Last minute reminder for this fantastic event.

Nearly two months after the catastrophic 7.0M earthquake in Haiti, Mercy Corps is striving to rebuild the country. From securing clean water and sanitation for survivors, to creating jobs clearing debris for locals, Mercy Corps volunteers are doing their part in rebuilding Haiti. Now you can do your part by attending:

Read to Rebuild- A Haiti Benefit Reading

Reading Local: Portland, an online blog for all thing book-related in Portland (we are big fans), has initiated Read to Rebuild, their very first event. Writers’ Dojo has partnered up, opening up their space in St. Johns to host Portland’s literary community. The event will consist of author readings, updates of Haiti from Mercy Corps representatives, music from local musicians Sweeter Than Later, free wine from Cameron Hughes Wine, and a raffle.

Hawthorne Books has donated autographed copies of some of our titles to the raffle. Other raffle donors include Cameron Hughes Wine, Wordstock, Back Fence PDX, Dark Horse Comics, Title Wave Books, Green Bean Books, Second Glance Books, Floating World Comics, Broadway Books, Microcosm Publishing, Annie Bloom’s Books, Random Order Coffeehouse and Bakery, In Other Word’s Women’s Books and Resources, and many more!

Join us on March 16th @ 6:30pm at the Writers’ Dojo in St. Johns. The suggested donation of $10 also includes one free raffle ticket. All proceeds will be given to Mercy Corps, to assist in the relief efforts in Haiti. We look forward to seeing you there!

Congratulations Portland for rallying behind this local bookstore!

Buy local is a mantra in Portland and supporting independent local businesses preserves the individuality of this great city.  

St. Johns Booksellers is especially grateful to the community for listening to their pre-holiday plea: help us raise $6000 or we are out of business for good. Despite the minimal foot-traffic and dwindling national economy, local patrons listened to owner Nena Rawdah and rallied to keep this family-owned neighborhood bookstore located in the historic heart of North Portland’s St. Johns neighborhood, open for business.

During this financial struggle, St. Johns Booksellers created the Community Supported Bookstore (CSB) program to ensure a more stable future. This program benefits participants (free stuff, discounts, and exclusive events!), the bookseller/s (steady cash flow, means to expand), and the community at large. 

Another family-owned bookstore we all know, Powell’s Books, encourages readers to look beyond the bestsellers. Check out the small press corner bookshelves, located in the blue room of Powell’s City of Books on Burnside. This section highlights small press publishers — many local.

Kevin Sampsell, who runs the small press section at Powell’s, is an author himself, with a new release A Common Pornography, which has gained local notoriety through Powell’s, Portland State University and beyond. I’m currently reading his memoir for a writing class in the PSU Master of Arts in Writing program. 

Most Portlanders haven’t allowed themselves to become indoctrinated into the corporate model of buy cheap, disposable, inauthentic products. Instead, let’s keep following our instincts to support independent business owners, authors, and publishers.