BANGOR, Maine — Customers at The Briar Patch were greeted with a sticker and a smile. Book lovers lined up outside of the bookstore's door Saturday morning eager to celebrate Independent Bookstore Day.
Bookstores across the country celebrated the 11th annual Independent Bookstore Day on Saturday, and Maine was no exception.
"I look forward to it every year," customer Gage Slachiak said. "Just because independent bookstores are so important, and they just always feel like home."
The festivities at The Briar Patch included a scavenger hunt for kids, exclusive items for sale, and free swag.
Gibran Graham, the owner of The Briar Patch said independent bookstores bring the community together and boost the economy. "Shopping at an independent bookstore helps keep your money local, employs people who work in your community and live in your community," he said.
According to Graham, what sets an indie bookstore apart from online stores or big companies is its curation.
"You can get sort of an AI-generated recommendation online, but you can't get a recommendation from a real person until you come into a bookstore. And that's how you discover new things," Graham said.
Indie Bookstore Day is all about supporting local businesses, and at The Briar Patch it is also about supporting local authors.
At the event, four local authors got the chance to connect with shoppers, holding book signings at the store.
"It's just a wonderful opportunity," author Jody Rich said. Rich, a first-time author, promoted her cozy mystery "Simmering, Savory, and Deadly, A Soup Maker’s Mystery."
"Independent bookstores, you know, are the backbone for a lot of authors, a lot of readers," Rich said.
Claire Ackroyd, author of "Murder in the Maple Woods" was happy to share her hyper-local story with Mainers. "I love it. The independent bookstores are the way my book gets out into the world and it's excellent," she said.
It was a successful day of selling, shopping, and reading.
"We're really lucky, we have a really great community here in Bangor. They've always been very supportive of the store, and it's been great to see people's faces all day long today," Graham said.
The celebration continues this weekend at The Briar Patch. The store is offering free shipping on all purchases on its online shop.