Task 2: Read a book set in a bookstore

[Dani]

You snooze you lose BookRiot I’m making the topics now. Use this space to discuss your plans for this task.

[Amy J.]

I'm going with The Sentence by Louise Erdrich

[Emily]

Here are some books I've read that meet this promt:

The Cottingley Secret

Summer Hours at the Robbers Library EDIT: Whoops, I guess this is about a Library, not a bookstore.

Paris by the Book

CW: Suicide Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore

The Little Paris Bookshop

[Tricia]

Is there anybody left who hasn't read Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore?

[Asakosophia]

Tricia I guess im living under a rock - I have not heard of let alone read that!!!

I do feel like this prompt was written almost specifically with The Sentence in mind . Lol... That is definitely my pick for this one :)

[Emily]

Tricia wrote: "Is there anybody left who hasn't read Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore?"

I forgot about that one!

[Amy J.]

Tricia wrote: "Is there anybody left who hasn't read Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore?"

I'm pretty sure that I haven't

[Kayleigh]

Tricia wrote: "Is there anybody left who hasn't read Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore?"

Guilty as charged! This is my pick.

[Jessica]

Tricia wrote: "Is there anybody left who hasn't read Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore?"

I just read it this year! Wish I had waited.

[Tricia]

Asakosophia wrote: "Tricia I guess im living under a rock - I have not heard of let alone read that!!!

I do feel like this prompt was written almost specifically with The Sentence in mind . Lol... That is definitely ..."

I'm also going to be reading The Sentence, but you should definitely read Mr. Penumbra. Terrific book!!

[Jessica]

I wish I could read The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry
by Gabrielle Zevin again for the first time. It's my favorite book set in a bookstore.

[Shruthi]

Does Shadow of the Wind classify under A book set in a bookstore?? Can someone who has read it verify.

[Juliet]

I'm looking at either The Shadow of the Wind or The Cat Who Saved Books

[Marcy]

Jessica wrote: "I wish I could read The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry
by Gabrielle Zevin again for the first time. It's my favorite book set in a bookstore."

Same question. It's been on my TBR for a while.

[Marcy]

Juliet Brown wrote: "I'm looking at either The Shadow of the Wind or The Cat Who Saved Books"

Sorry - I replied to the wrong post!

[Marcy]

Wow, am I bad at Replying. I also would like to know if Shadow of the Wind qualifies!

[Juliet]

I haven’t read Shadow of the Wind yet, but I reached out to two friends who have. Report is MC lives in a bookshop but most of the action of the novel takes place outside it.

[Rebecca]

I'm reading The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry. Can't wait!

Jessica wrote: "I wish I could read The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry
by Gabrielle Zevin again for the first time. It's my favorite book set in a bookstore."

[Erin]

Juliet Brown wrote: "I'm looking at either The Shadow of the Wind or The Cat Who Saved Books"

I had already ordered The Cat Who Saved Books, and now I can't wait!

[Robin]

Library of the Unwritten - AJ Heckwith
The Bookseller of Kabul - Äsne Seierstad
Jasper Fforde's series of books about entering books

There was a fun book set in the Lovecraft universe about two booksellers, but my google skills won't help me to remember it.

[Ron]

Planning to read The Sentence at some point.

[Ness]

I read Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab last year, and while the book doesn't primarily take place in a bookstore, a family bookstore is sort-of a pivotal story location, and a crucial part of the narrative structure as like a place of calm and turning points alike. Prompts like this make me curious - How 'set in a bookstore' does a book have to be? Does narrative weight make up for a lack of 'screen time' in the store itself? It's an interesting thing to ponder!

At any rate, I'm really curious to see what people come up with for this topic, since it seems more open to interpretation.

[ekr]

Can anyone suggest something cozy by a author of color (in the US or otherwise)?

Also, how scary or tense is The Sentence?

[Caroline]

Tricia wrote: "Is there anybody left who hasn't read Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore?"

Finally going to do it this year!

[Tiffany]

I think The Stationery Shop by Marhan Kamali would count! The book isn't entirely set there, but it's integral to the plot

[Bonnie G.]

rae wrote: "Can anyone suggest something cozy by a author of color (in the US or otherwise)?

Also, how scary or tense is The Sentence?"

The Sentence is not scary at all, but it is intense as one would expect of a book focused on the fruits of systemic oppression.

[Biana]

Shruthi wrote: "Does Shadow of the Wind classify under A book set in a bookstore?? Can someone who has read it verify."

Um, no. It's not in a book store. Or a library. But it's good.

[Biana]

Ness wrote: "I read Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab last year, and while the book doesn't primarily take place in a bookstore, a family bookstore is sort-of a pivotal story location, and a crucial..."

I think that has to qualify. It has a bookstore cat, that's really enough.

[Bonnie G.]

Biana wrote: "Shruthi wrote: "Does Shadow of the Wind classify under A book set in a bookstore?? Can someone who has read it verify."

Um, no. It's not in a book store. Or a library. But it's good."

Actually a good deal of it is set in a bookstore. I disliked the book intensely, but it fits the prompt.

[Ron]

Lyss wrote: "the midnight library is set in a library, so I'm going to use that one :)"

Nice. I had fun with this one.

[C. S.]

I've already read Mr. Penumbra, Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore, and The Midnight Library (loved them all, by the way.)

I'm going with The Left-Handed Booksellers of London

[Wellington]

I read The Bookshop on the Corner by Jenny Colgan for this prompt. It isn't a traditional book store, but I like the concept.

[Ron]

The Library Book

I've added this one to my list which I think counts.

Plus it works since I'll be reading books by female authors this month given that it is Women's History Month.

[Tricia]

I noticed a lot of people going with books that are set in libraries instead of bookstores. Is that a common swap? I assumed it was very specific and that a library challenge might come in a different year.

[Tammy]

I just learned of this book: Shelf Life: Chronicles of a Cairo Bookseller by Nadia Wassef. It's nonfiction- a memoir- but seems like it would/could count!

[t ♡]

I chose Mooncakes which was very cute and LGBTQ+!

[Kate]

I'm reading The Secret of Lost Things for this prompt. I used to work in a bookshop in New York and it was recommended to me by a co-worker there.

[Sherri]

I read The Paris Bookseller

[Tina]

Josh Lanyon's Adrien English Mysteries work for this one. They also work for anyone doing the Bonus Task.

[Angela N]

I'm going with the AJ Fikry book, that I found in the library last weekend. The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry.
I don't read nearly as much as I used to, so I haven't read a lot of books that others will have read, as soon as they came out.

[Jessica]

I finished "Mr. Penumbra's 24 Hour Bookstore" today- and really liked it!