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The 10th anniversary of Independent Bookstore Day is Saturday, April 29. And that’s a great cue to pick up your next read at one of New York City’s excellent independent bookstores and bookstore cafes.
And if you're a savvy shopper, you may want to start early for a cash bonus. To help support small businesses and folks who prioritize shopping at them, American Express is offering a small prize on bookstore day.
RECOMMENDED: The Brooklyn Bookstore Crawl is back this week for its biggest event ever
In partnership with American Booksellers Association (ABA), book lovers in New York can receive a $25 gift card when they visit one of the three bookstores across three boroughs from noon to 3pm. In Brooklyn, Greenlight Bookstore will offer the promotion. In Manhattan’s East Village, Book Club Bar will offer gift card, and the only independent brick-and-mortar bookstore in the Bronx, The Lit. Bar, will do so as well.
Bonus gift cards will be available as long as supplies last, but Independent Bookstore Day lasts throughout the afternoon with many local stores offering promotions.
Children's bookstore Books of Wonder will have over 35 New York-based authors and illustrators roaming the shop throughout the day, the Center for Fiction will offer a fill-a-tote bag sale plus author events and reading spaces all day, Book Culture is offering discounts and raffles all day, and an official Brooklyn Bookstore Crawl offers a passport plus discounts.
Bookstores, as beloved as they may be, have been endangered for decades (see: You've Got Mail, 1999), with the rise of a certain website that undercuts print prices and offers steep discounts. A recent study shows that independent bookstores will own less than 30% of the print book market in the U.S. by 2025, meaning it's more important than ever to support the local businesses we love, lest we take them for granted.