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Tour the Indies without leaving home
Thinking of lounging on sun-soaked beaches? Think again. You see, indies is short for independents.
More specifically, the term is a moniker for members of the American Booksellers Association, the nonprofit trade association representing independent bookstores in the United States. Collectively, indies are at the center of one of the most intriguing travel ideas to come along in years: bookstore tourism.
What is bookstore tourism?
I’m glad you asked, and to tell you I’m going to simply quote from an interview with its creator published recently in a trade publication. The concept is the brainchild of Larry Portzline, a college professor and book lover. When a colleague of his mentioned to him he headed up restaurant trips to New York City for the school, Larry thought that bookstore tours might be just as fun.
“Bookstore tourism is a national grassroots movement to support independent bookstores by promoting them as a group travel niche. Many indie bookstores around the country are struggling these days, mainly because of competition from the chains and online booksellers.
“So loading book lovers onto a bus and taking them to visit bookshops in another city or town is a great way to raise visibility for the locally owned stores, to promote reading and literacy and to bring together people who love books.”
So how does a bookstore tour work?
“There are endless variations on the theme. I always say it doesn’t matter if it’s 50 people on a chartered bus or five friends in a minivan. You can organize a group to visit the bookstores in another town. Or, if your town has nice indie bookstores of its own, you can encourage groups to come visit you.
“You can also incorporate literary sites into your itinerary, such as an author home or the setting of a famous novel. And you can certainly include public libraries, or college libraries with special collections, or even museums that have special literary exhibits or artifacts. Another good example is the ‘bookstore crawl,’ where readers visit as many bookstores as they can over a weekend or a few days.”
An idea whose time has come
The reaction to Larry Portzline’s novel travel idea has been much more than receptive. Overwhelmingly positive is more like it.
“One of the most exciting developments to grow out of this is that some of the regional booksellers associations have expressed strong interest in pursuing Bookstore Tourism … I’ve always had nothing but support and encouragement from people all over the U.S.—booksellers, educators, librarians and book lovers in general … So the excitement is still growing.”
Larry has recently launched the National Council on Bookstore Tourism, a nonprofit organization and trade association. Its purpose will be to promote bookstore tourism through partnerships with a variety of commercial, educational and tourism/arts organizations. He has also written a book about the subject.
Could it happen where you live?
The answer to that question may be another question: Are you, or perhaps you and a group of friends, willing to step forward and organize the effort?
The beauty of the bookstore tourism idea is that it is as viable in small cities and towns as it is in major metro areas such as New York or Boston. Wherever there are independent bookstores and people who support them, there is at least the potential for bookstore tourism. The essential ingredient? The individual or group willing to step forward and take on the task of organizing.
To learn more, visit the National Council on Book Tourism site at www.bookstoretourism.com.
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