This year, to celebrate Independent Bookstore Day, the four local-ish indie bookstores decided to host the first ever Bookstore Crawl. You could pick up a passport at any of them and then get them stamped at each spot and the last spot that you got a stamp at, you were entered into a drawing for some swag from that bookstore. I had a friend who went with me, and we made a whole day of it.
Before I left, I told my dad that I wasn't going to purchase something at every store, I was just going to get my passport stamped. I was confident when I said that ... as the day went on, I proved to be too weak to keep that commitment.
We started off with breakfast at IHOP, because obviously we needed to get our energy up. Crepes and hashbrowns were the fuel I was looking for to get through the day. Over breakfast we strategized our day. There are two indie bookstores in Baton Rouge proper, one in Denham Springs and one in St. Francisville. So to hit all four of them was going to be a commitment. We opted to head first to Denham, then hit one of the Baton Rouge ones on our way to St. Francisville before grabbing lunch and heading back home to second on in Baton Rouge.
Cavalier Book House
Off to Denham we went, and we were not aware that Denham Spring's Spring Fest was occurring literally in the same area as Cavalier House Books. So it took us a little bit to figure out parking and then where to go once we parked, since this was our first time to visit there. Cavalier is a cute little shop, and I got a blind date with a book that was donation based with the money going to the Autism Society, which is something I really care about. I also got kiddo a sticker to add to a collection that will be in her stocking at some point over the holidays.
Red Stick Reads
This is the only stop that both of us had been to, and I resisted getting another blind date with a book ... but my friend picked up the one I wanted so I may borrow from her, haha. Instead I got a cookbook for my mom for her birthday and a book that Instagram and TikTok have been targeting me with super heavy. I can't wait to check out Red Stick Reads new location when they move! Hopefully they'll have more space so someone won't ask "how many people can fit in here?" when this event (hopefully) comes around next year.
This is one of my favorites, and not just because St. Francisville is a super cute down. It has a nice selection of used books, and my original plan was to just grab one of the used books because they are 50 % off. However, the longer I walked around, I ended up with both a used book and a new YA book from a local author that I have been wanting to check out. They also had cookies and lemonade, so a solid way to win my heart over.
TBR Reads & Tea
The latest to the indie bookstore scene because they literally opened two weeks ago! I told myself that I really wasn't going to buy anything here. And of course, I spent the most money of the day here. I got a couple of book themed items for kiddo - some gel pens and temporary tattoos that will show up at some point during the year (middle school graduation/ birthday/ Christmas/ for fun, who knows) and then Murdle which seems to be a book of murder logic problems for me.
All in all, it was a very successful day and I'm actually quite proud that I spent just a little over $100. Here are a few more pics of the fun :)
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