Twelve local, independent bookstores are teaming up for something a little unusual this weekend. The Cincinnati Bookstore Crawl aims to grow awareness about the increasing number of small book shops across the region.
"I noticed that so many new bookstores were opening in Cincinnati," says crawl organizer Melanie Moore, owner of the traveling Book Bus and the Book Bus Depot in Sharonville.
"Right here in Cincinnati, we've kind of become a bookstore hub within our city, and I just thought it'd be a great way to get awareness out there of all the stores that are in your area. People maybe are not aware of the stores in Cincinnati, so I thought that this would be a great way to get everybody out visiting the stores, and see where we're all located."
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Participating bookstores on Oct. 7-8 will offer "passports" where visitors can collect stamps to be eligible for giveaways. The more stamps you get, the more entries you earn.
Moore says the value of local brick and mortar bookstores are the people behind them.
"Around the world, whenever I visit an independent bookstore, I'm getting a unique experience because every store is curated. Whatever the owner's interests are, loves are, those come through in the books that they stock," she explains.
She notes owners and shop employees can talk about different books and maybe open customers up to new books they hadn't thought about reading before or didn't know existed. She says you don't get that when buying a book online.
"The other thing is, when you invest in your local independent bookstores, you're investing in your community," she adds.
The Cincinnati Bookstore Crawl is Oct. 7-8 at these participating locations:
- Blue Marble Books 1356 S Ft Thomas Ave, Sat 10-5, Closed Sun
- Book Bus Depot 10936 Reading Rd, Sat 10-4, Sun 11-3
- The Bookery 3704 Eastern Ave, Sat 10-5, Sun 10-5
- The Bookmatters 6 Main Street, Milford, Sat 10-7, Sun 12-5
- Downbound Books 4139 Apple St, Sat & Sun 11-5
- Joy and Matt’s Books 1515 Vine St, Sat 11-6, Sun 11-5
- The Bookshelf 7754 Camargo Rd, Sat 10-5, Sun 1-5
- Friends of Library 8456 Vine St, Sat 10-7, Sun 10-5
- Roebling Point Books 306 Greenup St, Sat & Sun 7-6
- Cincy Book Rack 8315 Beechmont Ave, Sat 10-8, Sun 11-6
- Household Books 2533 Gilbert Ave, Sat 10-7, Sun 11-5
Scarlet Rose Books 220 Elm St, Ludlow, Sat 10-5, Sun 11-5
