Summer Book Bingo 2019: Recommended by an Independent Bookstore
July 15, 2019
By Danielle Palmer-Friedman
Few know books better than independent booksellers—that’s why each year, there’s a #BookBingoNW2019 square dedicated to their sage reading advice. This summer, we decided to take it a step further. What if, instead of just one square, your ENTIRE board was suggested by the experienced, avid readers at your favorite local bookstore? Well, we dared to dream.
We’re proud to present this bingo board, chock full of inspiring and inviting reads that will inevitably make you eternally grateful for the shop around the corner. Use our color-coded key to help discern which bookstore recommended what title and feel free to send your appreciation by word of mouth, social media, or carrier pigeon.
Thanks to all of SAL’s partnering bookstores for their eclectic choices that make this board shine (download it in PDF form here for easier reading).
Our friends at Queen Anne Book Company recommended Educated by Tara Westover for the “SAL speaker” square, The Moment of Lift by Melinda Gates for the “challenges your world view” square, and If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin for the “made into a movie” square.
Meanwhile, the team at Third Place Books thinks The Crown Ain’t Worth Much by Hanif Abdurraqib is the perfect fit for the “SAL speaker” square. For the “poetry or play” square, they vote for v. by Anastacia-Reneé or The White Card by Claudia Rankine.
Island Books is partial to Life with Picasso by Francoise Gilot and Carlton Lake for the “subject you wish you had studied in school” square. For the “by an author of color” square, they couldn’t decide between Friday Black by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah and Lotby Bryan Washington – so you should probably read both, just in case. For the “BIG book” square, they also have two contenders: The Invented Part by Rodrigo Fresán and Stalingrad by Vasily Grossman.
For the “DIY” square, the booksellers at Edmonds Bookshop suggest Growing Berries and Fruit Trees in the Pacific Northwest by Tara Austen Weaver and Where the Crawdads Singby Delia Owens for the “suggested by an elder” square. For the “suggested by a young person square,” Pax by Sara Pennypacker gets their recommendation while French Exit by Patrick DeWitt is their pick for the “fiction” square. What about a “BIG book”? They chose The Overstory by Richard Powers for your reading list.
The folks at Magnolia’s Bookstore raced through The River by Peter Heller, so they suggest it for your “couldn’t put it down” square. Trying to find a title published when the author was under 35? They propose Normal People by Sally Rooney. Need to face the “about music or musicians” square? The Prague Sonata by Bradford Morrow is what Magnolia’s Bookstore suggests. Then you can stumble into the drama of Arcadia by Tom Stoppard for the “poetry or play” square.
If you’re shopping for a title “set in the Northwest,” our pals at Madison Books recommend The Tiger’s Wife by Téa Obreht but if you’re looking for a book “by an author from Canada,” they suggest trying The Discovery of Honey by Terry Griggs. Is the sun setting on your chance to read a book “set in summer”? The Madison Books booksellers favor The Summer Book by Tove Jannson.
Slacking on your “science” reading? BookTree Kirkland thinks you’ll love Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress by Steven Pinker and Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil deGrasse Tyson. Then turn to the paneled pages of The Best We Could Do by Thi Bui, the BookTree’s recommendation for your “comics” square. They have not one but two suggestions for your “one-word title” square: Atonement by Ian McEwan and Tinkers by Paul Harding.
Phinney Books’ favorite “comics” book is My Favorite Thing is Monsters by Emil Ferris, and if you’re interested in finding a voice across the border, they suggest Women Talking by Miriam Toews for your “by an author from Canada” square.