Seattle Independent Bookstore Tour

I am the champion...of the SIBD Challenge

Two weekends and a filled TRAVELER’S notebook Postcard Refill later, I can finally claim that I have completed the Seattle Independent Bookstore Day challenge. I knew I was going to have a busy May, but what I didn’t expect was for this special occasion to take up a huge chunk of my weekends leading up to it. It was fruitful, challenging, exhausting, but so fun!

Independent Bookstore Day, or Indie Bookstore Day, is a national holiday celebrated nationwide, especially among book lovers and local businesses. It is typically arranged on the last Saturday of April. Some cities take it to the next level by organizing special events that local bookstores can corral, allowing customers to have an extra fun time. Seattle puts on a yearly challenge: visit all participating stores within a set period to collect stamps, and you can win a champion card that gives you a one-time discount, and the badge of honor, of course.

I’ve only heard of Independent Bookstore Day from the stationery brand Blackwing because they’ve always released a special edition box of pencils to sell at participating stores for the occasion. However, I was struck by the whim to take on the challenge this year within Seattle. I have the time, I have a car, so why not try to collect them all?

Seattle went big by organizing 28 participating stores in the roster. When I looked at Google Maps, I was surprised by how many independent bookstores there are in the city. I guess I’ve always been more focused on the stationery scene. However, books and the charming ambiance of bookstores had always been my first love as a kid. The tricky part of this challenge is that the stores are spread out across the larger Seattle area. I’ve got to cross lakes to the East Side, take the ferry to the Kitsap Peninsula, and even cross bridges onto islands. Thankfully, I have 10 days to complete the challenge. However, I still planned the itinerary ambitiously to hit as many stores as possible on each day of the adventure.

Day 1: 11 stores in the books (pun intended)

My friends and I started the day bright and early on April 27th, Independent Bookstore Day! One could collect the “passport” at the first bookstore they visit on the list, and from then on, they will collect stamps and all subsequent stops. My first stop, though, is coffee and croissants at Fulcrum Coffee. I chowed down on a raspberry jelly-filled croissant and sipped on a sesame latte before I headed south toward the first cluster of bookstores.

In Burien, we met up with a local friend to start the adventure at Three Trees Books. Colorful cupcakes welcomed us upon entrance, an example of special events that stores put on to celebrate with readers. Apparently, the queue formed even before the store opened!

A few blocks away is the second store on our list Page 2 Books. Although the bookstores are so close to each other, they have completely different vibes and appeal. I guess that’s the charm of independent bookstores! The excitement and happiness of visitors were contagious, and we couldn’t help but pick up a few books on the way out. I even won an "advanced reader’s copy” through the Wheel of Fortune game!

Starting from the South-most stores, we started heading North. Third Place Bookstore in Seward Park is a combination complex of a bookstore and a draft beer specialty store! On a sunny day, it would be so relaxing to sit at the picnic table with a cool drink and read a book.

The parking gods blessed me when I was able to find a prime spot in downtown Georgetown for Fantagraphics Bookstore and Gallery. This is a store that specializes in graphic novels and comics. It started to rain outside, so this vintage-old school-inspired store was a nice refuge. I enjoyed poking through different renditions of Peanuts, local zines, and some special author-signed copies hidden in the shelves.

Before lunch, we stopped by Paper Boat Bookstore in West Seattle. This seemed to be the only bookstore that serves the neighborhood of West Seattle, and it was packed! They have a cute corner filled with fun stationery, but nothing too special to write home about. Three hours in, we have hit 5 bookstores on our list.

It wouldn’t be a nice outing without some good food. I had wanted to visit Grillbird for a long time, a hole-in-the-wall takeout restaurant that specializes in Teriyaki. Although it’s drizzling outside, my friends and I enjoyed our generous bowls of Teriyaki chicken, seasoned and charred to perfection, inside the comfort of the car.

After filling our tummy, we tackled a collection of bookstores in Capitol Hill, starting with the famous Elliott Bay Book Company. This place is an institution among Seattlites. It’s a huge bookstore, built like the underbelly of a ship, and heavily inspired by the nautical theme of Seattle. The place was packed. Not only do they have the bookstore challenge cards, but they also have crossword puzzles, typewriters, and giveaway games going on throughout the day. I enjoyed the bustle but got too overwhelmed to buy anything.

In comparison, Ada’s Technical Bookstore and Nook & Cranny, also in Capitol Hill, are quieter and more comfortable to browse around. Ada’s focuses on science and technical books,…it was also where my husband and I had our first date! I felt a great sense of nostalgia as I play with the puzzles that lie around the store.

Nook & Cranny is an interesting store itself; the smallest store of the bunch I visited that day. However, its shelf was stuffed with only the staff’s recommendation — a curation of peculiar and interesting topics, just like the name of the store.

Finally, in the last leg of the day's adventure, we drive East across Lake Washington, stopping briefly at Mercer Island to check Island Books off the list. This has to be one of my favorite bookstores (not to mention its strategic positioning next to a favorite French bakery). The store has tall ceilings, comfortable nooks to sit down and enjoy a book, as well as a great selection of stationery and gift items. It’s a great retreat for a Sunday morning.

On the East Side, we visited Booktree in Kirkland. The store was about to wind down for the day, but the owners still happily chatted up with anyone willing to listen about his entry of a cat poem in a featured book. After a full day of tote temptation from several stores, I finally caved and bought the tote bag from Booktree. The art motif of the store is too good to pass on.

Our friend’s dog joined us in the last leg of the day’s trip!

Finally, the group convened at Brick & Mortar Books in Redmond Town Center. This store has fountain pens! I enjoyed looking through stickers and artworks by local artists, as well as perusing popular titles. By the end of the day, I think I can remember up to 10 books that were recently released and heavily promoted across all stores. I made a short list before the day’s trip and was happy that I found most of the books I wanted to purchase.

The trunk of my Golf GTI was full by the end of the day, heavy with our book haul between four people. We enjoyed delicious tacos to celebrate a thorough day’s work, and made plans to meet the next day to tackle more bookstores!

Day 2: From Pioneer Square to Pike Place, a leisurely day

Visiting 11 bookstores in a day was exhausting! I don’t know how some people were able to complete the challenge in a single day. We decided to take Sunday at a slower pace. On the second day of the tour, our objective is to visit the bookstores located within the city, each 20 - 25 minutes away by car.

I started in Pioneer Square by myself, finding some reprieve to journal early in the morning at Umbria Coffee as I waited for my friends to arrive. I used to work in the neighborhood of Pioneer Square, but I was surprised at how much things have changed since 2019. The pandemic had surely changed things, for better or for worse.

The first store of the day is Arundel Books, a surprisingly elegant establishment with arched ceilings and tiled floors. I regretted not visiting this store more often back in 2017-2018. I really enjoyed the artistic and classical vibe of this store.

A short walk away is the Open Books Poem Emporium. This bookstore focuses on poetry and poem collections. They are also not afraid to showcase their activism, as each patron was passed a poem about the recent struggle of Gaza and Palestinians. I would like to visit this bookstore more in the future.

As part of our ploy to enjoy the day at a slower pace, we walked around Pike Place Market and scouted out lunch at Lowell’s. It was relaxing to sit at a window diner seat and enjoy freshly fried fish and chips. We then sipped hot chocolate at Indi Chocolate inside the market. This had been a drizzly and rainy weekend, but that added to the theme of a Seattle adventure. It’s always rainy season here.

At the front of the famous neon signs that adored Pike Place Market, we found Left Bank Books Collective. This is a store that’s not afraid to make a statement, featuring books on strong topics and inclusive positions. The staff generously let us play with their collection of store stamps, and we stamped away happily.

From downtown, we head north to Shoreline and Ridgecrest Books. I rarely visit this neighborhood, so I welcome the opportunity to explore more of Seattle through this challenge. The store dog is a corgi, snoozing blissfully by the owner’s feet. It’s the second day and I’m out of books to buy, so I bought a bunch of store stickers instead.

We zig-zagged our way down past The Wise Owl Books and Music and Phinney Books. The former features a darker theme of sci-fi and fantasy, while the latter is a friendly neighborhood bookstore with patrons of all ages.

Book Larder, on the other hand, is a pantry-like bookstore filled with beautiful recipe books and food-related volumes. I love seeing analog being portrayed in such a colorful variety.

In downtown Fremont, I finally got to visit Charlie’s Queer Books, a pink cabin bookstore focusing on LGBTQ+-themed books. I love the decor and the humorous gifts placed throughout the store.

Finally, we made our way to Magnolia to visit Magnolia’s Bookstore, the last store on our checklist for the day. Magnolia feels like its own peaceful corner on the Seattle Map, separated by a bridge from Queen Anne. The staff is on the elderly end, and they endearingly stamped our passports — we made it 10 minutes before the store closed!

The first weekend of the bookstore tour was an intense one, and my book stack also grew taller at the end of the day.

Day 3: In between lunch breaks

Within the 10 days, I chipped away at the list of bookstores, saving three places that are easy for me to visit during lunch breaks on a weekday.

The first store is a regular haunt of mine: University Bookstore at U-district. Unlike other university-owned bookstores that mostly service students, this bookstore offers a huge array of books, gifts, art supplies, and stationery. I stumbled across this store when I first visited Seattle on vacation. Today I’m happy to learn that it is also one of the independently owned establishments. They are also one of the few stores in Seattle that carries TRAVELER’S COMPANY products!

While on a coffee run, I was able to stop by my home store: Queen Anne Book Company. This cozy nook is located on the main street on the top of Queen Anne Hill. It’s tucked away a little bit from the main street and has a cozy cavern vibe to its interior.

Finally, Secret Garden Books was one of my favorite bookstores when I still lived in the Ballard neighborhood. I always love looking at their colorful window displays that differ every month, highlighting children’s books and illustrated features. When you walk through the Children’s book section, the loose bricks on the floor give off a cute clunky sound that’s nostalgic, like you’re sneaking into an old garden.

Day 4: Island Hopping Adventures

It’s the following Saturday from the Indie Bookstore Day, and we’re determined to wrap up the last of our Bookstore passport challenge in one day. For the most part, we’re tackling the West side of Seattle, specifically across some bodies of water to the islands and Kitsap peninsula area.

We started the day at Edmonds with Edmonds Bookshop in the cute town center. I wrote about this bookstore a while ago in a previous Substack post when I had a day trip adventure in Edmonds. It was nice to revisit this cozy space. My friends picked up a coffee from a nearby store while we surveyed trays of donuts at Edmonds Bakery. Nothing like a shot of sugar to keep our spirits high on this cloudy and overcast day.

I planned our route so we had time to pick up poke to go from Ono Poke, one of the best Hawaiian poke in town. Unfortunately, the line was longer than expected and it ended up being a mad dash race to the ferry queue once we all had our orders in hand. Sadly, the ferry we wanted to take was full so we had to wait in line for another hour before the next ferry arrived. Since we were driving our car up onto the ferry, we had the luxury of relaxing in the car while we waited. It would’ve been nice to enjoy the poke in the comfort of the ferry booth chairs, but we made do with another small feast in the car.

It’s a short ferry ride from Edmonds to Kingston terminal — only a 30-minute ride. However, the large ferry windows make for a scenic experience as we look out at the calm water surface of the Sound. We spread out on the tables, perfect for journaling and knitting enthusiasts.

Our first stop off the ferry was only a short drive away: Saltwater Bookshop. I love the whimsical Kraken logo, reaching out from the ocean holding books, and wreaking havoc. I was so enamored with it, I even ended up buying a pullover sweater with the design. It’s a charming bookstore right by a coffee shop and bakery. The store owner was determined to display all the books by its cover, a unique approach that made the entire store bright and colorful. I nursed a delicious blueberry crumble latte for the rest of the day from Borrowed Kitchen Bakery next door.

Driving on the island/peninsula is a unique experience. It feels like a road trip surrounded by nature; none of the busyness and anxiety from driving on a road in the city. Although it was drizzling a bit, we all admired the view of crossing a long bridge across to Bainbridge Island.

Bainbridge Island is a cozy getaway for locals on a weekend. The main street is filled with novelty stores that sell yarn, art, and souvenirs. Eagle Habor Book Co. is a huge bookstore that caters to both locals and tourists alike. It’s a spacious bookstore, but distinctly PNW with its wood-filled interior and low ceilings. They had cute coloring pages laid out for kids to fill out, featuring a drawing of the exterior of the bookstore. Of course, I had to take one to use as an ephemera for my TRAVELER’S notebook.

We crossed back to the peninsula to head towards Poulsbo, dubbed the “Norwegian/Viking town” of Washington. The entire main street is a whole vibe. The facade of the buildings is designed to look European, and murals of Vikings and boat-related motifs cover the walls.

Liberty Bay Bookstore is part of a huge yellow barn building that anchors the whole street. I love the airy interior and the maze-like shelf arrangements which create different zones in the store. I found out that a favorite artist who has a booth in Pike Place Market, Sarah Clementson, is a resident of Poulsbo! I collect her illustrated calendar of Washington scenes each year, and it felt quite special to visit her hometown.

Finally, ONE MORE BOOKSTORE TO GO! We head south to Bremerton to visit the last store: Ballast Book. This is a tiny store but crammed with books, novelty gifts, and a very plentiful selection of fun stickers. I was surprised by its offering despite its unassuming location inside a community center. Their windows are plastered with indie events and posters, a bookstore with a free spirit indeed.

From 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM, we have officially completed the last five bookstores of the Indie Bookstore Passport Challenge! The reward at the end of the day is a hearty meal of Korean soups in downtown Federal Way. Yangseop Seoul serves up piping hot bowls of hangover soup with blood sausages, recharging my battery for the last hour of driving back home.

The Seattle Indie Bookstore Challenge was quite the adventure. I also couldn’t believe that I crammed two weekends of my time into this challenge, right before a series of busy weeks in May. Will I attempt this again next year? Who knows! I love the stamp rally element of this event and it’s enough to tempt me to do it again, even if it’s just for one day.

I hope you enjoy this long account of my bookstore tour in Seattle! What’s even more amazing is that I know of a dozen more bookstores outside this list of 28 stores in Seattle. I love that this city embraces books and community space, a quintessential part of analog life.

Until next time~