July 2022 Dear Booksellers and SinC Members, Mia Manansala is an award-winning author, a book coach, the Pride and ETB Award Coordinator for Sisters in Crime, and a pal of mine. Please see her fabulous article below on her favorite local bookstore, Centuries & Sleuths Bookstore in Forest Park, Illinois. Applications for the $2,000 Sisters in Crime Pride Award for Emerging LGBTQIA+ Crime Writers will be open until July 31st. Find further information about the award and the online application here. Please encourage up-and-coming writers who qualify to apply. I am also pleased to announce the July We Love Bookstores winner is Inklings Bookshop in Yakima, Washington. See details below. |
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Centuries & Sleuths Bookstore in Forest Park, IL By Mia P. Manansala |
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Centuries & Sleuths in Forest Park, Illinois specializes in history and mystery books (as cleverly referenced by its name), but it’s more than just a wonderful local bookstore—it’s the place I became part of the crime fiction community. Augie Aleksy opened the store in 1990 (and moved to its current location in 2000) to not only pursue his passion for books, but also to become a community center. Pre-pandemic, Centuries & Sleuths was a common meeting place for Mystery Writers of America Midwest and Sisters in Crime Chicagoland, and the store continues to be a hub for history discussions and reenactments, the mystery book club that’s been meeting for over a decade, and countless author events. Centuries & Sleuths is where I attended my first author event, where I joined my first writing organization, and where I met my original critique group. |
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Both the space and the booksellers are warm and inviting: shelves of books line the walls topped with fun historical and mystery-themed knick knacks; there’s comfortable seating available; and Augie, his wife Tracy, and their long-time employee, John Cline, are happy to chat about anything, including every mystery or history-related book in the store. They are also extremely supportive of local authors and have been cheering me on since long before I got my first publishing deal. If you’re ever in the Chicagoland area, I hope you give Centuries & Sleuths a visit! (photo credit - Mia) Connect with Centuries & Sleuths Bookstore: Website: https://www.centuriesandsleuths.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CandS.7419/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/candsbookstore/ |
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Mia P. Manansala (she/her) is a writer and certified book coach from Chicago who loves books, baking, and bad-ass women. She uses humor (and murder) to explore aspects of the Filipino diaspora, queerness, and her millennial love for pop culture. Her debut novel, ARSENIC AND ADOBO, has won multiple awards, and the sequel, HOMICIDE AND HALO-HALO, is out now. A lover of all things geeky, Mia spends her days procrasti-baking, playing JRPGs and dating sims, reading cozy mysteries and diverse romance, and cuddling her dogs Gumiho and Max Power. |
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Write for We Love Bookstores News! Would you like to write an entry for We Love Bookstores News about your favorite shop or something else? Did you put together or see an amazing bookstore display? Submit your ideas to Susan Hammerman, Library and Bookstore Liaison at librarian@sistersincrime.org |
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The We Love Bookstores July 2022 Winner: Inklings Bookshop in Yakima, Washington! |
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Pictured are Inklings Bookshop staff holding books by Sisters in Crime member authors, Homicide and Halo-Halo, and Arsenic and Adobe by Mia P. Manansala; How to Book a Murder by Cynthia Kuhn; and Mimi Lee Gets a Clue by Jennifer J. Chow. |
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Susan Richmond, the owner, describes what the Inklings Bookshop staff do best. They “curate a well-rounded inventory, help supply our local schools with books and write reviews for the Yakima Herald-Republic weekly. We order books every weekday, so special orders are speedy. We are avid supporters of the American Booksellers Association and the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association—the best trade associations ever. We also host a few events throughout the year, including our Cozy Mysteries for Halloween event every October, where we invite two authors to come over, chat with our customers, and sign some books.” Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/inklingsbookshop Twitter: https://twitter.com/inklingsbooks?lang=en |
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Apply for the We Love Bookstores Award |
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To find out more about all SinC offers, including live webinars, please visit our website. Thank you for all you do for your community. Sisters in Crime loves bookstores. Happy reading! Susan Hammerman Library and Bookstore Liaison Susan Hammerman, a former rare book librarian, is the Library and Bookstore Liaison and coordinator of the We Love Libraries program. Susan writes crime and neo-noir short stories. Her stories have been published by Mystery Magazine, Dark City Mystery Magazine, Blood and Bourbon, Mondays are Murder, and Retreats From Oblivion. We Love Bookstores Coordinator Robin Agnew owned the Raven Award-winning bookstore Aunt Agatha’s Bookshop in Ann Arbor, Michigan, for 26 years with her husband Jamie. Robin writes a review blog at auntagathas.com and the cozy column for Mystery Scene Magazine. WLL and WLB News Editor Gail Lukasik’s latest book, White Like Her: My Family’s Story of Race and Racial Passing, was named one of the most inspiring stories of the year by The Washington Post. She is also the author of the Leigh Girard Mystery series and the stand-alone mystery, The Lost Artist. Her writing has appeared in numerous publications, such as The Washington Post, The Daily Beast, and The Georgia Review. Gail appeared in the documentary, History of Memory, which is available on Amazon Prime. Website: www.gaillukasik.com |
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We've put our member books in a spreadsheet that we'll update every month, and send as part of this newsletter. This month's releases are on a separate worksheet. Feel free to sort by author name, book title, or author location. |
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Sisters in Crime hosts LIVE webinars each month. Webinars last 60-90 minutes depending on the topic and the audience questions! These webinars are open to all. |
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Sisters in Crime is the premier crime writing association focused on equity and inclusion in our community and in publishing. Our 4,500+ members enjoy access to tools to help them learn, grow, improve, thrive, and reinvent if necessary. They also gain a community of supportive fellow writers and readers, both peers to share the peaks and valleys of writing, and mentors to model the way forward. |
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