Plans for Independent Bookshop Week revealed

Authors will tour independent bookshops, illustrators will create special shop windows and limited edition and early book releases will take place to celebrate this year’s Independent Bookshop Week. 

Taking place from 15th to 22nd June, 442 bookshops will take part in the event across the UK and Ireland. 

Patrick Gale, Katherine Rundell, Victoria Hislop, Ben Aaronovitch, Richard Roper and Libby Page will tour bookshops across the UK with Jo Brand, Yasmeen Ismail and Shane Hegarty among the authors putting on special events at indies during the week. 

Patrick Gale (© Markus Bidaux), Katherine Rundell (© Nina Subin), Ben Aaronovitch (© Lawrie Photography), and Libby Page (© Natalie Dawkins)

Illustrators are also getting involved with a host of illustrators including Sabina Radeva, author and illustrator of the new children’s edition of On the Origin of Species (Puffin), who will create a special window display at Pickled Pepper Books in Crouch End, London and Kristina Stephenson, who will illustrate the window at Mr B’s Emporium of Reading Delights in Bath for Why Are There So Many Books About Bears? (Hodder Children's).

Throughout the week, the Booksellers Association will be shining a light on the work that independent bookshops do for their communities and how vital they are to our high streets. The BA will be sharing bookshops’ stories; how each bookshop is unique, how booksellers became part of the bookselling world and tales from the shop floor. Bookshop stories from across the UK will be revealed on the @booksaremybag Instagram with the hashtag #BookshopHeroes.

Emma Bradshaw, head of campaigns at the BA, said: “Independent Bookshop Week is all about book lovers coming together to celebrate the importance of indies on our high streets, and it’s deeply heartening to see so many authors and publishers showing their support.”

Illustrator Jim Field has designed a children’s bag, available exclusively in indie bookshops, for the week. Inspired by the much-loved Oi Frog and Friends series, written by Kes Gray and illustrated by Field, (Hachette), the IBW Children’s Bags feature Frog happily sitting on a book. The bags will be available exclusively from independent bookshops during the week of the campaign.
 
Field said: “Oi am very hoppy to have created this year’s Children’s Tote Bag. Independent booksellers have been great supporters of the Oi series. It’s fab to be part of IBW and give something back to these dedicated and passionate booksellers.”
 
Meanwhile, Faber is releasing early exclusive editions of Robert Hillman’s The Bookshop of the Broken Hearted, the Poetry Diary, and Liberty Poetry Diary 2020, only in indies and Macmillan is releasing a mini poetry booklet, Poems to Keep in Your Pocket, featuring some classic poems from the Macmillan Collector’s Library, for indies to give away to customers, and is running a number of promotions, including special offers on Runaway Robot and various summer reads offers. 

Bookshop crawls will also take place, with authors and customers taking part in touring different shops throughout a single day. Liz Fenwick is doing a London Bookshop Crawl and Erica @BookshopBlogger will be doing an East Anglia bookshop crawl, with bookshops to be confirmed, with the hashtag #BookshopCrawl.

The Great North Author Tour, a day of school events in Stockton and Middlesbrough organised by Drake – The Bookshop will be  followed by a bookshop crawl with authors including Kerry Drewery, Dan Smith and Gabrielle Kent taking part.