“What I say is, a town isn’t a town without a bookstore. It may call itself a town, but unless it’s got a bookstore, it knows it’s not foolin’ a soul.”― Neil Gaiman, American Gods
In Australia, Love Your Bookshop day is celebrated every year on August 14. It is a holiday that was founded by the Australian Booksellers Association. The aim is to appreciate bookshops around the country and highlight all the things that make local bookshops beneficial.
I think any country benefits from that notion. In Iola, Kansas, USA, we have a BookShop, 4M’s and a silent Q. In Star Wars, Yoda says, “Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.” But somewhere I heard, “BookShops lead to reading, reading leads to imagination, imagination leads to innovation.” I’m not sure that is the counter to Yoda’s concern, but I think it is a step in the right direction. Yoda further says, “Named must be your fear before banish it you can.” How better to understand and name your fear than to be well read? Oh, good conversation helps.
“You don’t have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them.” ― Ray Bradbury