Spring is the Time of Plans and Projects

Leo Tolstoy with his grandchildren, 1900

 “Spring is the time of plans and projects.” - Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina

Spring is indeed the time of plans and projects. Spring is the season of new beginnings. The time is now to review, restart, refresh, reset, and reengage with nature. May your choices of engagement this spring be guided by Tolstoy's philosophical views of pacifism and social justice, just as his ideas about non-violent resistance influenced Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr.

This is also the time of year for Spring Cleaning. If you are clearing your book shelves of pre-loved friends, keep in mind that you may trade your books for credit to spend as a discount on purchases at Bluestocking Books. If you are trading more than one or two bags of books, we ask that you call the store to book an appointment. +1 (619) 296-1424

Independent Bookstore Day and San Diego Book Crawl 2025!

Saturday, April 26th, 2025 is the 12th annual Independent Bookstore Day and that means it will soon be San Diego Book Crawl weekend! Indie Bookstore Day is a celebration of independent bookstores across the United States and this year the author ambassador for IBD is Dave Eggers.

From April 26 through April 28, 2025, the annual San Diego Book Crawl will be featuring 14 amazing bookstores.

 

How the San Diego Book Crawl Works

 ‘Passports’ are issued at your first stop. A minimum $20 purchase is rewarded with a stamp from each place on your literary trek. Participating bookstores will be giving out stickers, totes, pins, and more as you traverse San Diego. Every year our limited edition swag is designed by a local artist! Start participating early as giveaways are available while supplies last. Follow @sdbookcrawl on Instagram and get to know the different book shops and the amazing people that make SDBC so special.

San Diego Book Crawl 2025 artwork by Kaley McCabe

SD Book Crawl 2025 Art

Each year, the San Diego Book Crawl partners with a local artist in creating the merchandise and participation rewards. This year the SDBC is delighted to feature artwork by children's book illustrator and designer Kaley McCabe. Check out her darling exploring Desert Cottontail above and purchase related merch on Bonfire!

Bluestocking Books in the Media

Recently, SDVoyager conducted an updated interview with Kris Nelson, owner of Bluestocking Books. Read Exploring Life and Business with Books and the original 2018 interview, Meet Kris Nelson of Bluestocking Books in Hillcrest.

Kris also contributed commentary for the NBC San Diego article, Multiple Businesses Close in Hillcrest Over Past Few Months.

Book Picks for April Reading

Spring open a book cover and hop into a new read this season.

SUNRISE ON THE REAPING by Suzanne Collins

The fifth book in The Hunger Games series is out! "As the day dawns on the fiftieth annual Hunger Games, fear grips the districts of Panem. This year, in honor of the Quarter Quell, twice as many tributes will be taken from their homes. Back in District 12, Haymitch Abernathy is trying not to think too hard about his chances. All he cares about is making it through the day and being with the girl he loves. When Haymitch's name is called, he can feel all his dreams break. He's torn from his family and his love, shuttled to the Capitol with the three other District 12 tributes: a young friend who's nearly a sister to him, a compulsive oddsmaker, and the most stuck-up girl in town. As the Games begin, Haymitch understands he's been set up to fail. But there's something in him that wants to fight and have that fight reverberate far beyond the deadly arena." 

Order your copy in store or from Bookshop.org.

PREQUEL: AN AMERICAN FIGHT AGAINST FASCISM by Rachel Maddow

Inspired by her research for the hit podcast Ultra, Rachel Maddow charts the rise of a wild American strain of authoritarianism that has been alive on the far-right edge of our politics for the better part of a century. Before and even after our troops had begun fighting abroad in World War II, a clandestine network flooded the country with disinformation aimed at sapping the strength of the U.S. war effort and persuading Americans that our natural alliance was with the Axis, not against it. It was a sophisticated and shockingly well-funded campaign to undermine democratic institutions, promote antisemitism, and destroy citizens' confidence in their elected leaders, with the ultimate goal of overthrowing the U.S. government and installing authoritarian rule.

That effort worked--tongue and groove--alongside an ultra-right paramilitary movement that stockpiled bombs and weapons and trained for mass murder and violent insurrection.

At the same time, a handful of extraordinary activists and journalists were tracking the scheme, exposing it even as it was unfolding. In 1941 the U.S. Department of Justice finally made a frontal attack, identifying the key plotters, finding their backers, and prosecuting dozens in federal court.

None of it went as planned.

While the scheme has been remembered in history--if at all--as the work of fringe players, in reality it involved a large number of some of the country's most influential elected officials. Their interference in law enforcement efforts against the plot is a dark story of the rule of law bending and then breaking under the weight of political intimidation.

That failure of the legal system had consequences. The tentacles of that unslain beast have reached forward into our history for decades. But the heroic efforts of the activists, journalists, prosecutors, and regular citizens who sought to expose the insurrectionists also make for a deeply resonant, deeply relevant tale in our own disquieting times.

Order the hardcover, E-book, and pre-order the paperback at Bookshop.org.

William Shakespeare at work in his study, circa 1610. Artist: A H Payne

“April hath put a spirit of youth in everything.”

― William Shakespeare, Shakespeare’s Sonnets

SHAKESPEARE'S SONNETS are perfect for springtime reading as the themes focus on spring, summer, and the seasons. 

Order the beautifully bound Complete Illustrated Edition originally released in April 2016 for the 400th anniversary of the death of William Shakespeare.