Reviews tagging 'Religious bigotry'

How to Protect Bookstores and Why: The Present and Future of Bookselling by Danny Caine

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bookishmillennial's review

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informative reflective fast-paced
disclaimer: I don’t really give starred reviews. I enjoy most books for what they are, & I extract lessons from them all. Everyone’s reading experiences are subjective, so I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not. Find me on Instagram: @bookish.millennial or tiktok: @bookishmillennial

“All bookselling is political”

Just like "How to Resist Amazon and Why," I think this should be required reading for every single reader. This includes stories about what community care is, why bookstores matter, how expensive it is to run a bookstore, bookstore inclusive programming popularity/metrics, how the pandemic affected bookstores, and more. Caine refers to bookstores mostly in the mid-west, and he does this intentionally. He explains why, and this is such a short read, so just read it! It also does bring up how Amazon's low prices affect bookstores and how conservative groups are targeting bookstores & libraries for showcasing diverse books.

A few ways to support bookstores:
  • sign up for their newsletters! 
  • follow them on social media! 
  • recommend them to your friends! 
  • order from bookshop.org if you're not able to physically go in! 
  • buy diverse books for the kids in your life! 
  • write online reviews (google, yelp)
  • attend bookstore events!
  • bring your kids to the bookstore! 
  • get involved in community organizing and grassroots efforts 
  • buy gift cards from them as birthday or holiday gifts for your loved ones! 
  • show up to city council meetings & speak up about business owner policies! 
  • pre order!
 
This is yet another reminder why you should not be buying your books from Amazon - I fully recognize this is a privilege and that Amazon is accessible to many people. However, if you are near a local bookstore, you really should be placing your money in your community, rather than to a shitty organization that doesn't give two flying fucks about its employees or product quality either.

I especially enjoyed the story about a bookstore that placed value over protecting and standing with their employees and the queer community, rather than selling books at a school book fair. A parent had asked for a queer MM book to be removed, and the school's reaction was to say that they would be individually reviewing every book that would be on sale for students in the future to ensure nothing "divisive" would be sold. In response to this, the bookstore pulled their books from that book fair, and then sold books on their own, with 10% of the proceeds being donated towards the local queer community center. They ultimately sold less books than they would have at that book fair, but instead of always placing profits over people (such is capitalism), their actions matched their words of allyship and creating spaces that the queer community was welcome in.

I listened to an ALC from Libro FM, & am providing an honest review voluntarily. Thank you!

cw: mentions of sexism, homophobia, transphobia, the pandemic, misogyny, religious & political bigotry, hate crimes, classism, racism
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