"My hope is that booksellers will not just continue this fight politically, but do what they've always done, which is continually reinvent themselves. That's really one of the superpowers of bookselling. If a chain wants to make a big change, it's got to start at the headquarters. It's got to go through a bunch of meetings. It's got to go into a budget and the budget's got to be approved. Then it's got to get rolled out.

"In contrast to that, if an indie wants to expand the romance section, they could do it tomorrow. If it's only 10 a.m., they can do it today. Booksellers not only have the smarts and the first-hand experience to reinvent themselves, they have the means to do it as well. I have no doubt that they'll continue to do that. And now more than ever, can they just keep shining a light of diversity in their communities? We're in dark times, and the light is shining out of the windows of bookstores, and that gives hope."

Johnson's Literary Depot will open in downtown Johnson City, Tenn., this spring, the Times News reported.

The general-interest bookstore will sell new and used titles and will be located in a former bank building at 333 E. Main St. In addition to books, owners Andrew and Ally McElroy will sell locally made art, music, and gifts. They hope to become a hub for community events and are aiming for a late May opening.

The McElroys revealed the bookstore's address on Saturday, Independent Bookstore Day. "One of the reasons why we quickly fell in love with that building is it's kind of, ironically, a bookend to downtown," Andrew McElroy told the Times News. "We really wanted to be on one end of Main St. and allow for people to traverse the whole of Main St. and go into all the different businesses."

They announced their plans to open a bookstore in late February and asked community members to help them assemble their inventory by trading in books for store credit. They hope to have an opening inventory of 10,000 titles, with Ally McElroy noting they're about halfway there. "That's crazy within such a short amount of time. The overwhelming support from the community has been really positive and everybody has been really excited about it."

Czech independent children's book publisher Albatros is expanding its U.S. operations. Albatros will publish American authors, add new book categories to its American catalog, and, beginning in spring 2026, will publish more titles per season.

Under founder Carolina Schwarz, We the Content, which helps children's publishers position and sell books in the U.S., will lead the overall strategic direction and management of Albatros's U.S. operations. Susan Marston, editorial director of the Junior Library Guild, will manage the school and library list.

"We are delighted to put in motion our broader U.S. expansion plans in order to serve not just the school and library market, but also a wide range of other accounts," said Albatros export manager Tomáš Jodas. "Our ambition is that within five years, Albatros will be a brand everyone will recognize for children’s books with outstanding content and terrific graphic design.

"As a solid next step, I'm truly excited to welcome Susan Marston to our team. With her deep passion for children's books and unique insight into the school and library world, I'm confident we’ll connect with even more readers, boost our U.S. sales, and expand our publishing program to 50 titles each season--ranging from children's nonfiction to picture books, activity books, and chapter books. These titles will showcase talented U.S. authors as well as a hand-picked selection of the very best that Europe has to offer."

Established in 1949, Albatros was one of the seven co-founders of the Bologna Children's Book Fair. It has been publishing titles in the U.S. since 2021 and is distributed by Consortium.

Simon & Schuster and Urano World Publishing Group, one of the biggest independent publishers in Spain and Latin America, have established a joint publishing arrangement between Primero Sueño Press, an imprint of S&S's Atria Books, and Urano Publishing. This marks the first time that Simon & Schuster will distribute directly into the Spanish-speaking market, the company said, adding that it is part of its ambition to expand the scope of its international publishing, in English, translated work, and foreign languages.

Under the agreement, some Spanish-language titles will be published in Spain and Latin America by Urano World and its imprints, as well as to most Spanish-speaking territories throughout the world. In the U.S., co-published titles will be published under the Primero Sueño Press imprint.

The first co-published title will be the Spanish edition of For Whom the Belle Tolls by Jaysea Lynn, which will be released on October 21 in conjunction with publication of the book's special edition in the U.S. Future publications include the Spanish editions of The Book of Shadow Work; Detoxify: The Everyday Toxins Harming Your Immune System; and the horror anthology The Ghosts of Where We Are From.

S&S CEO Jonathan Karp said, "Since we announced Primero Sueño Press in February 2024, the reader response to the imprint's mission to serve Spanish and English speakers has been remarkable. This partnership with Urano World Publishing Group, one of the best known and most respected publishers of Spanish-language books around the world, is an exciting next step in making these books available to readers worldwide and expanding their reach. We are thrilled to offer our authors the opportunity to extend their reach into Spanish-language markets."

Michelle Herrera Mulligan, v-p and associate publisher at Primero Sueño Press, added, "We're eager to introduce Simon & Schuster's most impactful titles to our community, both original and in translation, to new markets around the world with such a dynamic strategic partner. The Urano World Publishing Group is known for starting conversations that cross borders and genres. Our authors couldn't be in better hands."

Joaquín Sabaté, CEO of Urano World, said, "We are particularly pleased to announce this partnership with one of the world's leading publishing groups. The depth and diversity of their editorial catalog will enable us to move forward together, fostering a new and enhanced level of engagement with Spanish-speaking readers around the globe. We are delighted to embark on this journey together and confident that the market will welcome it with great enthusiasm."

Barnes & Noble will open a new store in Puyallup, Wash., this fall, the News Tribune reported.

The bookstore will reside in Puyallup's South Hill Mall at 3500 S. Meridian, Unit No. 800. It will be the second B&N store in Washington's Pierce County, and one of the more than 60 new stores B&N plans to open this year. The company is aiming for an October opening.

"We're really enjoying our refreshed seating area. There's room for an extra person at the puzzle table now! Come relax in this cozy spot," Wheatberry Books, Chillicothe, Ohio., posted on Facebook.

Ashley Marie Mireles-Guerrero is joining Judging by the Cover: A Bookstore, Fresno, Calif., as a full-time bookseller. She has been director of sales and marketing for Familius.

Erika Sargent is taking over Mireles-Guerrero's responsibilities at Familius. She is returning to the company in one of her original roles.

The Glass Pyramid: A Story of the Louvre Museum and Architect I.M. Pei by Jeanne Walker Harvey, illustrated by Khoa Le (Atheneum).

Tomorrow:
Good Morning America: Kelsey Grammer, author of Karen: A Brother Remembers (Harper Select, $31.99, 9781400252817).

CBS Mornings: Misty Copeland, author of Letters to Misty (S&S/Aladdin, $19.99, 9781534443037).

Tamron Hall: Tina Knowles, author of Matriarch: A Memoir (One World, $35, 9780593597408).

Book TV airs on C-Span 2 this weekend from 8 a.m. Saturday to 8 a.m. Monday and focuses on political and historical books as well as the book industry. The following are highlights for this coming weekend. For more information, go to Book TV's website.

Saturday, May 3
10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Live coverage from the 22nd annual Annapolis Book Festival in Annapolis, Md. (Re-airs Saturday at 10 p.m.)

5 p.m. Jacquelyn Schneider and Julia Macdonald, authors of The Hand Behind Unmanned: Origins of the US Autonomous Military Arsenal (Oxford University Press, $34.95, 9780190064389).

6 p.m. Gay Talese, author of A Town Without Time: Gay Talese's New York (Mariner, $29.99, 9780063392182).

Sunday, May 4
9:05 a.m. Martha S. Jones, author of The Trouble of Color: An American Family Memoir (Basic Books, $30, 9781541601000), at Harvard Book Store in Cambridge, Mass. (Re-airs Sunday at 9:05 p.m.)

10 a.m. David A. Graham, author of The Project: How Project 2025 Is Reshaping America (Random House, $16, 9798217153725). (Re-airs Sunday at 10 p.m.)

2 p.m. Jathan Sadowski, author of Mechanic and the Luddite: A Ruthless Criticism of Technology and Capitalism (University of California Press, $24.95, 9780520398078), at City Lights Bookstore in San Francisco, Calif.

4:25 p.m. John Warner, author of More Than Words: How to Think About Writing in the Age of AI (Basic Books, $30, 9781541605503), at Book Passage in San Francisco, Calif.

6:40 p.m. Dylan Mulvaney, author of Paper Doll: Notes from a Late Bloomer (Abrams, $28, 9781419770395).

The shortlist has been selected for the 2025 Plutarch Award, sponsored by Biographers International Organization and the only international literary award for biography judged exclusively by biographers. The winner will be named June 6 during the BIO annual conference. The shortlist:

Cynthia Carr, for Candy Darling: Dreamer, Icon, Superstar (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)
Stephanie Gorton, for The Icon & The Idealist: Margaret Sanger, Mary Ware Dennett, and the Rivalry That Brought Birth Control to America (Ecco)
David Greenberg, for John Lewis: A Life (Simon & Schuster)
Lucy Hughes-Hallett, for The Scapegoat: The Brilliant Brief Life of the Duke of Buckingham (Harper)
Adam Shatz, for The Rebel's Clinic: The Revolutionary Lives of Frantz Fanon (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)

---

The Writers' Union of Canada has released a shortlist for the C$10,000 (about US$7,255) Danuta Gleed Literary Award, which recognizes "the best first collection of short fiction by a Canadian author published in 2024 in the English language." Two finalists are also awarded C$1,000 (about US$725) each. The winners will be named in early June. This year's shortlisted titles are:

Perfect Little Angels by Vincent Anioke  
Coexistence by Billy-Ray Belcourt 
Death by a Thousand Cuts by Shashi Bhat  
Code Noir by Canisia Lubrin 
Smoke by Nicola Winstanley 

Selected new titles appearing next Tuesday, May 6:

The Tenant by Freida McFadden (Poisoned Pen Press, $17.99, 9781464227318) is a psychological thriller about a recently fired man who takes on an unsettling tenant for extra income.

My Friends: A Novel by Fredrik Backman (Atria, $29.99, 9781982112820) follows a woman tracking down subjects of a famous painting.

My Name Is Emilia del Valle: A Novel by Isabel Allende, trans. by Frances Riddle (Ballantine, $30, 9780593975091) is historical fiction about a young woman reporter during Chile's 1891 civil war.

The Art of Winning: Lessons from My Life in Football by Bill Belichick (Avid Reader Press, $35, 9781668080832) is a memoir by the former New England Patriots coach.

The Blue Book: A Must-See, Can't-Miss, Won't-Forget Guide to Nantucket by Elin Hilderbrand (Little, Brown, $20, 9780316595834) explores the setting of many of the author's novels.

Karen: A Brother Remembers by Kelsey Grammer (Harper Select, $31.99, 9781400252817) remembers a sister who was raped and murdered at age 18.

Ocean: Earth's Last Wilderness by David Attenborough and Colin Butfield (Grand Central, $34, 9781538772294) calls for the preservation of Earth's largest and least understood habitat.

Parents Weekend: A Novel by Alex Finlay (Minotaur, $28, 9781250360724) is a thriller about a group of missing college students.

The Names: A Novel by Florence Knapp (Pamela Dorman, $30, 9780593833902) tracks alternate outcomes of what a woman chooses to name her infant son.

J vs. K by Kwame Alexander and Jerry Craft (Little, Brown, $16.99, 9780316582681) is a theatrical, comical, and tongue-in-cheek middle-grade graphic novel in which the Newbery Medal winners bring their real-life rivalry to the page.

The Survivor Wants to Die at the End by Adam Silvera (Quill Tree, $23.99, 9780063240858) is the third book in the YA They Both Die at the End series featuring familiar characters dealing with the potential of a Death-Cast call.

Paperbacks:
Jilted by Vi Keeland (Bramble, $19.99, 9781250359858).

The Last Sunrise by Anna Todd (Gallery, $18.99, 9781668079539).

The Ladies Road Guide to Utter Ruin by Alison Goodman (Berkley, $19, 9780593440834).

Requiem for a Mouse: Cat in the Stacks Mystery #16 by Miranda James (Berkley, $9.99, 9780593199541).

From last week's Indie bestseller lists, available at IndieBound.org, here are the recommended titles, which are also Indie Next Great Reads:

Hardcover
The Night Trembles: A Novel by Nadia Terranova, trans. by Ann Goldstein (Seven Stories Press, $26.95, 9781644214091). "A gripping account of two strangers navigating a new world in the wake of an unfathomable natural disaster. Nicola and Barbara are brilliantly rendered, each grappling with the lives they had before the earthquake and uncovering what's possible." --Emily Tarr, Thank You Books, Birmingham, Ala.

Bad Nature: A Novel by Ariel Courage (Holt, $28.99, 9781250360885). "After being diagnosed with a terminal illness, Hester embarks on a road trip to carry out one final task before she dies: killing her father. She finds herself traveling with a passionate activist investigating superfund sites across the U.S." --Kyle Churman, Werner Books, Erie, Pa.

Paperback
A Short Walk Through a Wide World: A Novel by Douglas Westerbeke (Avid Reader Press, $18.99, 9781668026076). "A Short Walk Through a Wide World is an epic novel charting the adventurous journey of one woman trying to outrun a mysterious curse. Douglas Westerbeke's debut captures the imagination. A dazzling read!" --Linda Kass, Gramercy Books, Bexley, Ohio

Ages 4-8
Big Enough by Regina Linke (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, $18.99, 9780316531153). "A stunning picture book about a young boy who must face his fears when he is charged with a very important task: bring home the ox. Though he is small, Ah-Fu is just the right person to find and lead the gentle creature. A touching lesson in self-doubt and courage." --Beth Seufer Buss, Bookmarks, Winston-Salem, N.C.

Ages 10-14: An Indies Introduce Title
Ollie in Between by Jess Callans (Feiwel & Friends, $17.99, 9781250331342). "Hand this to any kid who's experienced or will experience puberty, any kid who's navigating their gender, any who've endured shifting friendships, and to any kid who's so much braver than they realize. That is, hand this to any kid!" --Tanvi Rastogi, Dog-Eared Books, Ames, Iowa

Teen Readers
Holy Terrors (Little Thieves #3) by Margaret Owen (Holt, $21.99, 9781250831170). "Folklore, magic, and mystery pair perfectly with this exploration of mental health and the power of choice. In this trilogy conclusion, Vanja reflects on her choices and realizes that she would never have been ready for the future she craves without those choices." --Kaitlyn Reed, Read Between the Lynes, Woodstock, Ill.

[Many thanks to IndieBound and the ABA!]

War comes knocking at the doors of an Appalachian luxury hotel built on a mystical mountain spring in this assured, propulsive first adult novel from powerhouse YA author Maggie Stiefvater (Call Down the Hawk; The Raven Cycle)

The morning of January 25, 1942, starts out like any other for June Hudson, mountaineer and general manager of the Avallon, a West Virginia luxury hotel. On the evening's agenda is a Robert Burns-themed ball--a demonstration that life at the hotel will remain unchanged despite the entrance of the U.S. into World War II. June has staff to direct and guests to please, "people so high on the social ladder they had to duck for the sun to go overhead." The Avallon attracts a privileged class with the money to buy themselves time surrounded by beauty, five-star service, and the allegedly curative "sweetwater" from the springs that feed the hotel's taps and bathhouses. June's job is to make sure customers feel pampered and to keep tabs on the emotions flowing in the almost-sentient waters. Then the Feds arrive.

Special Agent Tucker Minnick of the FBI informs June that her guests must leave to make way for 300 foreign nationals--high-profile citizens of Axis nations living in the U.S. The group includes diplomats and celebrities, and their family members, all in need of protection and possibly containment. Tucker, whose coal tattoo hints at a past in mining, is under pressure to turn a few key diplomats into U.S. informants or lose his career at the Bureau. His task is tough enough, but he didn't count on finding the Avallon's manager so compelling. June has her hands full convincing her staff to wait hand and foot on Axis dignitaries and her head full of her affair with the hotel's young owner, but her attraction to Tucker and her concern for the young daughter of a Nazi official will change everything she thought she knew about her future at the Avallon.

Stiefvater's unerringly distinct voice gives an almost supernatural glamor to the beauty of the West Virginia wilderness; the extravagant, remote setting adds an underpinning of gothic grandeur. Themes of class segregation and the meaning of luxury run through a narrative centering a cast of ordinary people caught in the march to war. A touch of magical realism ought to satisfy fans of Stiefvater's fantasy novels, and this mature, layered drama should appeal to historical fiction readers as well. --Jaclyn Fulwood, blogger at Infinite Reads

Shelf Talker: In early 1942, a remote West Virginia luxury hotel must host Axis citizens, to its manager's dismay, in Maggie Stiefvater's assured, propulsive first adult novel.

I just rolled my eyes and thought, Of course they did. We can’t even have one day where it’s just us--Amazon has to swoop in.

--Kelsey Black of the Book Burrow, Pflugerville, Tex., quoted in a Vulture article ("It's Cynical, Manipulative, and Cruel") on the scheduling of Amazon Book Sale

Another successful Independent Bookstore Day has come and gone, and while basking in the glow of record sales figures, heartwarming community support, and positive indie bookseller vibes, I've also been collecting media and social media reactions to the punkish move a certain online retailer pulled last week with its Amazon Book Sale, scheduled to cast a shadow over Saturday's Indie festivities. 

While expressing implausible deniability--Amazon spokesperson: "The overlap was unintentional. The dates for our sale were set this year to accommodate additional participating countries"--the coincidence was beyond suspicious. 

Andy Hunter

Noting that the Amazon Book Sale scheduling "feels like an intentional kick in the face to local bookstores," Bookshop.org CEO Andy Hunter told Fast Company: "Every independent bookstore is kind of an advocate and activist for the importance of books and reading in our society. So we want books to survive. We don't want Amazon's rise to be an extinction for local bookstores that are precious.... Independent bookstores are fighting to keep an independent marketplace for books and ideas alive, and Independent Bookstore Day is a day that everybody who supports that effort, who wants a diverse ecosystem around books, shows their support." 

Indie booksellers were quick to state their own case. Betsy Haberl, owner of Booked bookstore in Evanston, Ill., told Evanston Roundtable that some residents have lived in the neighborhood for years, but visited her store for the first time recently to change their shopping habits. 

Celebrating Indie Bookstore Day at Booked.

"I think the public showing massive support for small, local businesses is an act of protest and resistance in a capitalist society that's increasingly corporate and profit-focused," she observed. "Most small businesses have very different goals; at Booked, we absolutely prioritize our community and books over raking in profits.... I think people now understand they hold incredible power as consumers--giant companies like Amazon have massive profits, which means massive amounts of power and influence in American society. But we've seen what happens when we band together and make systemic changes--it's possible!"

In the Vulture article mentioned above, Leah Koch, co-owner of the Ripped Bodice in Los Angeles, Calif., and Brooklyn, N.Y., said, "We can never compete with Amazon on the price of books and speed of shipping because we don't employ a private army, and we know that. So Amazon is not our competitor. Our goal is to provide an experience that you cannot get on Amazon. Fuck Jeff Bezos. May he be very miserable living alone on the moon.”

Fatuma Hydara, owner of Tuma's Books, an online and pop-up shop in New York City, added: "There's no way their people didn't know this day was coming. I don't believe that it's true at all. And if it is true, that's really silly of them, and they're not nearly as impressive as they think."

Bleak House Books, Honeoye Falls, N.Y., even had a "F*ck Amazon" cookie on offer to celebrate Indie Bookstore Day, noting: "Indie Bookstore Day 2025 has come and gone. I'll tell you how much we made: $4,394.98. We make that much at the bookshop in a single day maybe three to four times a year. Jeff Bezos, by contrast, probably makes that much every time he blinks his eyes. So this post is for every indie bookseller out there, past, present and future, and the book lovers who care about them. It is to say that change is possible. Good change, necessary change, to borrow from the great John Lewis. There can be a future without the likes of Amazon and Bezos. We can reclaim our economy and our communities. Getting there won't be easy but if today is proof of anything it is that this future is very much within our grasp. A brighter, freer future.... * the F*CK AMAZON cookie is by the one and only Tina from our local Sweet and Cute sweet shop, and this post is most definitely for her as well. We love you, Tina!"
 
And Friendly City Books, Columbus, Miss., featured a Talladega Nights-inspired ("Don't you bring that evil in here!") Amazon Swear Jar, posting on Instagram: "Indie Bookstore Day is about celebrating bookstores founded and staffed by YOUR community members--people who care about your well-being. Who work every day to curate a selection of books specific to their customers. Who create safe havens in their towns. Who offer reading experiences free from censorship. Who sit with your kids in their lap, organize special events at their schools, and watch them grow up. 

"We understand many folks have never had reason to think in terms of indie bookstore vs. Amazon. But when you say the A word in the space we've put our heart and soul into, it stings. Tomorrow, we have a chance to show that our community chooses to invest in itself and all the good that an independent bookstore provides. So we ask you, please don't bring that evil in here, Ricky Bobby. We love you all--let's celebrate indie bookstores together!"