Lauren Ciborski has joined the American Booksellers Association as chief financial officer. She succeeds PK Sindwani, who became CFO in 2019 and is retiring in August.

Laura Ciborski

Ciborski was formerly controller at Threefold Educational Foundation and School and before that managing director of Miles Square Theatre and grant writer and foundation relations manager at the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America.

In an interview with Bookselling This Week, Ciborski said she has had "a really nonlinear career trajectory and I've worn a lot of different hats--sometimes simultaneously--in different higher education, arts and culture, and nonprofit positions. I started out working in libraries, and I went to library school. After that I moved into fundraising. I learned to be a grant writer and I did prospect research, identifying potentially wealthy donors who might make large gifts in a university office.

"About 12 years ago, I got a job at a nonprofit theater, initially doing development work--grant writing, writing annual appeals--and some communications. And I did a lot of other things: operations, helping with productions, bookkeeping. It was a great opportunity for me to learn new things, and I discovered that I really like working with numbers. The theater needed someone to write budgets, and create reports for our board, and handle banking, and manage the audit... so I became that person. That's how I got into finance, and I went back to school again and got another master's degree in accounting.

"The thing I love about working with numbers is that they tell a story about how an organization is doing and what it prioritizes, and about who the organization really is. Because where we put our money is evidence of what we value, right?

"In the middle of my accounting program I got a job working as a controller--which is very similar to what I'm doing at ABA. I learned so much in that role. I managed the finances of a very complex nonprofit, migrated an accounting system and integrated business operations into a single office. I got to do a lot that was both fun and hard, and it was all very meaningful to me, because I could see how that work was important to the whole."

As to why she joined the ABA, Ciborski said, "At my last job, I solved all the problems I was hired to solve, and I was ready to make a change and join an organization that better aligned with who I am... There was this feeling of coming home when I got a response to my application. This job is a perfect fit for where I am in my career and where I want to be.

"There's so much that this organization does that I think is amazing. ABA is supporting its members in ways that are innovative and different from the other membership organizations that I'm familiar with. And the workplace culture is very proactive and goals-oriented--it's very different from most of the nonprofits I've worked with, and I really appreciate it."

A new and used bookstore called the Diana has opened on a limited basis in Winchester, Ill., the Journal Courier reported.

Located at 11 E. Market St., the Diana combines a bookstore with an art gallery and emphasizes local history and artists. Owner Lucy Reid hopes the Diana will become a third space, hosting book-focused events like book clubs as well as art exhibits.

"I didn't want it to just be a bookstore or a gallery," Reid told the Journal Courier. "I wanted there to be a place for the girls and women to gather, to talk." She also wants it to be a space "where artists can come together and thrive so they are not just out there on their own."

Reid has worked as a bookseller before, having joined Our Town Books in Jacksonville, Ill., in 2018, when it was owned by Jessica Gale. Reid left the store shortly before Gale sold it to current owner Khristina Helmich, and later returned. She has also been temporarily using an open/closed sign from Our Town Books until her own signage is done.

"There are so many people that played big parts in making the Diana happen," Reid wrote on Facebook, "but if it hadn't been for Jess teaching me how to sell books, and Khristina's endless support, encouraging me to open an art gallery, answering my questions, and reminding of the important things to do in the immediate now, this would never have happened.... Thank you both for everything you have done to support this wild dream of mine."

Currently, the Diana's hours are limited and renovations continue on an upstairs space that will be turned into a residence; a small kitchen is also being added. Reid hopes to expand hours by late August.

I'll Meet You There bookstore and coffee shop will open in December at 62 16th Ave. SW in the Czech Village neighborhood, Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The Gazette reported that co-owners and sisters Lindsay McGrath and Jaymie McGrath "hope to carry on the legacy of their late mother, Mary Kay McGrath."

An entrepreneur and property owner, known as the "Angel of the Village," Mary Kay McGrath led revitalization efforts in the Czech Village and New Bohemia districts until she died in 2024, the Gazette noted.

The store's name was inspired by a phrase Mary Kay McGrath and her husband, Pat, often shared, "whether arranging a meeting for business or planning a simple dinner together," according to the store's website. "It spoke to their unwavering love and trust, a promise that no matter the destination, they would always find one another. This sentiment is so cherished in the McGrath family that Mary Kay's headstone bears those very words, a message of comfort and faith: she will meet her loved ones again in Heaven."

Inspired by their parents, Lindsay and Jaymie McGrath have a vision that every detail of the shop reflects the work ethic and tenacity their parents instilled in them. They hope to "create the space to celebrate connections, community and a love for books, as well as encourage a slower pace with carefully curated shelves and a menu of coffee beverages paired with sweet treats."

Sister's Uptown Bookstore and Cultural Center in New York City is raising funds to help stave off closure, Patch.com reported.

Store owner Janifer Wilson, who opened Sister's in 2000, has a fundraiser scheduled for Friday evening. Called the Mid-Summer Party, the event will feature games, music, a DJ, and refreshments, with a suggested donation of $25.

The 25-year-old Black-owned bookstore has fallen five months behind on rent and has come to a tenuous month-to-month agreement with the building owners. Wilson told Patch that the store's financial difficulties are the result of declines in book sales and foot traffic that have been ongoing for several years, with gentrification, the Covid-19 pandemic, and competition with online retailers all contributing.

Wilson emphasized the importance of Sister's, which hosts plenty of cultural events and provides free books for children, in the current political and social climate. "Our history is trying to be eradicated, between banned books and closing institutions," she said. "They are just trying to write us off, as if we don't exist or we don't belong here. So, I'm holding on--I'm holding on for dear life."

Beyond raising funds for the store, Wilson is also considering ways Sister's can evolve with the time and "move into another dimension of literacy."

"I just feel like the legacy that has been built can't go away, because it's not about Janifer Wilson, it's about the community," she said.

On Wednesday, July 30, Barnes & Noble will host a grand opening celebration for its new bookstore in Westminster Crossing West at 402 Englar Rd. in Westminster, Md. Author B.K. Borison is cutting the ribbon and signing copies of her books. The 20,000-square-foot store includes a B&N Café. 

"We are very pleased to open this beautiful new Barnes & Noble in Westminster, our first in Carroll County," B&N said.

Posted on Facebook by the Bookstore Plus in Lake Placid, N.Y.: "Bookstore bliss and wedding day wishes! Celebrating the happy couple and the love of books! Thanks for including us in your celebrations!"

Eartha Kitt, v-p of personnel management, at Wild Rumpus Books

The New York Times explored the world of bookstore pets in an article posted Wednesday morning, highlighting some of the cats, dogs, rabbits, chinchillas, birds, tortoises, lizards, and more that dwell at independent bookstores all over the country. 

Stores mentioned in the article include: Wild Rumpus Books in Minneapolis, Minn.; Bear Pond Books in Montpelier, Vt.; Scattered Books in Chappaqua, N.Y.; Literary Cat Co. in Pittsburg, Kan.; and Parnassus Books in Nashville, Tenn.

"Fill your house with stacks of books, in all the crannies and all the nooks." Words of wisdom and sound advice found on the message board at Anthology for Books in Geneseo, Ill., which noted: "Does your home have crannies and nooks? If so, Anthology is your place for books!"

Quail Ridge Books, Raleigh, N.C., shared a video on Instagram: "Here we are recreating some of our favorite book covers. How’d we do?"

Today:
Here & Now: Katie Yee, author of Maggie; or, A Man and a Woman Walk Into a Bar: A Novel (S&S/Summit Books, $26.99, 9781668084212).

Tomorrow:
Today: Jasmine Guillory, author of Flirting Lessons (Berkley, $29, 9780593100905).

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, July 26
12:40 to 5:40 p.m. Coverage of the 2025 Roosevelt Reading Festival at the FDR Presidential Library in Hyde Park, N.Y., which took place on July 21. Highlights include:

• 12:40 p.m. Jason Taylor, author of The Brew Deal: How Beer Helped Battle the Great Depression (Macmillan, $32.99, 9783031731327).
• 1:25 p.m. Karen A. Frenkel, author of Family Treasures Lost & Found (‎Post Hill Press, $22.99, 9798888459560).
• 2:08 p.m. Christopher O'Sullivan, author of Frank Knox: Roughrider in FDR's War Cabinet (Macmillan, $169.99, 9783031336492).
• 2:58 p.m. David Kohnen, author of King's Navy: Fleet Admiral Ernest J. King and the Rise of American Sea Power, 1897-1947 (Schiffer Military History, $49.99, 9780764368370).
• 3:46 p.m. Jeffrey P. Rogg, author of The Spy and the State: The History of American Intelligence (Oxford University Press, $39.99, 9780197678732).
• 4:39 p.m. Richard Breitman, author of A Calculated Restraint: What Allied Leaders Said about the Holocaust (Harvard University Press, $35, 9780674293649).

Sunday, July 27
3:30 p.m. Chris Hughes, author of Marketcrafters: The 100-Year Struggle to Shape the American Economy (Avid Reader Press/S&S, $30, 9781668050170), at Politics and Prose in Washington, D.C. 

4:35 p.m. Former Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden discusses her career, her firing, and the future of American libraries at the American Librarian Association's annual conference in Philadelphia.

Ghost Cities by Siang Lu (University of Queensland Press) has won the 2025 Miles Franklin Literary Award, honoring "the novel of the highest literary merit which presents Australian life in any of its phases." Lu receives A$60,000 (about US$39,700).

Judges called Ghost Cities "at once a grand farce and a haunting meditation on diaspora. Sitting within a tradition in Australian writing that explores failed expatriation and cultural fraud, Lu's novel is also something strikingly new. In Ghost Cities, the Sino-Australian imaginary appears as a labyrinthine film-set, where it is never quite clear who is performing and who is directing. Shimmering with satire and wisdom, and with an absurdist bravura, Ghost Cities is a genuine landmark in Australian literature."

Selected new titles appearing next Tuesday, July 29:

The Winds from Further West: A Novel by Alexander McCall Smith (Pantheon, $27, 9780385551410) follows a professor seeking solace on a Scottish island.

Robert Ludlum's The Bourne Escape by Brian Freeman (Putnam, $32, 9798217046188) is the 21st thriller with Jason Bourne.

Under the Stars: A Novel by Beatriz Williams (Ballantine, $30, 9780593724255) follows three women over two centuries connected by a secret trove of paintings.

You Belong Here: A Novel by Megan Miranda (S&S/Marysue Rucci, $28.99, 9781668080979) is a thriller about deadly events at a small college.

An Oral History of Atlantis: Stories by Ed Park (Random House, $27, 9780812998993) contains 16 short stories.

Glorious Rivals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes (Little, Brown, $20.99, 9780316481311) is the second book in the author's the Grandest Game series, set in the same world as the Inheritance Games series.

Sammy and Sunny's First Day of School by Nina LaCour, illus. by Elizabeth Lilly (Rocky Pond, $18.99, 9780593695753) features a kid and a pup who experience their first days at school then decide to trade for day two.

Victory '45: The End of the War in Eight Surrenders by James Holland and Al Murray (Atlantic Monthly Press, $28, 9780802166418) explores eight Axis surrenders at the end of World War II.

Six Dimes and a Nickel: Life Lessons to Empower Change by Damon West (Post Hill Press, $28.99, 9798895651896) shares wisdom from a man once sentenced to 65 years in prison.

The Carpool Detectives: A True Story of Four Moms, Two Bodies, and One Mysterious Cold Case by Chuck Hogan (Random House, $32, 9780593733226) chronicles a group of moms who decided to investigate a cold case double murder.

Paperbacks:
The Complete Kennections: 5,000 Questions in 1,000 Puzzles by Ken Jennings (Scribner, $20.99, 9781668056530).

The Alchemy of Flowers: A Novel by Laura Resau (Harper Muse, $18.99, 9781400349098).

We Won't All Survive by Kate Alice Marshall (Viking, $12.99, 9780593691830).

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

Hardcover
Party of Liars: A Novel by Kelsey Cox (Minotaur Books, $28, 9781250378811). "Everyone loves a Sweet 16! Cox weaves together multiple narratives to build the perfect amount of suspense in her debut thriller, wherever everything and everyone are not quite what they seem." --Emily Freeman, Quail Ridge Books, Raleigh, N.C.

Cry for Me, Argentina: My Life As a Failed Child Star by Tamara Yajia (Bloomsbury, $26.99, 9781639733910). "Tamara Yajia finds a not-so-delicate balance of irreverent crassness and heartfelt storytelling. Her life is almost unbelievable while still somehow relatable. Perfect for fans of Samantha Irby, Jenny Lawson, and Maria Bamford." --Mara Panich, Fact & Fiction Downtown, Missoula, Mont.

Paperback
Sunburn by Chloe Michelle Howarth (Melville House, $19.99, 9781685892111). "Following two young girls as they fall in passionate but impossible love in '90s rural Ireland, this novel is the song Triple Dog Dare by Lucy Dacus. Reading it felt like a sunburn: The beating heat of the sun, the pain of the burn, the relief of aloe vera, and the peeling back of skin revealing something nascent yet terrifying." --Jeanette Byrnes, Browsers Bookshop, Olympia, Wash.

Ages 3-6
When You Go to Dragon School by Chelsea M. Campbell, illus. by Charlene Chua (Feiwel & Friends, $18.99, 9781250293015). "I LOVE IT! The colors are bright and happy, the dragons come in all shapes and sizes and colors, and the children are super diverse. Do not miss this book. It's bound to be a new favorite." --Andrea Iriarte, Molly's Bookstore, Melrose, Mass.

Ages 10+
Free Piano (Not Haunted) by Whitney Gardner (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, $23.99, 9781665938136). "This graphic novel is a fun story about music, fame, family, and ghosts! Gardner throws a bit of mystery into this coming-of-age story about a girl who wants to be a famous musician that gets the surprise of her life when she finds a haunted synthesizer." --Katrina Bright-Yerges, Books & Company, Oconomowoc, Wis.

Ages 14+
Tenderly, I Am Devoured by Lyndall Clipstone (Holt Books for Young Readers, $19.99, 9781250348906). "Lacrimosa Arriscane is a heroine as sharp as she is vulnerable, and her entanglement with the enigmatic Felimath siblings pulses with gothic tension and forbidden heat. Part divine horror, part tragic romance, and wholly original, this book will leave you breathless, unsettled, and aching for more." --Cassidy James Taylor, Grump & Sunshine Bookshop, Belfast, Maine

[Many thanks to IndieBound and the ABA!]

In a note to readers at the start of Blue Opening, poet Chet'la Sebree explains that "this collection, which emerged like life from the ether, is for those who, too, scramble and search, who dive into the unknown." Sebree's powerful collection plumbs those depths, each poem an exploration of how things emerge from the unknown, of origins and roots and beginnings. The book's three sections all open with a numbered poem titled "Root Logic," each one an etymological examination of a word: womb, breast, and brain. Though each is a distinct piece, the numbering makes them feel like linked stanzas, uniting the book across their shared form and structure.

Sebree makes creative use of numbering throughout, as seen in "Five Facts About Lupus," where each page features numbered, brief stanzas. In addition to this fragmentation, the poem is further destabilized by its sequence: the predictable (1, followed by 2, followed by 2a) supplanted by the unexpected, where 2a is followed by 1a, and 2d & e chases after 3. The numbering in "Genesis"--Sebree calls it "a heroic sonnet crown in prose blocks"--is straightforward, but the numbers are large, like drop caps at the start of each block, and each section is peppered with superscript numerals linking the reader to footnotes. The structure holds a lush tapestry of ideas, from matters of faith and family to the loss and shame caused by and felt in a mortal body. This level of care, of attention to the way design and content overlap to create meaning, is what sets Sebree's collection apart, asking readers to give it the same level of careful attention.

The poems revel in a raw physicality, as in the prose poem "Home Remedy" which dances between alliterative phrasing and a gritty reality: "A keratin cord curls itself between pubic hairs still damp from the shower--a single comma curdling out." Or in "Begin Again," a poem that blends all the themes of Sebree's work: origins and motherhood and the ways the spiritual both unites and conflicts with the body: "The beginning makes as much sense as/ how spermed egg begets infant: ab ovo, or/ from the beginning, or from the egg, but// what about atom and Adam? Both singularities/ desperate for collision. Molecule made rib made/ sheathed structure he could fit in." With her kinetic idea-play and word work, Sebree invites readers to join her, awestruck at all the unknowable wonders and griefs of being human. --Sara Beth West, freelance reviewer and librarian

Shelf Talker: Poet Chet'la Sebree's collection offers a dense but light-filled examination of faith and desire and grief, all the unknowable wonders of being human.

The book industry is big money business, but for many independent booksellers, money is a relative concept. Sometimes a little goes a long way; sometimes a little is a lot. It doesn't take millions to inject a little more joy into the economic grind of an indie bookshop owner's mission. 

On Tuesday, 21 booksellers in Ireland were named winners of the Books at One Community Prize Fund, which gives €5,000 (about $5,885) to bookshop owners who "want to create new, dynamic forms of engagement with their own local communities--beyond the traditional bookstore experience." 

Books at One describes itself as "a community-focused social enterprise that supports independent bookstores in Ireland to create welcoming in-store spaces where people can gather and engage in cultural and social activities, above their love of books and reading, supporting local social connections & engagement." Supported by The One Foundation, the initiative began with a bookstore in Louisburgh, then expanded to Galway.

Halfway up the Stairs, Greystones, is one of this year's fund winners. Event coordinator Sarah Webb posted on Instagram: "Myself and [owner] Trish Hennessy... worked really hard on our funding application for the @books_at_one Community Prize Fund. We are delighted that's it's been successful! We have put together a @halfwayupthestairsbookshop Puffling Seaside Nature Trail for families to do over the summer, supported by the generous funding.... And do check out many other great community bookshop events around Ireland coming soon thanks to the funding."

Many of the winning booksellers expressed gratitude for the funding boost and shared their plans on social media, including:

Kennys Bookshop, Galway: "We are delighted to have been awarded funds from the Books at One Community Prize Fund to run a community focused project at Kennys Bookshop.... At Kennys, we will be running an event for local schoolchildren during the upcoming school year in our bookshop, whereby we will invite Irish children's authors to give readings and a talk to approximately 400 primary school children from around Galway. We will bring the children to the shop by bus, and each one will receive a free book on the day."

Woodbine Books, Kilkullen: "Amazing news this morning--we are one of the winners of the @books_at_one Community Prize Fund! This fantastic initiative will support independent bookshops to continue to provide cultural and social spaces in their local communities. We'll be using this prize to run a series of community-focused events throughout the year. A huge Thank You to @books_at_one for providing such valuable support to bookshops and communities throughout the country."

Red Books, Wexford: "BIG NEWS FOR RED BOOKS. We're absolutely delighted (and honestly a little emotional) to share that Red Books has been one of the independent bookstores awarded funding through the incredible Books at One Community Initiative. This support means the world to us, not just because it helps keep the lights on, but because it's an investment in what we truly believe in: community, creativity, and connection.... As for what we'll do with the funding? Over the coming months we'll be rolling out new initiatives that deepen our role as a community hub, from free workshops, more local events and more publishing projects to improved spaces and resources for everyone who walks through our door. For now, we just want to say thank you. We're honored, we're excited, and we're more committed than ever to building something beautiful, together."

Philip's Bookshop, Mallow: "We are over the moon to announce that we have won the Books at One Community Prize Fund!! This prize fund will give us the opportunity to host events in our store that will foster community engagement in exciting ways. We look forward to planning and implementing these new ideas for Philips Bookshop... watch this space for more updates!"

The Secret Bookshelf, Carrickfergus: "We are so delighted to have been awarded funding from this terrific organisation--thank you so much @books_at_one. Our kids' room is already a loved space for so many young people--this funding will allow us to invest in sensory elements through the room to make it more accessible to all young people. We have big plans--we'll share as we go along--and intend to do the work in the autumn, when the kids go back to school and the room is quiet."

Tales for Tadpoles, Wicklow: "Thank you @books_at_one for this fantastic initiative! We have something very special planned to use our funding... watch this space!"

Bookworm, Thurles: "We are absolutely delighted to have been selected as winners of the Books at One Community Prize Fund!!! This award will enable us to increase our community engagement and we will be organizing some exciting events over the coming months! Sincere thanks to @books_at_one and the Foundation for this award."

Quay Books, Limerick: "We are delighted to be chosen to participate. 'Eternity is a bookstore.' That is just not a sweet phrase. We believe in it... completely. We love books, stories. We like free, open, passionate universes, and those who dare to live in them. Through a series of events over the coming months, we will implement this philosophy and make it a reality. We will host events and activities which emerge organically, with lots of room for spontaneity and creativity."

Castle Book Shop, Castlebar: "We're thrilled to share that Castle Books is one of the winners of the @books_at_one Community Prize Fund! This incredible initiative supports independent bookstores across Ireland who are passionate about creating vibrant, welcoming spaces that go beyond just selling books. A massive thank you to @books_at_one for believing in the power of bookshops to connect with communities!"