Morrison's best. It changed my life in terms of showing me what's possible as an artist and writer. However, I also must mention the short story "Weight" by John Edgar Wideman. The story is about a man who is dealing with the loss of his mother. And I mention it because of the voice of the narrative, which became a license for me to lean into my instincts as a prose stylist, to embrace language that had been foundation to me.

Favorite line from a book:

I love Edward P. Jones. One of my favorite short stories of his is titled "Old Boys, Old Girls" from the collection All Aunt Hagar's Children. In the story, a man named Caesar goes to prison for murder and, when he gets there, is mentored by some old lifers. One of the lifers counsels Caesar that to survive in prison he must be aggressive, and that Caesar should start by intimidating his celly. He tells him: "Caes, you gon be here a few days, so you can't let nobody fuck with your humanity." That line is one of my favorites because it illuminates how humanity in prison is often the opposite of what it is in the world, the flip of caring for people, treating them with kindness, of seeing others as human.

Five books you'll never part with:

Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon. The best book I've read. It's epic in scope, filled with symbolism and imagery and complex characters. Its language is as close to perfection in prose as I've read.

Junot Díaz's Drown is one of the best collections I've read. I love Junot's use of high and low diction and the scope of the collection, how it moves from childhood into adulthood, from the Dominican Republic to Jersey.

James Baldwin's The Fire Next Time. It was published in 1963, but Baldwin could be talking about 2023 America with its rampant bigotry and racism.

John Edgar Wideman's Brothers and Keepers. As a formerly incarcerated person, this book resonated with me deeply. I felt like I was a cross between Wideman, the scholar, and his brother, the hustler who served decades in prison.

Joan Didion's The White Album. If you haven't figured it out by now, I'm drawn to indelible literary voices. Didion's voice is one such example. It's lyrical and precise. I also love how matter-of-factly she sees the world. It's sober to the point of being almost jaded. But only almost jaded.  

Book you most want to read again for the first time:

The book I want to read again for the first time is the Bible. I'm working on a novel that centers on a cult leader who is also a preacher. I need to read scripture again and again. Plus, every time I read it, I learn something else, or something becomes clearer. One thing is for sure: the Bible is an example of the power of repetition. And, again, I don't read for pleasure. I read for instruction, inspiration, edification. If it's pleasurable, that's all the better.

Among the Bros: A Fraternity Crime Story is Max Marshall's investigation into the series of arrests and criminal charges related to fraternities at the College of Charleston in South Carolina and the individuals involved. A press conference during the College of Charleston's 2016 summer break caught the attention of Marshall, a journalist, recent college graduate, and fraternity member himself. Mug shot photos showed five fraternity members and three friends. "They looked like guys who put in time at the gym, and maybe at the beach, and definitely at the putting green," Marshall writes. These eight young men were accused of selling a variety of controlled substances, including Xanax, which, as police chief Greg Mullen put it, seemed to be "a drug of choice right now." According to authorities, this case was also related to the recent murder of another fraternity member. Intrigued, Marshall follows the story of those eight arrests and the changing cultural identity of Greek organizations in the United States.

Among the Bros focuses on Mikey Schmidt, a Kappa Alpha, to whom Marshall spoke via a series of contraband cell phones as Schmidt served 10 years without parole. Age 21 at the time of his arrest, Schmidt is one of the flashiest characters in the story Marshall unearths, and he receives the most serious sentence of the group. He and his best friend, Rob Liljeberg III (also a Kappa Alpha), form the backbone of Marshall's reporting. They put human faces on an investigation into the intersection of Greek life, drug dealing, and criminal activity by a particularly privileged and overwhelmingly white male demographic.  

Over the course of four years, Marshall consulted police files, court transcripts, and other documents, and conducted more than 180 interviews with 124 sources. The narrative he presents is sad, deeply disquieting, and often sordid. The fraternity members he interviews all deny using date-rape drugs but allow that others around them do. He meets with one fraternity alumnus who describes mixing gin, Mountain Dew, Xanax, and cocaine--and then tries to sell Marshall his financial planning service. "When I asked an SAE [Sigma Alpha Epsilon] what his friends did the weekend after the Mother Emmanuel killings, he said, 'Things just aren't going to stop.... As insensitive as it sounds, it's still Friday.' " The portrait these anecdotes paint is not flattering, but Marshall remains compassionate, sympathizing with the pull of belonging, and the promise of like-minded friends.

Among the Bros finishes without moral lessons or final conclusions, instead aiming clearly to report events that will disturb most readers. Combining excellent journalism and deftly paced storytelling, this chilling tale lifts a veil on a decadent and troubling lifestyle. --Julia Kastner, librarian and blogger at pagesofjulia

Shelf Talker: This investigative narrative of fraternity members turned drug dealers--and worse--exposes unsavory aspects of college life.

Seven decades ago, in his poem "Days" Philip Larkin asked, "What are days for?" His reply, in part: "Days are where we live./ They come, they wake us/ Time and time over./ They are to be happy in:/ Where can we live but days?"

At Hickory Stick Bookshop

For some reason, I thought of Larkin's poem this week when I learned that Wednesday was National Read a Book Day. Of course, every day is National Something Day (Wednesday was also National Coffee Ice Cream Day, which I dutifully celebrated.). In addition, every day is read a book day for many of us. 

In fact, there are so many book-related celebratory days that it's hard to know whether some are even worth acknowledging. I'll admit, however, that I was a bit surprised by the enthusiasm with which #NationalReadaBookDay caught on this year on social media. I don't recall that happening before. The day's curious placement at the end of summer vacations and Labor Day Weekend, not to mention the beginning of the school year, would seem to work against it. 

Still, celebrate people did. I saw posts from expected sources--Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden and the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library, among others--and less expected sources, like the TSA, a timber company, a global transportation provider, a real estate company, a funeral home, a laundromat, a milk company, and the Iowa Governor's Traffic Safety Bureau.

Still, I take my cues from indie booksellers. When they celebrate, I celebrate, so as the indie posts accumulated marking National Read a Book Day, I collected them. Here's a sampling:

At Gramercy Books

Gramercy Books, Bexley, Ohio: "Happy National Read a Book Day! Not that we EVER need an excuse to read, obviously. Check out what our Gramercy Booksellers are reading right now!"

The Family Book Shop, DeLand, Fla.: "It's National Read a Book Day!! Don't know what to read? Ask Kaaren, Kerry or Jess for some excellent 'keep you up at night' recommendations!"

Northshire Bookstore, Manchester Center, Vt., & Saratoga Springs, N.Y.: "Celebrate National Read a Book Day with us! Grab a brand new title in store or online at http://northshire.com and dive right in!"

Read Spotted Newt, Hazard, Ken.: "Today is Read a Book Day, a reminder to take a break from the digital world and rediscover the joy of turning real pages. So unplug, unwind, and lose yourself in the adventures that books offer. Share your cozy reading spot in the comments!"
 
Blue Mountain Bookstore, Laramie, Wyo.: "Come celebrate National Read A Book day with some book sales! 20% off select titles AND $1 used books. In-store only today."

At Carmichael's Bookstore

Carmichael's Bookstore, Louisville, Ken.: "It's National Read A Book Day! Not that we need an extra excuse to pick up a book and celebrate reading, but we'll take it! What book(s) are you reading right now?"

Neighborly Books, Maryville, Tenn.: "At Neighborly Books, we believe in the magic and power that books hold. They can transport us to far-off places, introduce us to unique characters, and inspire us in countless ways. Happy National Read a book day!" 

The Book & Nook, Warwick, N.Y.: "Today is National Read a Book Day!! Come celebrate with us by shopping local! We have classic literature for $1 and almost every genre you can think of. Our large fiction, non-fiction, and mystery shelves are waiting for you to explore."

At Elliott Bay

Elliott Bay Book Company, Seattle, Wash.: "Happy National Read a Book Day! Here's what we're currently reading."

Neighborhood Reads, Washington, Mo.: "Read a Book Day is also Book Buddy Day! Laurie spent the morning packaging up Clover's Picks for September and October! Every book gets a sticker recognizing the generous donor! Andy will deliver these this week to area school and public libraries! We are proud to partner with the Community Literacy Foundation and its sponsors to gift so many outstanding books for kids to READ! You can find all of these books in the bookshop too!"

At Browseabout Books

Browseabout Books, Rehoboth Beach, Del.: "Happy #nationalreadabookday! Let us know down below what books you're all reading!"

Ernest & Hadley Booksellers, Tuscaloosa, Ala.: "Every day is a good day to read a book, but today is a better day than most because it's National Read a Book Day! So of course, we thought we would share what our booksellers are currently reading! Are y'all planning on reading anything today to celebrate?"

Wildflower Bookshop, Grand Rapids, Minn.: "National Read A BOOK Day! Sit back a read a good book!"
 
Midtown Reader, Tallahassee, Fla.: "What better way to celebrate National Read A Book Day than by grabbing a new book?⁠ The Raging Storm IS the next book you need to pick up! It has all the things you love: childhood memories, detectives, and murder!⁠"

At Page 158 Books

Page 158 Books, Wake Forest, N.C.: "Happy #NationalReadABookDay. We can't think of anything better to do than read a good book. What are you reading to celebrate?"

Another Chapter Bookstore, Fairport, N.Y.: "Happy national read a book day! What are you reading today?"

Hickory Stick Bookshop, Washington Depot, Conn.: "Today... is National Read a Book Day.  It calls all book lovers to indulge in their favorite hobby, GUILT-FREE!!  Bringing new worlds to life, books enlighten us and transport us on exciting adventures."  

Auburn Oil Co. Booksellers, Auburn, Ala.: "It's National Read a Book Day!! What's better than sitting and reading? The answer is nothing... nothing is better!"

Agreed... every day.