Remind customers to shop small during Pr*me Day with these new assets.
Stay up to date with the world of independent bookselling.
Wednesday, June 17, 2026
Check out the Independent Press Top 40 Bestsellers
Check out the Find Waldo Local Toolkit
Check out the monthly BLK Bestsellers List
TLDR: This Week's Action Items:
 
 
American Bookseller for Free Expression
ABFE Granted 501(c)(3) Non-profit Status!
 

Big news for the fight against book censorship: American Booksellers for Free Expression (ABFE) is now a 501(c)(3) non-profit! 

This new non-profit will be dedicated to protecting the right to read, promoting free expression in the United States, and supporting diversity in literature and bookselling. While ABA’s legislative advocacy supporting free expression will continue through our advocacy department, 501(c)(3) status will allow ABFE to think big, take on censorship at its roots, and provide programming for the public. It also means that ABFE donations are tax-deductible and ABFE will be eligible for grants to help support its work.

We're also thrilled to have award-winning and bestselling author and founding member and national leader of Authors Against Book Bans, Maggie Tokuda-Hall, and Media Coalition Executive Director and longtime First Amendment champion, David Horowitz, as ABFE Board members!

You can visit BookWeb to learn more!
 
Learn More
ABACUS 2025
Complete Your ABACUS By July 3! 
 

There’s still time to participate in this year’s ABACUS!

ABACUS is an incredibly valuable tool for both ABA members! Stores that complete ABACUS receive individual store reports with key performance indicators that can help you with benchmarking and financial decision-making. 

And in addition to having all that data at your fingertips, we’ll teach you how to use it! Later this year, members will be able to attend financial education sessions (featuring our expert partners from Industry Insights!) where you’ll learn how to use your ABACUS results to analyze your store’s data. 

The more stores that submit their ABACUS, the more accurate the overall data will be! 

Up for a little friendly competition? Right now, CALIBA is the region that has submitted the most ABACUS surveys (followed by MPIBA and GLIBA). Which region will ultimately complete the most surveys…?

Need help? Join us tomorrow, June 18, at 11:00 am ET for our ABACUS Office Hours. You can also email ABA CFO Lauren Ciborski and Greg Manns from Industry Insights with questions!

The deadline to submit your ABACUS is Friday, July 3.
 
Start Your ABACUS!
 
Save the date for these upcoming events:
 
 
Visit Events Calendar
 
Take 35% off all Libro.fm sale audiobooks!
Libro.fm to Hold Big Impact Sale During Pr*me Day

This Pr*me Day (June 23-26), Libro.fm is reminding people to shop small by offering 35% off all sale audiobooks, with the code BIGIMPACT at checkout. And for a limited time, when customers start a new annual membership, which gives them 12 audiobook credits upfront, they'll get a 13th audiobook credit free. 

Booksellers can use Libro.fm’s Big Impact assets to highlight the offers with customers on social media, email, and their website!
Download Assets
Children's Institute 2026
9 Days Until Children’s Institute

If you’re joining us in Schaumburg, IL, for Children’s Institute 2026 (Ci2026), we’ll be seeing you in just nine days! (Don’t forget to download the event app, review the program, and check out the resource guide as you prepare for the event.)

If you can’t make it to Ci2026, don’t worry! We’ll share recordings of select sessions in BTW after the Institute has ended. 
Learn More
Best Books for Young Readers
One Week Left to Nominate Titles for the Best Books for Young Readers Catalog!

Title submissions for the 2026 Best Books for Young Readers catalog will close soon. If you have not already, take a moment to nominate your favorite children’s titles!

Booksellers can nominate their favorite 2026 children’s titles through BookWeb or Edelweiss.

The deadline for title nominations is June 29!
Nominate Titles
ABA Bookseller Education
ICYMI: Charm They Can’t Replicate

BookWeb is home to hundreds of incredible educational resources for booksellers, and the ABA Education team has handpicked your next listen!

Looking for ways to encourage your customers to shop small in the upcoming weeks? Remind them of the unique charm of your store! Listen to “Charm They Can't Replicate: Creating a Store That Invites Wonder” to explore merchandising strategies to help you stand out from big-box stores.
Listen Now
Hive Mind Books & Coffee and the Queer Bookstore Revival
Hive Mind Books & Coffee and the Queer Bookstore Revival

When Jules Wernersbach opened Hive Mind Books & Coffee in the Bushwick neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, they did so in part to lean into the idea of the indie bookstore as a community space — for the Bushwick neighborhood as well as the city’s LGBTQIA2S+ community more broadly. A few months from their two-year anniversary, it’s clear that they’ve done it in style. And along the way, they are saving a living monument to queer bookstore history.

Associate Director of ABFE Philomena Polefrone met with Wernersbach to learn more.
Read Interview
Indies Introduce author P.C. Verrone
Indies Introduce Q&A with P.C. Verrone

P.C. Verrone is the author of Rabbit, Fox, Tar, a Summer/Fall 2026 Indies Introduce selection.

Here, Verrone and Amani Jackson of The Ivy Bookshop in Baltimore, MD, discuss Rabbit, Fox, Tar.

You can also visit the ABA podcast, BookED, to listen to this interview.
Read Interview
Indies Introduce author Joanna Thurlow
Indies Introduce Q&A with Joanna Thurlow

Joanna Thurlow is the author of Forever is the Sweetest Con, a Summer/Fall 2026 Indies Introduce selection.

Here, Thurlow and Coco Zephir of An Unlikely Story in Plainville, MA, discuss Forever is the Sweetest Con.

You can also visit the ABA podcast, BookED, to listen to this interview.
Read Interview
Indie SciFi/Fantasy Bestseller List
Indie SciFi/Fantasy Bestseller List

Here is the Indie SciFi/Fantasy Bestseller List, based on sales at independent bookstores nationwide for the eight-week period ending June 14.
See Bestsellers
Gallagher
Gallagher: Health Coverage Options for Independent Contractors, 1099 Workers, and Sole Proprietors

ABA’s health coverage partner, Gallagher, has created a short introduction on health coverage options for independent contractors, 1099 workers, and sole proprietors.

Visit BookWeb to learn more about your options for both short-term needs and long-term health goals.
Learn More
Advocacy Updates
Advocacy Updates
 

Last Call: Banned Books Week Kits

This year, Banned Books Week will be held October 4–10, 2026.

Sign up now to receive a free Banned Books Week kit! Our 2026 kits include indie-exclusive materials including our new “CENSORED” tape to bring the free expression message home to your customers.

Banned Books Week kits are sent annually to participating stores and include materials to decorate your store and educate customers about the freedom to read. 

The deadline to order is June 25!

Reminder: Trump Treasury Rules Worsen Swipe Fees
Two credit card rules issued by the Trump administration have endangered recent advances toward swipe fee reform. Effective June 30, the Treasury Department's Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) have scuppered state swipe fee laws that would have eased pressure on small businesses. 

We need a federal swipe fee bill now more than ever! ABA is urging booksellers to email their senators and support the Credit Card Competition Act.
 
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