Indie bookshop rebound

Independent bookstores are adding locations again, with the American Booksellers Association reporting 323 new stores in 2024 as print book sales rose for a second straight year in 2025. (bookweb.org) (publishersweekly.com) The booksellers group said its membership grew 18% in 2024, and the 323 openings marked the fourth consecutive year with more than 200 new brick-and-mortar, pop-up, and mobile stores. (bookweb.org) Circana BookScan data, reported by Publishers Weekly on January 9, 2026, showed U.S. print unit sales reached 762.4 million in 2025, up 0.3% from 2024 after a 0.5% gain in 2024 over 2023. (publishersweekly.com) Those gains followed a period when print sales had fallen for two years after the 2021 peak of 839.7 million copies, leaving the market above pre-pandemic levels but below the highs publishers saw during the lockdown reading boom. (publishersweekly.com) The rebound in stores has shown up in annual events too. More than 1,600 indies took part in Independent Bookstore Day on April 26, 2025, and the association said online sales through its IndieCommerce platform jumped 77.41% from the 2024 event. (bookweb.org) The American Booksellers Association said about 2,000 stores are expected to participate in Independent Bookstore Day on April 25, 2026, up from 1,600 in 2025. (publishersweekly.com) In Denmark, the Ministry of Children and Education issued school guidance on February 6, 2024 recommending phone-free schools, blocking non-relevant websites, and putting tablets and computers away when they are not being used in class. (uvm.dk) The Danish ministry said the guidance followed Programme for International Student Assessment results showing 72% of Danish students used digital tools in every or almost every lesson in a typical week, compared with 16% across Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries. (uvm.dk) In Norway, the government submitted a white paper to parliament on June 10, 2025 on children growing up in a digital society, setting out national goals for a safer digital childhood while acknowledging both the benefits and risks of internet and device use. (regjeringen.no) Norway’s education directorate said in January 2026 that digital tools can help learning when schools use them in ways that match students’ age and maturity, a position that puts guardrails around screens rather than removing them outright. (udir.no) Across education systems more broadly, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization said 79 systems had school smartphone bans in law or policy by the end of 2024, up from 60 a year earlier. (unesco.org) That mix of rising store counts, steadier print sales, and school policies that make more room for reading on paper has helped put bookstores back at the center of book culture conversations heading into World Book Day and Independent Bookstore Day 2026. (worldbookday.com) (publishersweekly.com)