You Are Here: Public Transportation Routes for San Diego Book Crawl 2026

 

 Participate in the 2026 San Diego Book Crawl by MTS bus and trolley!

Tips for taking public transit during the San Diego Book Crawl:

• Paying for the bus is easy. For a single ride, you can use exact change, a debit or credit card and NFC.

• While planning to visiting multiple bookstores, download the Pronto app or purchase a Pronto pass card.

• Children 5 and under ride free on San Diego MTS (bus/trolley) without a card.

• Youth 18 and under ride free with a Youth PRONTO card or app.

• On weekends, up to two kids 12 and under ride free per paid adult. A physical Youth PRONTO card must be registered for free fare.

• Weekdays offer more rides per route than Saturdays.

• On Sundays there may be a longer wait between rides – a benefit when you want to spend more time at a book shop.

Routes:

The routes outlined below are suggestions; alternative options are available. Refer to the MTS Trip Planner or apps like Moovit and One Bus Away for real time arrival details and to plan your personal best routes.

Starting from Coronado heading north and from downtown:

Bay Books to Libelula Books and Co.: Take Bus Routes 901 and 12

Bay Books to The Library Shop (downtown San Diego location): Bus Route 901

The Library Shop (downtown) to Libelula Books and Co: Bus Routes 12 or 929. Alternatively, you can ride the San Diego Trolley: take the UC San Diego Blue Line or the Orange Line.

The Library Shop (downtown) to Hey Books!: Bus Routes 5 or 901.

Hey Books! to The Library Shop (Mission Hills location): Bus Routes 3 and 10.

Starting from the San Diego uptown area:

The Library Shop (Mission Hills) to Bluestocking Books: Bus Route 10 (this route is walkable for those who are able).

Bluestocking Books to Verbatim Books: Bus Route 10.

Verbatim Books to The Book Catapult and Hey Books!: Bus Route 2.

Verbatim Bookstore to Meet Cute: Bus Route 1 or Bus Route 2 to the Orange Line Trolley.

Meet Cute to Mysterious Galaxy: Bus Routes 1 and 10 with walking. Keep in mind, this trip will run you an hour and a half.

Alternative Route:

The Library Shop (Mission Hills) to La Playa Books: Bus Route 10 to Bus Route 28.

La Playa Books to Mysterious Galaxy: Bus Route 28.

Starting from North County:

Check the North County Transit schedule for the best routes based on your location.

The Bookstore at UC San Diego to Bird Rock Bookshop: Bus Route 30 (this route includes walking).

The Bookstore at UC San Diego to Warwick’s: Bus Route 30 (this route includes walking).

Bird Rock Bookshop to Warwick’s: Bus Route 30 (this route includes walking).

The San Diego Book Crawl takes place April 25-27, 2026. Visit all 15 bookstores to earn the most swag and the biggest bragging rights!

February is for Book Lovers

 

You don’t need a holiday to bask in the glow of literary love, but for those who like to make it official, February is National Library Lovers’ Month. Started by the Friends and Foundations of California Libraries in 2003, National Library Lovers’ Month is an annual observance held throughout the entire month of February to celebrate the value of libraries, librarians, and the people who love them.

The month of February is dedicated to recognizing libraries as community hubs where people can find connections beyond books, such as e-books, databases, research tools, movies, music, story times, STEAM programs, literacy programs, and more.

Celebrate National Library Lovers’ Month by taking part in special events and challenges hosted by your public library. 

For seasoned patrons, write love notes to show appreciation for your library staff on February 14, partake in events listed on your library’s calendar, and consider volunteering with your Friends of the Library group. Speak with a branch manager to find your local chapter.

Is this the beginning of your library journey? Start by obtaining a library card and meeting the librarians by letting them know your special interests. Take a “shelfie” in front of your favorite book section and post it to your social media. Borrow books, DVDs, and audiobooks. Explore programs and events. Utilize digital resources. Ask about special collections and archive tours. Ask about free or reduced-price tickets to local museums, zoos, and cultural attractions. Check for availability of tools and maker labs for 3D printers, sewing machines, and audio recording booths.

“I always knew from that moment, from the time I found myself at home in that little segregated library in the South, all the way up until I walked up the steps of the New York City library, I always felt, in any town, if I can get to a library, I’ll be OK. It really helped me as a child, and that never left me.” —Maya Angelou

Penguin Random House compiled a list of fiction books featuring libraries and librarians across all genres and for all ages.

As full of spirit as the month of May...

 

"As full of spirit as the month of May, and as gorgeous as the sun in Midsummer", said King Henry IV while gazing upon the young royalists in William Shakespeare's play.

Happy Anniversary to Bluestocking Books!

At Bluestocking Books we are certainly feeling full of spirit this May Day as May 1, 2025 marks the 26th year since Kris Nelson purchased this bookstore from Joseph Tabler and renamed the shop Bluestocking Books. The origins of the bookstore location at 3817 Fifth Avenue go back to a time when a Greek immigrant set up shop as Otento books. Mr. Otento started his book business on Robinson Avenue and moved into our current storefront in 1967. The wooden bookshelves were installed by Mr. Otento and his antiques dealing friend and are still holding strong!

Adding to our joy is a story from a visitor to Bluestocking Books a couple of weeks ago. The visitor and her mother shared that when they were vacationing in Costa Rica, they found one of our distinctive blue bookmarks featuring artwork by Richard T. Reyes in a book left by another traveler. They vowed to visit the book shop when they made it to San Diego. They were thrilled to see a stack of the matching bookmarks in the store! We are thrilled to know the bookmarks are making their way around the world. Where have you left or found a Bluestocking Books bookmark? Let us know in the comments.

San Diego Book Crawl Wrap-Up

The three-day San Diego Book Crawl in celebration of the 12th annual Independent Bookstore Day has wrapped! A BIG thank you to all the booklovers who crawled with us and the other 13 bookstores April 26, 27, & 28th. We are already making plans for 2026!

Bluestocking Books delighted in spending some time with children's book author and illustrator Susie Ghahremani while she signed her books to be sold during the Book Crawl. A house favorite is "Rosemary Long Ears". Based on a true tale, Rosemary is a Bassett Hound who manages to attract detritus from the streets to her fur like a magnet as she strolls with her humans.

San Diego Book Crawl 2025 logo creator Kaley McCabe rode on one of the event shuttle buses on Saturday and was kind enough to sign copies of her Nightmare Before Christmas books, "Welcome to Halloween Town" and "The 13 Days of Halloween: Jack's Spooktacular Countdown!" when she arrived at Bluestocking Books.

We also had books on hand from IBD ambassador Dave Eggers, including "Soren's Seventh Song", about a singing young humpback whale, and "Moving the Millers' Minnie Moore Mine Mansion", a true story from the state of Idaho.

Act Now: Library Advocates Are Needed

The City of San Diego 2026 proposed General Fund budget includes more than $8 million in reductions to the budget for The San Diego Public Library. If approved, all San Diego Public Library locations will close on Sundays and Mondays beginning July 1, 2025. You can take action on behalf of the libraries by attending budget hearings, sending an email, and sending a postcard. Find out more about San Diego library budget issues by visiting The Library Foundation.

SDSU Prison Book Project

The SDSU Prison Book Project is working to increase access to information for incarcerated people by fulfilling their book requests. The project collects books through community donations, partnerships with bookstores, and events. Needed are paperback book dictionaries, popular fiction, non-fiction, self-help, craft and how-to. Bluestocking Books stocks new book selections that meet the needs of the project. You may make a purchase at Bluestocking Books and we will include your choices in our donation collection. Visit the bookstore to view the selections and make a purchase. Learn more about the project by visiting https://linktr.ee/sdsuprisonbookproject.

Until next time, remember to stop and smell the May Flowers!

Visit Bluestocking Books

Visit Bluestocking Books in person at 3817 Fifth Avenue in San Diego, California and online at bluestockingbooks.com.

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.

Visit Bluestocking Books

Visit Bluestocking Books in person at 3817 Fifth Avenue in San Diego, California and online at bluestockingbooks.com.

Looking Back While Looking Forward

Women's History Month 

March is Women's History Month. The theme for 2025 is "Moving Forward Together! Women Educating and Inspiring Generations", which inspires us to once more look back at our Suffragette Sisters who fought for the women's right to vote, and looking forward to the positive effects our current activism will achieve. 

Questions folks are asking in the current political climate are, "How can I protest?" and "What actions can I take?". The Commons Social Change Library is a good place to start browsing helpful publications. The staff at Bluestocking Books is prepared to assist in finding just the right books for you, wherever you are in your activism. 

One book we recommend for the younger set is pictured below - "A is for Activist" is an ABC board book for ages 3-7. This is the perfect book for families who want their kids to grow up in a space that is unapologetic about activism, environmental justice, civil rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and everything else that activists fight for. Click on the image to purchase online or contact Bluestocking Books to place an order - +1 (619) 296-1424.

Writerfest Nashville

WriterFest Nashville is a women-owned creative gathering for aspiring writers, published authors, screenwriters, poets, and songwriters, established by Ami McConnell in 2018. WriterFest hosts events, salons, soirées, and fundraisers throughout the year. The organization's Dolly Good Time event last November in support of Dolly Parton's Imagination Library raised enough funds to cover 161 children for one year.

Dolly Parton's Imagination Library

Dolly Parton's Imagination Library is celebrating 30 years of building reading skills by gifting books free of charge to children from birth through age five in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the Republic of Ireland. Dolly was inspired to create the library in 1995 due to her father's inability to read and write. Dolly's efforts began in her home county in East Tennessee and have expanded to five countries; which just goes to show that local efforts can benefit the world. Despite recent defunding threats, the Imagination Library abides. Your donation to the Imagination Library helps maintain and expand the program. Dolly and over 3,197,250 children appreciate your support!

Mark Your Calendars!

Along with being Women's History Month, March is filled with holidays and observances - Mardi Gras, St. Urho's Day, St. Patrick's Day, Cesar Chavez Day, the vernal equinox, and more celebratory days that open our hearts to welcome the freshness of spring. Scroll down to view our March holiday reading picks.

Cowbellion: Mother of Mystics: The Origin of America's Mardi Gras explores the origins of America's Mardi Gras traditions, beginning with the "Cowbellion" Society, the first mystic parading organization. Following the Krafft family from Pennsylvania to New Orleans and Mobile, Cowbellion explores the origins of America's Mardi Gras tradition and the world of slave traders and cotton merchants in Antebellum America.

The full history of St. Patrick's day is captured here for the first time in The Wearing of the Green. Illustrated with photos, the book spans the medieval origins, steeped in folklore and myth, through its turbulent and troubled times when it acted as fuel for fierce political argument, and tells the fascinating story of how the celebration of 17th March was transformed from a stuffy dinner for Ireland's elite to one of the world's most public festivals.

The Fight in the Fields: Cesar Chavez and the Farmworkers Movement is a well-documented account of the farmworker's movement and it's prime mover, Cesar Chavez, featuring essays by Carey McWilliams, Victor Villaseñor, Alfredo Véa, Jr., Peter Matthiessen, Rudolfo Anaya, and others. Illustrated throughout with black-and-white photographs.

Ostara - also known as the Spring Equinox - is a time of renewal, a time to plant seeds as the earth once again comes to life. Ostara: Rituals, Recipes, and Lore or the Spring Equinox is your guide to the history and modern celebrations of Ostara and shows you how to perform rituals and work magic to renew your power and passion for living and growing. 

One Book, One San Diego

Since 2007, One Book, One San Diego has been uniting communities by encouraging San Diego and Northern Baja residents to read and discuss the same book each year. Book nominations for the 2025 season are open until March 15, 2025.

The San Diego Book Crawl 2025

Independent Bookstore Day is on the last Saturday in April and the accompanying annual San Diego Book Crawl has become one of Bluestocking Books favorite events. Stay updated by following @sdbookcrawl

Visit Bluestocking Books

Visit Bluestocking Books in person at 3817 Fifth Avenue in San Diego, California and online at bluestockingbooks.com.