Dear Bookseller, I was 14 when I traumatically lost ~50% of my hearing. As I grappled with this loss, my Generalized Anxiety Disorder skyrocketed. For years after, my only solace was found in stories—I’d get lost in books, focusing on fiction in an act of desperate self-preservation. But the more I read, the less I …
Congratulations to Pacific Northwest writers and editors who were honored with Foreword INDIES 2023 awards. Thousands of books are entered each year, and over 100 librarians and booksellers take part in the judging process, narrowing down a group of finalists in 55 categories to Gold, Silver, and Bronze winners that truly represent the best in …
For my young adult fans, this is the *perfect* sapphic holiday rom-com. I appreciate that it features a Jewish protagonist and subverts the mainstream Christmas narrative. It is simply such a delightful read. Read if you love fish, paleontology, corgis, and enemies to lovers/forced proximity tropes. –Jeanette, Browsers Bookshop, Olympia, WA Who says holiday romances …
From Monday February 5, 2024: Maximum Shelf: Ocean’s Godori Elaine U. Cho‘s debut novel, Ocean’s Godori (Hillman Grad Books/Zando, April 23, 2024), is a rollicking space adventure featuring a brave new world in which a united Korea leads the solar system, but unrest is never far away. When ace pilot Ocean Yoon’s best friend’s life implodes, she’s the …
Sashiko’s Stitches is a new picture book from local favorite Sanae Ishida (Little Kunoichi: The Ninja Girl). Sashiko is a little girl with overwhelming fears and worries. One day, her mother teaches her about a style of decorative traditional Japanese stitching also called sashiko, which was originally used to repair fishermen’s clothes. As Sashiko begins …
For Earth Day and Poetry Month, this is the perfect book! Two Washington creators combine forces in this story of outdoor exploration. Haiku poems from the point of view of a young hiker help us all appreciate being outside together. This book gorgeously encapsulates the experience of hiking as a group of big people and …
Koh approaches her historical novel with an unwavering interest in the human heart & the way politics, war, & things of such scale affect the realms of intimacy and interpersonal relationships. Koh uses language with the utmost elegance, her prose is poetic & confident with imagistic, memorable metaphors. Her characters feel flesh & bone; yearning …
When I was on tour for my memoir, Meet Me Tonight in Atlantic City, I ended the tour in Atlantic City – a city that I hadn’t returned to since I was a child, accompanying my father while he gambled each day at Caesar’s Palace. In the title chapter, I write about him disappearing into …
The winners for the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association 2024 Northwest Book Awards have been announced. The Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association (PNBA) is a non-profit association of independent bookstores from five Northwest states: Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, and Alaska. Since 1965, the annual Book Awards have recognized such luminary figures in Northwest literature as Ivan Doig, Ursula K. Le Guin, …
On Wednesdays, the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association Bestseller list is published. Every week, we love to see what has been most popular in independent bookstores around our region. As we peruse the list, we ponder patterns. Then we present this weekly feature: Thursday Themes. This week, we’re eyeing the list with local, PNW pride. Look at all these …
