The 2nd annual Canadian Authors for Indies Day is coming up on April 30, 2016. At independent bookstores across Canada, authors will be volunteering as guest booksellers, and that’s just the beginning of the bookish fun in store. Keep up with the BookNet Canada blog for updates, and don't forget to follow @authors4indies and #AFI2016 on Twitter. Our fantastic intern Jordyn Martinez imagines how she would spend her dream Authors for Indies Day in none other than glorious Montreal.
If I had my druthers, I’d spend Authors for Indies Day in la belle province. There are eight official Authors for Indies events happening in Quebec, and four of them are in Montreal. Everyone knows it should only take 20-30 minutes to get anywhere in Montreal, so if you have a car you can definitely hit each of these bookstores in a single day.
Librairie Bertrand
I’d start in Old Montreal at Librairie Bertrand. It’s a gorgeous area, and a lovely way to start the day. The shop has some exciting local authors lined up, starting with Véronique Boisjoly at 10 a.m., whose children’s book Renaud le petit renard (or in English: Francis, the Little Fox) is gorgeous. Also attending is Peter Kirby, author of the Luc Vanier crime fiction series. Librairie Bertrand is every bookstore lover’s dream. The hardwood floors, open brick walls, and oodles of shelving space feel neat and rustic, which fits in perfectly in Old Montreal. Plus, the store carries both French and English titles so you’re sure to find something you like!
Librairie Paragraphe
Librairie Paragraphe is going to be hopping busy on April 30, with eight authors coming in between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Luckily it’s a huge bookstore, so even though it’ll be busy there should be lots of room to browse the books. Catherine McKenzie, author of international bestsellers including Spin, Arranged, and Forgotten, will also be there from 1 p.m. until 5 p.m. Ami Brodoff, Anita Anand, Gina Roitman, Christopher DiRaddo, Jack Hannan, Cora Siré, and Alice Zorn will also be stopping by. Check the store's Facebook event for more information.
The World Bookstore, via Montreal Gazette
The Word Bookstore is not far from here; if you’re walking it’ll only take about 10 minutes. By
Luckily for Montrealers, Schwartz’s Deli is conveniently on the way between The Word Bookstore and the next location: Librairie Drawn & Quarterly. Seriously, those sandwiches are out of this world so fuel up and head to the next bookstore!
Librairie Drawn & Quarterly
Librairie Drawn & Quarterly is an extension of the publisher of the same name. This store is an awesome source of graphic novels, comic books, art books, and more—it feels like a hipster paradise. Get there after lunchtime to see Guillaume Morissette, author of New Tab. Once you visit this bookstore once, you’ll want to come back over and over again! Other authors making an appearance here are: Ashley Opheim, and Jay Ritchie.
Conveniently, this is an interesting area to end the day in and the best part is that you're within minutes of Kem CoBa! This is the best place in Montreal to get ice cream, and they have insanely good flavours that change every couple of weeks, likeQuébec Blueberry + Honey. They're reopening for the season on April 29 (just in time!), so treat yourself—you deserve it! Another plus is that it's near the subway station if you have been on foot all day.
Thus concludes our Authors for Indies Day tour, but don't forget there are authors at these stores until 6 p.m. so you can get in as many visits as possible! But don't pack your walking shoes away just yet, because the following weekend kicks off Children's Book Week (May 7-14), and you don't want to miss that.
Don't miss any of your favourite authors:
Librairie Bertrand
Veronique Boisjoly (10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.)
Michael Blair (2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.)
Monique Polak (2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.)
Peter Kirby (2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.)
Librairie Paragraphe
Ami Brodoff (10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.)
Anita Anand (10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.)
Gina Roitman (12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.)
Christopher DiRaddo (12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.)
Catherine McKenzie (1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.)
Jack Hannan (1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.)
Cora Siré (2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.)
Alice Zorn (2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.)
The Word Bookstore
Lateef Martin (11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.)
Matthew Murphy (12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.)
Carmine Starnino (1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m.)
Saleema Nawaz (2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.)
Derek Webster (2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.)
Librairie Drawn & Quarterly
Guillaume Morissette (1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.)
Ashley Opheim (1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.)
Jay Ritchie (1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.)
