Area shops revved up for Independent Bookstore Day

A couple weeks after collectors packed local vinyl vendors for Record Store Day, bibliophiles get their own quasi-holiday with Independent Bookstore Day. On Saturday, more than 400 stores around the country are offering in-store readings, signings and sales to celebrate remaining brick and mortar booksellers in the digital age.

Auntie’s Bookstore, 402 W. Main Ave., has a packed lineup, which kicks off when the store opens at 9:30 a.m. Some highlights:

At 10 a.m., Jess Walter will be applying his way with words to a new medium: your text messages. The best-selling author will personally ghostwrite a text message to your friends or family, and he’ll even record your voicemail greeting.

“The Sasquatch Hunter’s Almanac” author Sharma Shields will be on hand at 3 p.m. to field questions – anything you can think of – from the audience. If you’re debating where to have dinner downtown afterward, perhaps she can help you narrow the field.

Cast members from the upcoming Spokane Civic Theatre production of “Guys and Dolls” will perform musical selections from the iconic show at 3:30 p.m.

It was recently announced that Spokane would again host the World Poetry Slam next year, so it seems fitting that the evening should close with a poetry slam at 7 p.m. It costs $5 to compete (sign ups are at 6:30 p.m.), and the winner takes home a prize of $50.

Coeur d’Alene’s Well-Read Moose, 2048 N. Main St., will also be open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. for Independent Bookstore Day. The store will be selling canvas bags adorned with the store’s logo and has scheduled special giveaways, including book drawings, throughout the day. Members of the Kinnikinnick Native Plant Society will be in-store at noon to sell its new book, “Landscaping with Native Plants,” and to offer gardening tips. Wallace Brewing will provide beer tastings from 3 to 6 p.m. Check the Well-Read Moose’s website for updates.

Also participating: Bookpeople of Moscow, 521 S. Main St., Moscow, Idaho; and Boise’s Rediscovered Bookshop, 180 N. Eighth St.