Around Indies

Story House Bookmobile to Launch in Maryland

Deborah Bodin Cohen is launching The Story House, a mobile bookstore carrying 2,500 books for children and young adults, in Montgomery County, Maryland, reported the Washington Post.

A rabbi and the author of eight children’s books, Cohen is looking to raise $20,000 through a Kickstarter campaign that ends July 14. She is hoping to purchase the bookmobile this summer, renovate it, fill it with books, and be out on the road by fall.

“Reading was really important to me when I was a kid, and it’s really important to my children,” said Cohen, who plans to stock books by local authors and titles related to events the bus attends. “I will be focusing mostly on books that don’t have very strong commercial ties, so no Lego or Disney. I’m looking for more books that are literature-focused, that are well-received, that have a strong benefit to readers.”

The bookmobile will partner with schools, book festivals, and community organizations and will also be available for birthday parties and author visits.

Queens Bookshop Initiative Looks to Pop-Ups

While they hunt for a storefront location, Holly Nikodem, Vina Castillo, and Natalie Noboa, the trio behind The Queens Bookshop Initiative, are looking to pop-up shops to get the word out about the new bookstore they are aiming to open in the New York City borough of Queens, reported DNAinfo.

The trio opened a booth at the Long Island City Flea & Food Market earlier this month, and they are planning to start selling books soon at Red Pipe Café in Forest Hills. Additional pop-up locations will open in flea markets and cafés throughout the borough.

Nikodem, Castillo, and Noboa met while working at the now-closed Barnes & Noble in Forest Hills. A Kickstarter campaign that ended earlier this month raised more than $72,000 for the future bookstore.

Trident Booksellers & Café Named Best of Boston

Boston, Massachusetts’ Trident Booksellers & Café was deemed the best bookstore in the city by Boston magazine.

Commenting on the store’s selection of bestsellers and up-and-coming titles, the magazine noted that Trident Booksellers “pleases all manner of bookworm. Home to two stories of books, magazines, and quirky gifts, not to mention a full-service restaurant, it’s easy to spend an entire day lost among the shelves.”