Today was Record Store Day -- a day when hundreds of independently-owned record stores across the country joined together. From their website:
On this day, all of these stores will simultaneously link and act as one with the purpose of celebrating the culture and unique place that they occupy both in their local communities and nationally.Each participating record store had special events going on throughout the day, from giveaways and contests, to in-store performances. Many of the events were supported by local musicians and artists, as well as more famous, nationally-known acts. The stores acted independently to fine-tune their celebrations in their own communities, but acted as one to promote the day and the idea. They garnered coverage in The New York Times, and Record Store Day was written about in every music blog I've seen.
I'd love to see this happen with bookstores. The parallels are evident. Local bookstores play an important role in their communities, and do so much more than simply sell books. I think it's time that they were celebrated. It's time for Bookstore Day. Don't you agree?
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