Indie bookstores are truly one of every reader’s happy places! 🥰 Enjoy being transported to one of the best places on earth in this lovely love note from Uchechukwu Peter Umezurike, author of We Survived Until We Could Live.

The countdown is on — CIBD 2026 starts in 24 hours! 🎉 Have your wishlist ready for a day packed with giveaways, book signings, exclusive discounts, and more at your neighbourhood indie bookstore!

CIBD is this weekend! To help make your celebration plans run smoothly, we've rounded up a few commonly asked questions! Visit our website at indiebookstores.ca/cibd for full details and to bookmark the contest page so you can quickly refer to it after all of your book shopping is complete! 🥳

Our most amazing sponsors have once again put together some cool freebies for book lovers to collect as they hit their local indie bookstores. 😍 🔖 💃🕺 Scroll through to check out some of the exclusive stickers and activity books available only this CIBD weekend as supplies last!

Thank you Blair Palmer Yoxall and Daniel Zomparelli for shouting out our mighty Canadian indie bookselling community! We couldn’t agree more on how much of an anchor these stores are to any and every community.

We’re celebrating the book birthdays of three shiny new reads out today, one of them being the TBL Top Pick for Spring! These true gems in Canadian fiction will exceed the expectations of readers who love stories about complex women, the environment, or even an engrossing, suspenseful novel.

Your purchase this weekend at an indie bookstore goes a long way. By entering into our Contest for Book Lovers, you could be one of four lucky readers to win runner-up prizes of $200 each to the CIBA member bookstore of your choice.

Thank you to the @btlbooks.com team for shouting out the work of indie bookstores in the lead up to CIBD 2026 on April 25! You can read their blog post with a full list of blurbs about bookstores their community loves here: btlbooks.com/blog/view/ca...

Deepen your knowledge of the nature around us in this essential manifesto from award-winning Dene activist and writer Katłı̨̀ą. Based on Dene teachings, Mother Earth Is Our Elder is a pragmatic, and hopeful book on caring for our earth. Mcnally Robinson's Kathleen Friesen shared her thoughts with us:

On your mark, get set… Bingo! Plan your next book club, host a reading party, or take on the challenge solo: we’re challenging Canadian book lovers to read as many of the Spring Booksellers’ List as they can this season. Save or reboost this post, and let us know how many you plan to read!

These next set of love notes definitely warmed our winter fatigued hearts. 🥰 Authors Jay Odjick and Leslie Shimotakahara dropped such sweet messages to their favourite indie bookstores that will remind of you why local booksellers matter to communities all year, all the time.

Happy New Release Tuesday! We’re celebrating the book birthdays of Cherry Beach and Super Castle Fun Park. These unique Canadian reads are refreshing and innovative, making for a great pick to kickstart the season with. These books are available now at an indie bookstore near you. 🎉

Inheritance explores a Korean Canadian family's immigrant experience, the sacrifices made by both parents and children, and the impacts of intergenerational trauma. Here’s what Callie Trautman, a bookseller from @shelflifebooks, had to share:

With so much exclusive swag and new reads to discover, we won’t judge you for suiting up with your most colourful bag and hitting the books — at your local bookstore, for a day that feels like a party for readers like you.

Indie booksellers work hard to serve their customers and communities. That’s why CIBD is a fantastic opportunity to give back with every purchase. Not only does your purchase support the Canadian literary ecosystem, but there are so many aspects of shopping local that the algorithms can’t beat.

Authors Jarett Sitter, Chanel Sutherland, and Uchechukwu Peter Umezurike truly capture the best parts of indie bookstores that keep booklovers (like you!) coming back each day. These next set of love notes express it all. 💗 💌

Today, we have even more Author Love Notes to share! This set comes from authors Louise Bernice Halfe, Lynn Hutchinson Lee, and Dania Idriss. They have so much to say about the indie bookstores that they can’t help but visit again and again! 💛

For fans of Remarkably Bright Creatures, The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances is a compelling, touching, and highly original novel that will make you care deeply about… a roomba. Available now at an indie bookstore near you.

There’s more than just books waiting to be discovered during CIBD 2026. Get double the perks for your bookstore sprawl by checking out some amazing swag in-store!

Thank you to Liz Johnston for your lovely shoutout to indie bookstores! Catch her debut novel, The Fall-Down Effect, is also a Booksellers’ List selection for Spring, available April 21. ♥️

The first three Booksellers’ List Spring selections are officially available today! Right now! Whether you’re looking for your next read that explores the imaginary lives of appliances, or teach you new ways of caring and learning about the world around us.

Spring is in full bloom! These 20 new books have been selected by trusted Canadian indie booksellers and are some of the season’s most anticipated reads in mystery, fantasy, literary fiction, and environmental literature. Your reading list is about to get a much-needed reset for the season.

Thank YOU, Arizona! Whether as bookseller, author, or illustrator your work and passion for indie bookstores does not go unnoticed. Readers everywhere are in for a marvelous treat on May 19 when Opioids and Organs is officially out into the world. Preorder your copy at an indie bookstore today!

Happy New Release Tuesday! 🙌 A couple of spectacular Canadian releases to add to your TBR are available in whichever format you love to read your books in. All Winter 2026 Booksellers’ List selections are out NOW at an indie bookstore near you. Learn more about the full list at buff.ly/dkHz29f.

Demystify what treaties mean in Canada with Talk Treaty to Me, an easy-to-read and essential guide to treaties, Indigenous sovereignty, and land for all Canadians. Here’s what Eric Dalton from @huckleberrybooks had to say about it:

Sisters in Yellow is Kawakami’s newest release, set in the gritty Tokyo of the 1990s, is a bold novel of sacrifice and the tumultuous bonds of sisterhood. Bookseller Baylee Adams from Daisy Chain Books shared with us what she’s anticipating the most about this one:

Heading out to your local bookstore this weekend? Get some inspiration for new reads by checking out what books other Canadian book lovers have been picking up this week! 📚 Learn more about this week’s bestselling books on our website.

Happy Release Day to three of our stellar Winter 2026 Booksellers’ selections! 🎉🙌 Between gleaming worlds, fairy tales and masterful blends of literary fiction and noir, there is something new and undoubtedly exciting to dive into this week. Visit our website to learn more.

Wild People Quiet is an extraordinary novel on Métis life in the prairies. This book moved its way through the hearts of booksellers this season, earning its spot on the Booksellers’ List for Winter 2026. Jasper Dent, a bookseller from @mcnallyrobinson.com told us his thoughts on this literary feat:

Don’t worry, booklovers! The end of the harsh winter days is on the horizon. 🤞 Until we’re able to unwrap from our blankets inside, let us know which books from the Winter 2026 Booksellers’ List you’ve checked out.

Scare away winter boredom with The Valley of Vengeful Ghosts—an eerie, spellbinding novel of grief and guilt, with a razor-sharp eye for the absurdity and melancholy of the internet age. 👀 Here’s what bookseller Caleigh from @windowseatsbooks had to say about this spine-chilling read:

The wait is finally over, booklovers. If you’re obsessed with translated fiction or just simply love well-written books that examine female friendship and sisterhood then you’ll love Hooked and Sisters in Yellow–both out today! 👭💗

From the author of the international bestseller Life of Pi, comes a brilliant retelling of the Trojan War from two commoners: an ancient soldier and modern scholar. Bookseller Lori Cheverie from Bookmark PEI shares what will make this upcoming novel a real treasure for book lovers:

In When the Forest Breathes, forest ecologist Suzanne Simard examines the forces that threaten forest ecosystems offering a pragmatic and hopeful vision for a responsible relationship with the forests that sustain us. 🌳 🏡 Here’s what Lorie Cheverie, from Bookmark PEI, had to say about it:

Mystery sleuths, this one’s for you. 🕵️ Bookseller Shelley Macbeth from @blueheronbooks.bsky.social shared with us what she thinks readers will love about this Canadian delight:

From the author of the international bestseller Butter, Asako Yuzuki returns with a chilling and perceptive novel about obsession, female friendship, and the slow unraveling of two lives. 🎣 👭 Brandi Morpugo from @daisychainbookco.bsky.social shared with us what readers have to look forward to:

Honeysuckle is a heartbreaking fable of longing, loneliness, and need—for love, for control, and for freedom. It is a psychological fairy tale where magic and horror collide. Here’s what bookseller Stephen Davidson from The Spaniel's Tale thought about this unique read.

Thank you D. Nandi Odhiambo for your thoughtful message! We’re thrilled for readers across Canada to discover Amapiano Eyes at their local independent bookstores. You can reserve your copy today at an indie bookstore near you. 🎧

Looking for your next fantasy fix? 🪄 This immersive fairytale from acclaimed author Amal El-Mohtar is a brilliant short story collection of exquisitely told and sharply observed tales about life as it is, was, and could be. Here’s what Meghan from River Bookshop had to say about it:

Alert! 🚨 We’ve got news that indie bookstores have been graced with three more Winter Booksellers’ List selections today. These stories reflect the vastness of queerness, Indigeneity, and identity—and will keep you hooked from the very first page.

Rest assured you can trust local booksellers know what their communities want and LOVE to read. 😊 That’s probably the best reason to pick up The Astral Library, out now from @harpercollinsca. Check with your local indie bookstore on stock availability using the store finder tool.

No, it’s not your jaw that just dropped. 🙉 Two more Winter selections from The Booksellers’ List are now out in the world! We couldn’t be more excited for readers to dive into them. Learn more about these Winter 2026 Selections at indiebookstores.ca/tbl

In spite of Canada’s rich literary landscape, censorship is a long-standing tradition that often results in many important books quietly removed from classrooms and libraries. This week, join us in spreading awareness in support of intellectual freedom across the country. freedomtoread.ca

We may be biased, but we do think booksellers are really onto something with the eclectic picks gracing this season’s Booksellers’ List. 😎 Read it before the hype. Here’s what Type Books’ Breton Lalama had to say about the book: Persona is available to order at an indie bookstore near you.

We apologize for interrupting your scrolling …👀 but we have to share with you that Canadian Indie Bookstore Day is officially returning on Saturday, April 25th! We have so much bookish fun planned to get readers excited to celebrate their local indies this year.

Accompanied by the deep beats of Amapiano music, D. Nandi Odhiambo’s gritty, high-stakes new novel is a masterful blend of literary fiction and noir—an existential thriller where the past and present collide. Out March 24. 📅 Flying Books’ Lee Sukski shares what makes this book so special:

How could you be bored when two more Booksellers’ Lists selections are now out fresh off from the printers? 🤯 ⁉️ Learn more about these Winter 2026 Selections at indiebookstores.ca/tbl

The hype is real. And it’s just getting started. 🙂‍↕️ Is This A Cry for Help? by best-selling author Emily Austin is the book that booksellers are trying to put into everyone’s hands. Reviewers are calling “a well-paced, humorous, and introspective narrative.” Do not skip this one!

Through the lens of five transformative practices, bestselling author Monique Gray Smith weaves together short stories, and poignant reflections, that invite readers to pause and reconnect with their inner light. 💗 Jessica Walker from Munro Books offers their thoughts on Sharing the Light.

Thank you to co-authors Crystal Gail Fraser and Sara Komarnisky for sharing this amazing resource. We can’t wait for it to arrive in indie bookstores across the country. Preorder your copy today or learn more about this Winter 2026 selection at indiebookstores.ca/tbl.