Bookstores are my happy place. I had a blast visiting independent bookstores in Houston’s Second Annual Independent Bookstore Crawl. The rules are simple, visit at least ten independent bookstores for a chance to win prizes. It was a great chance to discover new-to-me independent bookstores and to get more exposure for my books.
I started out at Kindred Stories bookstore. It’s located about a block from Emancipation Park, the site of my debut picture book, They Built Me for Freedom: The Story of Juneteenth and Houston’s Emancipation Park. This cute shop is moving to a larger location at the Eldorado Ballroom soon. I was happy to stop in one last time before the relocation.
Gulf Coast Cosmos Comicbook Co. is right next door to Kindred Stories. Before the challenge I never noticed this interesting Black-owned store. They are now stocking copies of They Built Me for Freedom, so check them out!
Brazos Bookstore and Blue Willow Bookshop are Houston institutions that I was familiar with before the book crawl. I’m grateful that both of them stock my books.
Prior to the challenge I thought CLASS Bookstore was an online retailer. I learned different when I stopped by their Third Ward storefront. I’m now doing a reading with them in Emancipation Park this coming June!
I visited Pearland’s LIT Java Coffee and Books a couple of times after their grand opening last year. It was nice to pop in again and see the place jumping with families, solo readers, and coffee drinkers.
I drooled over the stunning decor at The Lit. Bar in Richmond, TX. They have great kid’s and local author’s book sections, where you can soon find copies of They Built Me for Freedom. This will be the perfect spot to have a book club meeting with my friends.
Katy Budget Books has been on my list of places to visit for ages. I was impressed with their HUGE space packed with new and used books. After checking them out I swung by the Houston Book Warehouse, which was equally expansive.
I finished up my crawl at Murder by the Book, the oldest and largest bookstore that features crime fiction in the country. I’m not a mystery fan, but their collection and the store itself are so extensive and beautiful, I definitely plan to return.
The Houston Book Crawl runs through April 30, and there’s still time for me to visit more bookstores and rack up additional raffle entries. Fingers crossed I win a prize! But even if I don’t, I still feel like a winner. On the crawl, I met great booksellers, saw super cute bookshops, and bought enough interesting new books to keep me busy reading for months.
Tonya Duncan Ellis
Tonya Duncan Ellis is author of the Publishers Weekly and School Library Journal starred reviewed picture book, THEY BUILT ME FOR FREEDOM: THE STORY OF JUNETEENTH AND HOUSTON’S EMANCIPATION PARK (HarperCollins 2024), COOKOUT CHEMISTRY (Charlesbridge 2027) and the SOPHIE WASHINGTON chapter book series. She is based in Houston, Texas.
www.tonyaduncanellis.com
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