Indie Bookstore Day Highlights Over a Dozen Local Businesses

From rare editions to banned books, Denver’s local booksellers are gearing up to showcase their unique offerings on Indie Bookstore Day, April 26. More than a dozen local indies are offering special events and promotions for this annual event, encouraging readers and book lovers alike to shop locally.

“It’s a cultural necessity that the indie bookstore stay alive,” said Sam Butler, general manager of the Hermitage Bookshop. “By going to a physical book shop and interacting with a human being in the purchasing process, you’re getting quality stuff that supports the community. Without that, we become a faceless society. The more inquisitive we become of the person across the lunch table, at the restaurant or at the bar, we are able to expand the humanity of those people at the same time.”

Founded by Samantha Schoech, a writer at the New York Times, in 2014. Independent Bookstore Day has been held on the last Saturday of April every year since then.

Participating bookstores in Colorado offer a special “Indie Bookstore Passport,” a small card that visitors can get stamped at each location. Those who collect stamps from 10 or more bookstores become eligible for a grand prize drawing featuring items donated by participating bookstores. 

In addition to the passport, some stores also host promotions and events to celebrate the occasion. Butler said the Hermitage typically offers a 10 to 20 percent discount on all books in the store for Independent Bookstore Day. This even includes its rare books— treasured pieces of literary history that are accessible to the public, with no obligation to purchase. 

“We always strive to have really great literature selections across all genres, and then the other side of that is we are truly an antiquarian, rare and collectible bookshop,” Butler said. “So, we try to have our feet in two different pools of clientele and customers who are looking to read.”

Butler sees the day as crucial for the entire bookselling community. Although Indie Bookstore Day is nationally celebrated, with over 1,600 stores participating, the impacts are felt at the local level. 

“It’s really important in Denver to have a mix of general shops, specific shops and specialized dealers along with used bookstores and new bookstores,” Butler said. “All of those are part of the indie ecosystem.”

“We’re going to have flash tattoos, typewriter poetry, giveaways and drinks,” Catherine Merritt said. “It’s just a fun time to get book people kind of all in one place.”

Merritt, the manager at Petals and Pages, is the local coordinator behind the day. “It’s really important for people to support indie bookstores,” Merritt said. “I’ve met a lot of people through putting this program together, and that’s been cool. And it’s nice to have a community of booksellers who come together to celebrate indie bookstores.”

Petals and Pages is a queer-feminist bookstore, intentionally designed to be a community space in addition to selling books. They offer open mic nights, book clubs and even a trans-community game night once a month, central to its mission of being a comfortable space for queer communities to meet.

“We pride ourselves on being a community space and a place where people can come and feel seen, comfortable and safe,” Merritt said. “That’s really important now more than ever—it’s something that I think all indie bookstores try to offer and something that’s unique to the bookstore community.”

At the Book Rack, a used bookstore open since 1977, owner Cathi Kern is looking forward to welcoming both regulars and new faces for the anticipated day. 

“I think April is a great month for bookstores because of Independent Bookstore Day,” Kern said. “There’s not really a holiday that’s going on in April, so it’s nice to draw attention to the shop. The passport especially brings people in because they’re looking to visit shops in Denver, so people who might not otherwise know about me become familiar with my shop.”

All three booksellers spoke passionately about why independent bookstores matter in today’s literary landscape. 

“I think reading physical books is just such a different experience from reading on your phone, on a device or even just scrolling through Instagram,” Merritt said. “Being able to educate yourselves through books and also escape through books is important, especially during this time.”

“Being able to access books— in particular, locally—is really important,” Kern said. “Having physical copies of books is important. Interacting with the paper and the book in your hands is a completely different experience than reading from the screen. I know a lot of my customers by name because they come in regularly and building those connections where we can is necessary.”

As April 26 approaches, Denver’s independent bookstores stand ready to welcome readers old and new. “We’ve never seen a more eager readership, especially among young people in that 18 to 35 range who want to read a physical book,” Butler said. “The age of analog is back on the rise and that is a really beautiful thing.”

The distinctive experience of shopping independently in your local community was highlighted by booksellers as a selling point for those who were considering taking part in Independent Bookstore Day. 

“You never know what you’ll find at an independent bookstore,” Kern said. “You can rely on us to bring goods to your community, because owners live in the community, and you can see what unique offerings we have—that’s what you find at independent bookstores.