She was in our space for an hour. Reading, happy. Makes us happy. What a pretty portrait of the pleasures of reading a book.

Our annual Sidewalk Sale starts next week! Bargains meet books starting on Wednesday, October 1, at 10am and running through Saturday. Join us for some serious browsing fun. We’ll be curbside all day with thousands of books priced at $5, $3, or $1. Hope to see you there!

We are pleased to support The Graetz Foundation’s Loving Literacy Community Fair. Join our community for this special event at United Evangelical Lutheran Church on Saturday, starting at 1pm. The Graetz family generously works to encourage children’s literacy with this annual event.

Alabama Poet Laureate Ashley Jones is our Thursday bookstore guest. What a thrill to welcome her with her new book Lullaby for the Grieving, her fourth collection of poetry and maybe her best. Come join us for this special event on Thursday of this week at 5:30pm.

This is not fake news! We have a very nice used copy in the bookstore of Judge Frank M. Johnson, Jr., a biography by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., which is signed by the author. Any of you experiencing some cognitive dissonance to consider Kennedy as the author of this book? We certainly are!

Everyone on staff at The NewSouth Bookstore loves autumn, but maybe no one more than Lisa Emerson, our general manager and financial person. This year she has pulled out all the stops! Thanks to Lisa, who upped her game this year spookifying The NewSouth Bookstore for this special season!

Join us this Sunday at 2pm for a conversation with author Sarah Schulman as she discusses her new book, The Fantasy and Necessity of Solidarity, with community activist Ashley Edwards. Don’t miss this opportunity to hear from one of the most incisive voices in contemporary literature and activism!

Jessala White recently finished Books for Living by Will Schwalbe, which she found to be delightful. If you’re looking for something that feels like a warm conversation with a fellow book lover, this one’s for you. Find it on our Staff Picks table or ask Jessala about it next time you’re in!

It’s just one month off! Books and bargains come together over four days during our annual Sidewalk Sale. Mark your calendars now to stop by for serious browsing fun starting on Wednesday, October 1 through Saturday, October 4. We’ll be out at the curb watching for you!

While new customer Christine browsed for her next great read, her young son Solomon found a book in the children's section and climbed up next to his mama to look through it. We love capturing moments like this on our Johnnie Carr Memorial Couch.

The NewSouth Bookstore as gallery space. In effect, that’s what happens on Monday of next week, when our local Alabama Resisters of Indivisible chapter hosts a one-night exhibit of protest art — signs and flyers and such that inspired their activism. Stop by to see what inspiration looks like.

We had the pleasure of hosting Scott Spillman for a powerful talk about his new book, Making Sense of Slavery: America's Long Reckoning, From the Founding Era to Today. Spillman gave us a deeper understanding of how the legacy of slavery continues to shape our country.

An important chapter in the history of our American west is the subject of our program on August 21 at 5:30pm. Caleb Gayle speaks about Edward McCabe, whose mighty efforts to create a Black state are told in his compelling new book, Black Moses: A Saga of Ambition and the Fight for a Black State.

We look forward to welcoming Scott Spillman with his new book Making Sense of Slavery: America’s Long Reckoning, from the Founding Era to Today. Join us for his talk on Tuesday of next week, August 19 at 5:30pm. Be with us at The NewSouth Bookstore for this special event.

We were pleased to welcome Shanti, a joyful book lover from Birmingham, to The NewSouth Bookstore a couple of weeks ago. She spent time browsing every corner of the store and left with an impressive stack of books. We love it when someone finds exactly what they didn’t know they were looking for.

Alexis Okeowo was a smart, delightful guest at The NewSouth Bookstore last evening, and she had a quite interested audience for her talk about Blessings and Disasters: An Alabama Story. Thanks to Okeowo for her fine work and for her presence at the bookstore for such a timely and important program.

Many visitors to The NewSouth Bookstore have asked about it. We are talking about that boot atop our building. Step outside and look up, and you’ll see a bit of history. Read more about it here: www.instagram.com/p/DNQlvc7IP0...

It felt like we were up close and personal with Toni Morrison yesterday evening, thanks to a visit with Dana Williams, whose new biography Toni at Random was the subject of discussion. The book is a portrait of the legendary writer in her role as the first Black senior editor at Random House.

We are pleased to announce a new website for The NewSouth Bookstore here newsouthbookstore.com! The website offers many new features, including, significantly, a cart system which allows for online ordering. Hurray!

Vince is a familiar face around The NewSouth Bookstore and a grandfather with a heart full of stories. Every so often, he stops by to buy new books for his two young granddaughters, asking for recommendations for stories they will learn from to build their library a little at a time.

Bestselling author Honorée Fanonne Jeffers was our guest last night, in conversation with our good friend, the poet Jacqueline Allen Trimble. The two took on subjects large and small connected to Professor Jeffers’s new book, Misbehaving at the Crossroads: Essays and Writings.

We meet many people in the bookstore interested in journaling. Build a routine for journaling and avoid self-editing are two main tips to help get your practice underway. Need a good book for journaling? We have many to choose from at The NewSouth Bookstore. www.nytimes.com/article/jour....

In the spring of 1686, classic poet Matsuo Basho wrote one of the world’s best-known poems. We share it with you in a toast to summer.

At the No Kings rally some weeks back, we spotted this great sign. What a fine reminder of how integral to the early life of our country was the patriot Thomas Paine. Common Sense crystallized sentiment for independence in 1776, earning for Paine the title of father of the American Revolution.

We celebrated the two-year anniversaries of two key staff members at The NewSouth Bookstore, Jessala and Gabbi. We could not do what we do without them. In just two years they have become the heart and soul of our store, involved in almost all aspects of our business and social relationships.

We are on Libro.fm—the audiobook platform that supports independent bookstores like ours. That means you can listen to your favorite books and support The NewSouth Bookstore at the same time. Visit Libro.fm/thenewsouthbookstore and choose from thousands of audiobooks, then listen anytime, anywhere.

We had a small but enthusiastic group who listened with pleasure to poet Richard Tillinghast yesterday evening, who read from his new book, Night Train to Memphis. His words and great baritone voice were pleasing to the ear. There could be no finer pleasure on a hot summer’s evening in Montgomery.

First-time customer John Mitchell stopped by The NewSouth Bookstore and had a wonderful chat with our assistant manager, Jessala White. It turns out they're both fans of the band Watchhouse (formerly Mandolin Orange), and they took a moment to connect over their shared love of the music.

Our newest arrivals have made themselves at home and they’re big fans of story time! We just brought these adorable stuffed animals into the store and they’re ready to bring some extra cozy to your next reading adventure. Come meet them at The NewSouth Bookstore — they’d love to read with you!

New to the store and newly released, these are a handful of the best books recently received at The NewSouth Bookstore. These and other books you will find on our newly refreshed New & Notable table. Stop by and check them out.

A peripatetic pilgrim on an extended world journey, Richard Tillinghast visits with us again for a reading from his newest collection of poems, Night Train to Memphis. Come rediscover the talents of this traveling man who happens to be a truly fine poet on Tuesday, July 15 at 5:30pm.

We had the pleasure of welcoming a fantastic group of undergraduates and law students from Stetson University during their recent visit to Montgomery. Pictured here are Asher, Eduarda, and Derrick, who selected titles to take home from The NewSouth Bookstore’s collection.

Sometimes the cover of a book is enough to excite your senses, communicating that you will pass into another realm on opening the book. Epitaphs for the Living: Words and Images in the Time of AIDS is such a book. We have created a special display for the book, which we invite you to experience.

While Amazon host Prime Day sales, we invite you to consider something more meaningful: community and connection. Every time you shop with us, you’re not just buying a book—you’re supporting a business where the staff knows you, which hosts your favorite authors, and gives back to the community.

Bob and Diana Emery of Elba, Alabama, celebrated their fortieth wedding anniversary on July 4th. The lovely couple stopped into the bookstore, where we chatted about the meaning of country and the challenges our own faces today. They were joyful but not unaware. As we aspire to be!

Dr. Lee Farrow inspires us! Join us for a postcard-writing event at The NewSouth Bookstore. It’s a “Voice Your Views” event. Stop by to express your opinions to our political leaders at the local, state, and federal levels. Stop by at the bookstore from 4:30pm to 6 on Wednesday, July 9.

We loved meeting Amie Scroggins, a high school English teacher from Arizona. She visits five states each year, stopping at all the indie bookstores she finds. She’s also a fan of Kendrick Lamar. We got deep into conversation about his music while she was paying for her books at checkout.

Yes, we will be holding our annual Sidewalk Sale again this year! Four days of shopping for treasures await you in early October, from Wednesday, October 1 through Saturday October 4. We’ll be curbside with thousands of books in all, priced at a fabulous $1, $3, and $5!

This month we are pleased to showcase some of the books in our Books About Books, Reading, and Writing section on the fabulous potting table we have in the store, now a permanent piece of display furniture. It gives us joy to stock these books. Maybe joy you’ll know in reading them too.

We were honored to host MSNBC legal analyst Barbara McQuade last night. She wowed a full house with her talk about her recently published Attack from Within: How Disinformation Is Sabotaging America. We are ever grateful to be able to include authors like McQuade in our programming.

The Bahá'ís of Montgomery will host in the bookstore tomorrow as part of their "Moving Forward" series. A group of youth and their mentors, who have bicycled from Madison, Wisconsin, to Montgomery, will share their experiences and invite dialogue on the topic of race amity.

Saturday brought Ruth Franklin to The NewSouth Bookstore with her recently published The Many Lives of Anne Frank. So rich was the discussion about the young Anne Frank and her experiences as described in her diary. Just a fabulous program overall, quite moving in parts, thanks to our fine guest.

We got outdoor lights! A grant received by Main Street Montgomery is lighting up the Main Street district — and the difference can really be noticed at The NewSouth Bookstore!

Award-winning cartoonist Peter Kuper visited us with his book Insectopolis and it was a truly unforgettable event. Peter captivated the crowd with stories and his creative insights. He even drew custom illustrations in every book he signed! If you missed it—we have a few signed copies left!

We had an early reader in our store yesterday. An anonymous little angel, she sat in our children’s section with the biggest of books, all seriousness but happily engaged. What a joy to have such a visitor!

Main Street Montgomery launches its summer 3rd Fridays at 4 program on June 20. Explore the downtown district after 4pm for special menus and drinks, special events and discounts. All book purchases after 4pm will be discounted 10%. Support your local downtown retailers and enjoy the offerings!

We were honored to be asked to sell books at the 2025 Convening of the Funders’ Committee for Civic Participation. We want to thank everyone who stopped by The NewSouth Bookstore table, engaged with our curated selection of titles, and supported the book drive benefiting Montgomery Pride United.

We often get emails from friends and fans giving us a thumbs up on our various bookstore activities. We appreciate these comments more than you know. But if some of these positive comments could be left online at Trip Advisor or Yelp or as a Google review, that would also be super wonderful!

The NewSouth Bookstore is excited to introduce a new program made possible by our friend, the talented Susie Paul. One Hour/One Poem is a monthly series in which Dr. Paul will teach a single poem by one of four great American poets. The first session is scheduled for Tuesday, August 5 at 5:30pm.

We were moved and made happy by Jennifer Horne, who visited The NewSouth Bookstore yesterday with her new book, Letters to Little Rock. A cycle of poems commemorating her father on his passing, the work is vivid and rich, in many moods of remembering.