Inaugural Ballard Neighborhood Book Crawl

Five Ballard bookstores opened the inaugural Ballard Book Crawl on Friday, May 22, turning Memorial Day weekend into a neighborhood-wide bookstore circuit in Seattle. The three-day event runs through Sunday, May 24, and asks visitors to stop at each participating shop, collect passport stamps and enter for prizes worth more than $300. EverOut listed the crawl as a free event running daily through May 24, while organizer materials said each store added its own sale, giveaway or literary activity to the weekend. ### Which stores are part of the crawl? Ballard Books, The Ink Drinker, Secret Garden, Swoon City and Twice Sold Tales are the five participating stores in the inaugural crawl, according to EverOut, Eventbrite and My Ballard. The businesses are clustered around Ballard and Market Street, with addresses listed as 5416 20th Ave NW for Ballard Books, 2050 NW Market St for The Ink Drinker, 2214 NW Market St for Secret Garden, 1716 NW Market St for Swoon City and 1708 NW Market St for Twice Sold Tales. (everout.com) Swoon City was listed as the Eventbrite organizer for the crawl, with the event page directing attendees to start at 1716 NW Market St in Seattle. My Ballard described the effort as a collaboration among the five stores. ### How does the passport and prize system work? From Friday, May 22 through Sunday, May 24, visitors can collect a stamp at each store and turn in a completed passport for a chance at the prize pool, organizer materials said. (everout.com) Eventbrite and My Ballard both said the total prize value exceeds $300. The grand prize includes $150 in gift cards, according to Eventbrite and My Ballard. (eventbrite.com) Two winners will receive tickets to the Ballard Cocktail Trail valued at $110 each, five totes are part of the giveaway, and people who complete the full passport receive a commemorative bookmark, the postings said. ### What is each bookstore offering during the weekend? (eventbrite.com) Ballard Books is running a 20% store-wide sale during the crawl, according to EverOut, Eventbrite and My Ballard. The Ink Drinker is offering new or never-before-seen merchandise and hosting a free reading by a Portland-based novelist on Saturday evening, the listings said. Secret Garden is offering a free advance reader copy with a minimum purchase while supplies last. (eventbrite.com) Swoon City is hosting a free book-bedazzling activity with the purchase of a new book, and Twice Sold Tales is discounting banned books during the event, according to the same listings. ### Why did the organizers say Ballard was a fit for this event? My Ballard and the Eventbrite listing said Ballard has added a mix of general-interest, secondhand, antiquarian and romance-focused book businesses over the past three years, along with a book-themed bistro. (everout.com) Organizers said in the announcement that independent bookstores are “up 70% since 2020,” and that Market Street had seen an expansion of book-related businesses. Shelle Yusuf, owner of The Ink Drinker, told My Ballard that customers have been looking for “more human connection.” Yusuf said local booksellers offer “their passion” and “their thoughtfulness” when they recommend books, and added that “no one geeks out with you quite like a fellow book lover can.” ### When can people still go, and where are the details posted? (myballard.com) EverOut listed the Ballard Book Crawl as running every day through May 24 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at various Ballard locations, while individual store hours vary by shop. My Ballard and Eventbrite both published the participating stores’ addresses and hours, including later evening hours at The Ink Drinker and midday-to-evening hours at Twice Sold Tales. (myballard.com) Sunday, May 24 is the final day of the inaugural crawl. EverOut’s Memorial Day weekend guide and the organizer pages carry the event listing, and completed passports remain the route to the prize drawing and commemorative bookmark before the weekend ends. (thestranger.com) (everout.com)