📚 Read (a) Across America Day (b)-A-Thon (c) all of the above

Hello there and TGIF! I presume we are all tired of snow and weather chitchat so I will not write about it. Let’s talk about kids!

This coming Monday is Read Across America Day. Started by the National Education Association in 1998, it is an annual reading motivation movement that takes place nationwide. The NEA website features a marvelous list of Children's Books About Books, including two favorite characters in our household, Elephant and Piggie (this one is currently on our shelves). If there’s a kid in your life, try reading to or with them on Monday to mark the day!

Another kid-centered reading initiative that begins this Monday is the Hindley Elementary School PTO’s Read-A-Thon. Hindley students and families who mention the Read-A-Thon at checkout can earn 20% of the total donated to the Hindley PTO. Buying books plus supporting enrichment opportunities at a local school? That’s a win-win to me.

And now for a bit of Books For Grown Ups news. The blizzard unfortunately led us to reschedule our event with Deborah Goodrich Royce to April 8th and there’s a new RSVP link below. We also still have a few seats for Kat Rosenfield’s book launch on March 12th and I can tell the dark, twisty How To Survive In The Woods is going to be a hit with our thriller readers. There are tons of great new titles on our shelves (I highly recommend The Irish Goodbye by Beth Ann Fennelly - no, not that one from September, which was also good, but this new one) and lots of upcoming author events at the store and with our community partners. I’m also really excited about a debut that comes out on Tuesday, March 3rd - but you’ll have to stay tuned!

- Mallory

New Fiction Releases

New Non Fiction Releases

Events at Barrett Bookstore

Norwalk's own Kat Rosenfield is celebrating her "sexy wilderness murder" novel, How To Survive In The Woods, with Tessa Wegert on Thursday, March 12th. Wild meets The Wife Between Us in this addictive tale of passion, betrayal, control, and what it means to survive. Click here to RSVP.

In partnership with India Cultural Center, we welcome Darien Author Sharbari Ahmed and Nalini Jones come to Barrett on Thursday, March 19th to chat about her short story collection The Strangest Of Fruit. She will be joined by area writer Nalini Jones, author of Unbroken Coast. Please RSVP here.

The blizzard delayed us a few weeks, but we're prepared for a snow-free April 8th to welcome Deborah Goodrich Royce to the store. Fans of Ruth Ware and Liane Moriarity are raving about Best Boy, a riveting tale of identity, memory, and the dangerous power of forgetting. Use this link to RSVP.

Deborah Levison is coming to the store on Sunday, April 12 to chat with Greg Wands about A Novel Crime, her newest book. This darkly funny tale asks just how far an aspiring writer will go to see her name on a book jacket. Please click here to RSVP.

Author Andrew Ginsburg is one of two authors celebrating Independent Bookstore Day at Barrett this year! On Saturday, April 25th at noon, Andrew will sign copies of his children's book The Colors Of My Sky. Lester the blue butterfly will guide young and old readers alike through lessons about biodiversity, cultural diversity, and kindness. You may RSVP here.

Celebrate Independent Bookstore Day with an evening author visit from Priya Parmar. We are delighted to host her and local bibliophile Susy Hayes Jones to discuss The Original, a novel that plunges into the tumultuous life of screen icon Katharine Hepburn. Please save your seat by clicking this link.

Upcoming Partner Events:

Bruce Holsinger at Darien Library on March 3rd
Neil Shea at Darien Library on March 25th
Karen E. Olson at Darien Library on April 2nd
Emma Gray at Pequot Library on April 24th

Browse our entire event calendar here.