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A Lunch-Time Reading Ritual
In 2018, I had a lunch-time ritual on the days I wasn’t eating with friends or working straight through the hour. I would walk to Cava while listening to a podcast. Specifically, I remember being weirdly captivated by West Cork.1 At Cava, I would order a greens + grains bowl with spicy lamb meatballs, and a brownie. The brownie was obviously a crucial component of this excursion. I would then walk back to my desk, podcast blaring through my headphones.
Back at my desk, I would open several million (read: dozen) tabs and read each of them as I slowly ate my lunch and drank iced green tea with honey, which I would make in the communal kitchen to extend my midday break. The tabs (and maybe the brownie) were the most joyful part of this ritual, some were New Yorker articles, some were blog posts, but always, always there was Refinery29’s Money Diaries.
The money part of this series was interesting to me, sure. But I was most riveted by people’s schedules and modes of working. In a world that was quickly moving towards morning routines filled with movement, meditation, and glasses of warm water with lemon squeezed in (remember, this was 2018) Money Diaries was offering a less polished—if not unvarnished—anonymous accounting of people’s lives.
There were people eating bananas on public transportation for breakfast (like me) and skipping workouts to lie on yoga mats with their puppies. There were women logging out for the day with work unfinished. And there were women who were approaching life and work in ways that were radically different from one another, and from me.2 On the other hand, this past week, Money Diaries, featured a third-year associate in BigLaw. Her description of her Saturday could have been (read: was) me in 2018:
12 p.m. — Unfortunately I have some work to catch up still, so I go home after my gym class. I shower, then turn on my computer set up. I have a brief to draft and edits from senior attorneys that I need to implement. Five or six hours easily fly by, and I realize I have forgotten to eat. I then order some spaghetti from a nearby restaurant using Uber Eats. $35 (Expensed)
Over time my Money Diaries reading ritual fell by the wayside.
New Reading Rituals
Then, earlier this year, I stumbled on
’s The Purse. was a founding editor of Money Diaries. To me, The Purse, is Money Diaries' smarter, more mature cousin. It shines an important light on how households divide responsibilities and Lindsey tackles all the questions that Money Diarists tend to glide over. I love reading it. But also the format doesn’t include that daily diary-like quality of what people ate, bought, and saved.For that, I have been turning to
’s Receipt from the Bookshop. The newsletter has many wonderful attributes but my favorite bit is the Friday post about Katie (wo)manning her award-winning independent bookshop in Northern England.3 The writing is so witty and fun that I often giggle when reading it at my desk (unsurprisingly, during the lunch hour). Here is a slightly truncated example:Three intrepid women enter the bookshop in their walking trainers and zip-up fleece jackets. One of them has a Mountain Warehouse backpack. One of them has walking poles!
“I can’t resist buying books” one says (she doesn’t buy a book).
One of them asks if I know “a small poetry book about birds, with a Robin on the front”. . . . .
“I’ve got it in my bag!” says the other one. She takes out a small, (I am assuming,) self-published book of poems called something like Little Poems about Birds. The cover is white, and has a robin on the front. It looks a bit like clip-art.
“Turn to the first page” she says…
I turn to the first page. The clip-art Robin is there again.
A Robin just did a poo
on my washing line.
How about you clean up
after yourself next time.1
That’s the poem.
As you might have guessed, Katie provides insight into life as an independent bookseller—swoon, dream job, but also fair warning, she might disabuse you of that ambition—with humor and panache. There is less about saving but there is an actual accounting of the bookshop’s earnings during the day. The information I never knew I needed!
The through-line from Money Diaries to Receipt from the Bookshop might only be obvious to me and I might be the entire population of people obsessed with (at one time or another) both. Regardless, I couldn’t think of a better way of sharing my experiences on Independent Bookstore Day than honoring (mimicking? I would never!)4 a bookseller and shop I discovered through Substack.5 So here goes. Buckle up, buttercups—this post will be long.
Independent Bookstore Day: 2024
Friday, April 26th ~11 am. I am at the airport, waiting to board my flight home to Washington, D.C. My four-year old is busily watching something that seems inappropriate on our iPad with bright teal noise-canceling headphones, and a popsicle in hand. I should ask him to watch something else but I am a woman on a mission. Instead, I turn to my husband, who is peacefully enjoying his corona with lime and ask if he will solo parent our son tomorrow so that I can “celebrate Independent Bookstore Day for the first time in its 11-year history.” After some unnecessary remarks about capitalist holidays, he acquiesces. I squeal internally and start “researching,” which stores I will visit on Instagram.
Saturday, April 27th (the last Saturday in April)
11:30 am Time to get ready for the BEST DAY OF MY LIFE. Kidding. Mostly. I take a moment to silently thank the powers that be, that a) I don’t have a brief to revise today (bye bye BigLaw); and b) I have child care (in my child’s father and my life partner). And then I get dressed. I wear a baseball cap that reads “Read a Book” and a sweatshirt that reads, “Velaris City of Starlight” (iykyk). I am nothing if not committed to the theme. Full outfit vibes above. As I’m dressing, I worry that I am leaving my home too late and that all of the good, free swag will be taken. If, until now, you thought I was a Reader (yes, capital R) who had the kind of depth and emotional maturity to be above free books… well, I’m sorry to disappoint. (See also my gazillion library cards.) I then cue up my soundtrack for the day. First up, this WSIRN Patreon Episode on independent bookstores.
~12:15 pm I walk to my first bookshop as I listen to
Horton describe her favorite independent bookstores in Fredericksburg, VA—a town I have recently visited. I make a mental note to visit her favorite store (and taco joint) with my family the next time we’re at a loose end.I arrive at Solid State Books on 14th Street, in Northwest DC. This is *my* local, independent bookstore. Given the amount of money I spend here (basically, all of my money), I am expecting to be feted with a red carpet. This does not happen. I make a beeline for the register and annoyingly ask the owner to check two different gift cards to see if they have any cash moula (or dollar bucks to Bluey fans) on them. The owner recognizes me (ha! yes!) and says “welcome back.” Thanks to my Bestie, the second gift card has a balance of $100! I think strategically about how to spend it.
I take out my headphones because, as always, this store has the best soundtrack of any bookstore I frequent. As it drizzles outside, songs about rain play softly throughout the store. A young girl (approximate age: six) comments how apropos this is, without using the word apropos. Kudos to her. There is a buzzy energy in the store, which I appreciate but without my headphones I can hear every single person’s thoughts on every book. I don’t know if I like this.
After much hemming and hawing, I make my way to the register again. This time, with four books in hand, two of which are signed (picture below). As I’m checking out, I meet a lovely woman named Chanel (sp?), who has already visited eight independent bookstores (wow, I’m slacking). The bookseller at the register tells me I owe $1.31 after he has applied my gift card to my purchase (wow, I’m good at math for a lawyer).
![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F54a69a41-246e-4bd1-8690-693cab7855d3.heic)
I ask for the Washington, DC bookstore crawl map as I’m checking out. I’m disappointed to see its black and white and on regular paper. Other patrons have card stock versions with color images. Did they print theirs at home? Or did I make a strategic error with the store I started at? The bookseller stamps my map and hands it over. I want to slyly ask if he has any galleys he can give me for free but I already know from eavesdropping earlier, the shop is completely out. It is only 1 pm, is everyone in this city as book crazy as I am? If so, why am I wandering about town alone?
~1:00 pm I decide I deserve a reward for only spending ~$1 at the last (and my first) book shop (thank you Bestie!). I head to a coffee shop and order a pesto, chicken sandwich (surprisingly delicious) and a latte (tastes very burnt and I am missing the cappuccinos at my hotel in Mexico). ~$22 later my belly is full and I am on my way.
~1:15 pm Bookshop two. Busboys and Poets. They have expanded the bookshop area of this bookstore-cum-restaurant since I last visited. I’m impressed with the selection. Why don’t I come here more often? Oh. The floor is very sticky. The treads of my shoes are making an unpleasant squelching sound as I move around. Coffee Shop + bookshop, yes. Restaurant + bookshop, maybe when less crowded? I decide to move on. The bookseller at the store is lovely and stamps my map (with a ‘Seas the Day’ sticker), without any perceptible judgment as to my empty-handed departure. I know from
, she probably is judging me (on the inside).~1:30 pm Bookshop three. Big Planet Comics. I have never been inside here before. It is warmly-lit, cozy but also overwhelming. I know nothing about comic books, where do I start? I land on the graphic novels section, which feels manageable. I see Persepolis (one of my all-time favorites, I own three copies) but nothing else catches my eye. Time to leave. I have to hit five stores before my husband’s patience wears thin (and so I can win a bookish prize, of course).
I have had my headphones in the entire time I’m in this store but I take them out as I make my way to the checkout line to sheepishly ask for my stamp. There is some plotting related to the bookstore crawl map occurring among the small crowd at the front of the store. I gather someone has been poking fun at *my* indie. I confusedly mention that I’m a member at Solid State Books (this is true, and why I received 20% off my purchase). Apparently, I have said something funny. There is raucous laughter. I laugh too because what else am I to do. Then, I flea. I might not be a comic book person. Or a social person.
~1:50 pm I walk to a new neighborhood (AdMo for us District Dwellers) and land at Lost City Books. I have always been a bit intimidated by this bookstore, partly because of their cool, aesthetically pleasing branding. Once inside, I understand the appeal of this place. Wooden floors, two stories, floppy, romantic shelf-talkers. I plead with myself not to buy any books here. I am doing so well with having only, really spent a $1 so far. It turns out, not spending further is too great an ambition. My eye lands on Transcription by Kate Atkinson. I have been maniacally reading spy thrillers for the last few weeks and the algorithmic overlords fed me this Economist article, while I was boarding my plane home.
What are the odds I would find a book mentioned in the article, the very next day, at *gasp* a bookshop, of all places?! Surely, one in a million. I pull the book off the shelf and convince myself the universe must be rewarded for this moment of serendipity with a purchase. I make way to the cash register where two women are celebrating hitting their fifth bookshop on their crawl—they are gifted two stylish tote bags and one bookish bandana. I am suddenly wishing I had made this shop my fifth stop. I pay for my book, it is only ~$10 as it is used, which I did not previously realize. I am delighted by this unintentionally sustainable consumption.
2:30 pm I take the bus6 and arrive at the original location of Solid State Books. I flounce up to the register and ask for a stamp as I have reached my fifth and final destination. The bookseller looks quizzically at me and very slowly explains that I already have a stamp from Solid State. I, in turn, explain that the store’s owner had posted on Instagram suggesting Solid State Books should be every members’ first and fifth stop. I am nothing if not loyal. As I’m explaining, I realize I sound both unhinged and like a toddler who has been deprived of the last bite of their fast-melting ice cream. I am only slightly mortified. But I am, somehow, nevertheless rewarded with a bright orange beer koozie that retails for $3. The promise of free books (on a day where I am supposed to be supporting independent bookstores by spending money) has rendered me insane. But the bookseller is quickly realizing that I’m a weirdo and further rewards me with two free galleys (picture below) and helps me fill out a book bingo card to win a $50 dollar gift card.
Now, that’s more like it. Satisfied that all is not lost (I think back longingly to the Lost City totes as I pop my orange beer koozie in my bag), I start browsing the store.7 I am aware that I have now purchased five additional books and collected two free galleys, while I have stacks and stacks of unread books at home but… a little browsing never hurt anyone.
Now, this is where my diary entry takes a turn for the surreal. As I’m perusing the mystery section, several women enter the store dressed in biker shorts with helmets on. They are calling to one another from across the store. At one point, there is an animated discussion relating to Yolk. I earnestly ask myself—is DC home to a bookish, bicycle gang??? Turns out, yes. My post-hoc Instagram research suggests they were 13 women who visited eight bookstores in one day, by bike. I have no idea if they do this annually and they are an organization of some sort or just friends. Either way, I’m hoping this post somehow makes it to one of them and they’re flattered by my interest (more likely, they will be creeped out).
I purchase two more books for the road (picture below) and make my way home, feeling satiated after what can only be described as a bookish adventure.
Total damage: ~$75.00 (including lunch), ~5 hours of “free childcare,” and my sanity and / or dignity.
Bookish delight: immeasurable.
If you have read through to the end, THANK YOU. As always, I appreciate your time and attention. I am currently working on my January and April reading roundups so if you (or a friend) have room in your life for more semi-amusing book chat, please hit subscribe. highbrowlowbrow is a free newsletter and will remain so for the foreseeable future (read: years).
Maybe this isn’t as weird as my recollection suggests. The marketing for the podcast includes Patrick Radden Keefe providing the following pull quote, “A Masterpiece.” I am obsessed with Keefe’s work for The New Yorker and I am slowly making my way through his books.
I am so enamored by Receipt from a Bookshop that I want to refer to Katie as Ms. Clapham but that feels weird, so we’re using Katie. Ms. Clapham, if you’re reading this, please forgive me my casual, American ways? (I grew up in Britain so I might just be throwing Americans under the bus here, for no real reason).
And providing the universe with another diary entry to read because clearly I have a voracious appetite for them.
When I originally drafted this post, I had about 1000 words dedicated to this 40 minute (8 stop) bus ride. I thought it was brimming with excellent observations about humans and public transportation and self-expression. Then, I realized it was just the caffeine hitting my bloodstream and that I was veering from *niche* to just plain weird. So I deleted it (but, to be clear, not without angst).
After returning home, I realized the beer koozie was not free and that I actually paid $3 plus tax for it. This upsets me somewhat, especially because I really do believe Lost City was providing free, chic tote bags. I self-soothe by reminding myself the whole day was about *supporting* independent bookshops.
Thank you for the compliment! I love hearing of your days reading Money Diaries at lunch! And oh man, Katie's newsletter is funny! (And my R29 colleague would be thrilled by your favorite MD! She did a lot of work tracking that one down!)
This is so fun, Tara! I loved reading about your Indie Bookstore Day, it sounds like it was a great one.