Saturday is the annual celebration of Indie Bookstore Day, a day where small bookstores across the country conspire to get people like me to open up their wallets without complaining. A few weeks back, I thought it’d be fun to get some Q&As done with local shops about the store and what they were doing for Indie Bookstore Day.
Good idea, right? Well, it’d have been better if I’d sent the invitation to participate and the questions. I had them ready, just needed to copy and paste into an email and send. About a week ago, I realized I’d dropped the ball and opted for this instead–a quick look at the stores in the area that I’m most familiar with, and a list of what they’ll be up to Saturday. Locals should check all of these places out (not necessarily on Saturday, but why not?)
If you’re not a local, you should still come and check them out–let me know when you’re in town, we’ll do something. 🙂
Or, if you don’t want to travel hundreds of miles just for these bookstores, check out IndieBound.org’s Participating Stores Map and find somewhere local to support.
Rediscovered Books
Location: 1576 W Grove St, Boise, ID 83702 Website: https://rdbooks.org/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rediscoveredbooks Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rdbooks YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@RediscoveredBooks Twitter: https://x.com/rdbooks Shop Online: https://rdbooks.org/books Librofm: https://libro.fm/rdbooks
This is the Indie Bookshop juggernaut in the area. Well, as much of a juggernaut as an Indie Bookshop can be. They’ve been around for 20 years, are on their 3rd main location (they had one for a brief period of time closer to me, but that didn’t last). They’ve got a good stock and a knowledgeable staff—yes, I have temporarily stumped them with a question or two, but that was always a temporary thing (and along the way I typically got a recommendation that I wasn’t looking for, but ended up enjoying).
Most of the region’s author events/other literary happenings have them to thank in some way (the percentage is decreasing because other groups are stepping up, not because they’re backing down). They have a good number of book clubs and other regular happenings, too. Their new location even has an event space you can rent out.
If you’re in the area and haven’t been there, I’d question your bookish credentials, if that didn’t make me a jerk.
Announced activities for Indie Bookstore Day
Their website states:
- Golden Ticket Hunt – find the Golden Ticket in-store and get a year’s worth of audiobook credits from Libro.fm!
- Bookish Flash Tattoos from local artist Deb Bryant – check out her work here – from 10 AM to 4 PM – flash sheets coming soon
- Food Truck – Tango’s Empanadas from 11 AM to 2 PM
- Indie Bookstore Day Exclusive Items – Special Edition books, totes, activity sheets, and more–only available in-store on April 25th
Canary Books
Location: 1403 3rd St S, Nampa, ID 83651 Website: https://canarybooksnampa.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Canary-Books/61550654169548/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/canarybooksnampa/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@canarybooks Libro.fm: https://libro.fm/canarybooksnampa
This is a tiny used bookstore that just celebrated its 2nd anniversary (or “bird-day”). Which is probably why it doesn’t have that used bookstore smell (I’m not the only one that thinks they all smell the same, am I?—it’s a nice smell, but distinct to the species). I’ve gotten away from used book stores in the past few years—but Canary Books has made me rethink that (I first went in for a special new book for a charity drive thing they did).
It’s a cozy and friendly atmosphere–stocked with “a curated selection of second-hand literary fiction, mystery/thriller, sci-fi & fantasy, narrative non-fiction, young adult, and children’s books.” Curated well, and in really good condition, too. I’ve spent double my budget for the day each time I went in there.
Announced activities for Indie Bookstore Day
A Facebook post states: Double punches on loyalty cards, a new Treasure Valley Bookstore Crawl challenge kicking off, and search the store for the “golden ticket” for a year of free audiobooks from @librofm.
Kuna’s Book Habit
Location: 102 E 2nd St, Kuna, ID 83634 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kunasbookhabit/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kunasbookhabit/
As far as I know, this is Kuna’s first bookstore—and it needed one, especially as the community keeps growing the way it is.
It is a tiny place, practically bursting at the seams with new and used stock of a wide variety of genres/tastes. (okay, I haven’t been in their “new” location, but it’s in the same building as the old, so I have a pretty good idea what it’s like). When you walk in, you feel surrounded by friends/prospective friends (for those of us who consider books as friend material).
The proprietor is Bryan McBee, a local indie author who is very supportive of other local authors. There are signing events so often that I can’t keep track of them (and I have an unerring ability to find out about the ones that I want to attend too late, I really need to do better about checking those earlier). Kuna’s Book Habit is the local place for Indie Authors.
It’s a real, too-often-overlooked, gem of a shop.
Announced activities for Indie Bookstore Day
They haven’t announced any particular activities for the day, however they will be having a signing by a local author and their semi-annual Fill-a-Bag Sale, which would mandate me buying a new bookshelf unit.
Oldspeak Book Bear Bar
Location: 3640 West Chinden Boulevard Garden City, ID 83714 Website: https://www.oldspeakbar.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thisroomislit Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/oldspeakbar/ Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/shop/thelitroom
This is a combo bookstore/bar/coffee shop. Technically, they “have a wide variety of non-alcoholic beverages including a tea and light coffee program, NA beer options, ERTH BEV switchels, sparkling water, kombucha, etc.” I haven’t sampled deeply from their drinks menu (I tend to get stuck on something I like right away and have trouble moving on), but I’m told by the more adventuresome folks I’ve gone there with that what I haven’t tried is good.
To me, this feels like an art-house movie theater from the 90’s morphed into a bookstore. The selection isn’t large—but it’s deep and varied. I remember one time seeing these deep, award-winning literary works cramming one shelf, and just one over, they had a front-facing copy of Dungeon Crawler Carl. They feature local writers, and indie publishers. Their non-fiction section is pound-for-pound the best in the area. There’s a decent selection of translated works—just a few selections per language, but in translation from more languages than I’m used to seeing (then again, I’m not used to seeing books in translation separate from everything else).
The atmosphere is just great—you can sit and chat, play a tabletop game, talk books, or just sip a drink and read. I’ve been there with non-readers who were as eager to go back as the readers.
In my (limited) experience, you need to be in the store at the right time to talk to staff about books, so far, I haven’t been. The staff behind the counter could ring up the purchases and fetch/pour/make your drink just fine—but talking about the books, answering questions? I haven’t had that much luck (although I’ve overheard others with better timing doing well on that front)
Announced activities for Indie Bookstore Day
Facebook and Instagram state:
• Free cake by @wickedcakes.co
• Book sales! Buy two get the third half off.
• Cool vendors! @samarchide @rollinrecsboise @thesnarkyswede
Plus, our new food vendor @lastbiteinc will be serving their tasty light bites from 11am-6pm.
Shared Stories
Location: 106 South Kimball Avenue Caldwell, ID 83605 Website: https://sharedstoriesbooks.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Shared-Stories-61558055019022 BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/profile/sharedstoriesbooks.bsky.social Threads: https://www.threads.net/@sharedstoriesbooks Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sharedstoriesbooks TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sharedstoriesbooks Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/shop/sharedstories Libro.fm: https://sharedstoriesbooks.com/audiobooks
I can’t promise that I’ll make it to any of the above stores on Saturday, but I will be here. Shared Stories came to town around this time in 2024 (there’s a Q&A with the owner here) and quickly became my go-to brick-and-mortar stop for books. It’s also the host of the two book clubs I attend (and several more I don’t have time for).
Beyond selling books, gifts, and so on, their goal is to be a Third Space for the area “where we could meet, spend time and talk about our different stories.” And it’s as warm and welcoming as you’d want for that space.
The staff is friendly and knowledgeable–and ready to chat about books (and more) at the drop of a hat. They get to know regular customers and their tastes to a degree that makes you wonder if they’re using cookies on you.
They have plenty of events, too–cooking classes, craft days, local author signings, and more–including an upcoming Speed Friending event.
Announced activities for Indie Bookstore Day
I combined an Instagram post and their event page to come up with:
✰In-Store Raffle
✰Find the Libro.fm Golden Ticket
✰Exclusive Sticker
✰Blind Date with a Book Drop
✰Snacks & Music
✰Walk Up & Craft Book Bedazzle Station
✰Flash Tattos by @magpie.mady and apprentice @posietattoos
…..& More TBA!
