How To Protect Bookstores And Why: The Present and Future of Bookselling

Why bookstores matter and how we can help

Can bookstores save the world? As bastions of culture, anchors of local retail districts, community gathering places, and the source of new ideas, inspiration, and delight, maybe they can. But only if we protect them and the critical roles they fill in our communities.

Danny Caine, author of the best-selling sensation How to Resist Amazon and Why and co-owner of the Raven Book Store in Lawrence, Kansas, makes a compelling case for the power of small, local businesses in this thoughtful examination of the dynamic world of bookstores. At once an urgent call to action and a sincere tribute to everything bookstores can do, Caine’s new book features a brief overview of 20th-century bookselling and how it got that way, plus case-study profiles of 13 of the most interesting, creative, and progressive bookstores of today, from Minneapolis to Paris.

Through examples, analysis, and well-informed advocacy, Caine offers a cohesive road map for a sustainable future of bookselling, including policy suggestions, strategies for community-based action, and tips on what consumers can do to help. A captivating read for any lover of books, patron of bookstores, or champion of the survival of these vital institutions, How to Protect Bookstores and Why makes the strongest possible case for the importance of a resilient, inclusive, and progressive bookstore landscape.



Bookstore case studies include:

Birchbark Books, Minneapolis MN
Moon Palace Books, Minneapolis MN
A Room of One’s Own, Madison WI
Bookends & Beginnings, Evanston IL
Semicolon Bookstore & Gallery, Chicago IL
Avid Bookshop, Athens GA
Loyalty Bookstores, Washington DC
Two Dollar Radio, Columbus OH
Source Booksellers, Detroit MI
Charis Books & More, Decatur GA
Red Emma’s, Baltimore MD
Biblioasis, Windsor ON
Shakespeare & Co, Paris FR





‘A sort of bookseller Profiles in Courage, How to Protect Bookstores and Why is an invigorating, entertaining, and insightful portrait of contemporary bookstores by one of our country’s finest booksellers. Danny Caine is the bard of bookselling!’ – Jeff Deutsch, Director, Seminary Co-op and author, In Praise of Good Bookstores

‘Even devoted bookstore aficionados will learn a lot from this book-about a dozen inspiring, unique, community-driven bookstores across the country, and about how to help support and protect the bookstores in one’s own neighborhood. Danny is one of our industry’s best boosters, in part because he offers both enthusiasm and a critical eye, and I always look forward to his missives. One brief warning: I imagine it will inspire more than one reader to join our ranks.’ – Emma Straub, bestsellng author and owner of Books are Magic

Format: Paperback
Pages: 192
Imprint: Microcosm Publishing US
Publication date: 01/09/2023