Banned Books by Emily Berg

 LUCY BURDETTE: I wanted to do something to mark banned books week, but I was on the road and hard put to come up with something meaningful. Fortunately, our friend Emily Berg, who is the manager of the fabulous Books and Books in Key West, has just the right words. Welcome Emily!

EMILY BERG: One of the great joys of working in an indie bookstore is the freedom to select which books we showcase. Being an independent store means we, the staff, get to decide which books go on the tables.

Most booksellers will agree putting up a new display is one of the most fun parts of working in a bookshop. Curating a themed table of books is a creative endeavor, drawing attention to favorite authors and titles that may otherwise go overlooked. Our Beach Reads table, for example, is an annual favorite with each staff member picking their favorite summer reads. It’s currently Hispanic Heritage month which means we have a table showcasing Hispanic authors.    

There is one display in the store in which we don’t choose the books, and unfortunately, it’s growing: our banned books display. The books on this table end up there largely due to the efforts of pressure groups and in some case government entities. We decided to focus in specifically to books banned or challenged in Florida but that doesn’t really narrow it down. Florida has the most instances of banned books with 2,304 titles in 2024-2025 according to PEN America. 

The number alone is concerning but what does it really mean? The display sparks questions from visitors. Here are the most common. 

Q: “They made me read this in school when I was a kid. How can it be banned?”

A: More titles are banned each year. A book can be banned in one place and required in another. The list is growing exponentially. This means some of the classics that Americans read in school in previous years are no longer available to students.

Q: “Why is this banned?”

A: Whatever the book the answer is nearly always the same: “for no good reason”. It doesn’t take much for a book to be challenged and ultimately banned. Overwhelmingly  books with LGBTQ+ characters, themes of race, and sexual content are the ones targeted for bans.

Q: “If it’s banned how can you sell it?” 

A: Government entities and private organizations don’t have the power to control what a business sells… for now. We’re part of a free market economy which means we get to make decisions on what we buy and sell. Book banning in America mostly effects schools and public libraries. 

Q: “As long as it’s available for purchase is it really a problem? Can’t the student just come buy the book from you if it’s not in their library?”

A: Perhaps some students have the resources to come to a bookstore and pick out whatever they like, but what about those who can’t? School libraries are available to those students who might not have an adult to take them to a bookstore and purchase their books. 

Overhearing that last question is most likely to see me stop what I’m doing and come speak with the asker. I was extremely fortunate as a child to have parents that encouraged reading but the majority of my books came from the school library. Both of my parents worked long hours so a trip to the bookstore was rare. A trip to the school’s media center was not.

The display of banned books is one of the few that stays up year round in this bookstore. While other tables rotate and change this display never goes out of season. Hopefully, someday, it will. 

Reds, let us know about your experience with banned books, or any questions you have for Emily!

Bio: Emily Berg is a graduate of the University of Puget Sound where she studied art with an emphasis on steel sculpture. After graduating in 2007 she moved to Juneau, AK where she worked in the non-profit world for several years before returning to the lower-48 to be closer to family. Originally from Minneapolis she moved to Key West in 2013 from Chicago. She has been the manager of Books & Books at the Studios since 2018. She serves on the board of Directors of the Friends of the Key West Library and Key West Literary Seminar.

The Magic of Bookstores

 LUCY BURDETTE: I am certain I am not the only person reading this blog who has an obsession with bookstores. Whenever I visit a new town, a stop to the local bookstore will always be included. Each store has its own personality. Of course, I check to see whether my books or the books of my writing friends are there. Often bookstores are small, and the number of books published every year is enormous, so I am not disappointed if I don’t see familiar titles. It’s a special bonus however, if I do! This year I stopped at the Midtown reader in Tallahassee with my sister, and also visited The Bookshelf in Thomasville, Georgia. While at a family wedding last weekend, we went to Sherman’s Maine Coast  in Damariscotta, where we spotted a full shelf of Barbara Ross books and also Jenn’s Love at First Book. Here is what I found at Thiemers Magazin in Copenhagen. Hooray, Jenn is everywhere!

I feel particularly lucky to have wonderful independent bookstores in both of my hometowns, RJ Julia in Madison CT where I often have a launch party, and Key West Island books and Books and Books in Key West, both of which are extremely supportive of local authors.

Though I don’t do nearly the amount of touring that our own Hank does, I visited two amazing stores in the past month. Jeff Kinney (the writer) established An Unlikely Story in Plainville, Massachusetts. This store is absolutely magical!

And as I mentioned on Wednesday, John and I stopped at Ann Patchett’s Parnassus in Nashville while we were there for the Bouchercon conference. We found Jenn again!

This reminded me that my first real job out of college was working as a clerk at a bookstore. Sometimes I dream of owning one myself, but then I remind myself that I should have thought of this 20 years earlier lol. Instead, I will visit as many stores as I can reach, and support them with as many purchases as my nightstand can hold!

How about you Reds, are you hooked on bookstores as well as books? Any favorites to tell us about?

Introducing Emily Berg of Books and Books, Key West

LUCY BURDETTE: When John and I first came to Key West, we were thrilled to find 3 bookstores in town, Key West Island Books, Voltaire’s, and Borders Express. Within a few years, the town went from 3 to one, as two of those closed. Tragedy! Luckily for Key West and visiting readers, Judy Blume and her husband, George Cooper, banded together with a few other book lovers to establish a new bookstore in the space where Voltaire’s had been.

Today I’m delighted to introduce Emily Berg, the general manager of Books and Books Key West. I know Emily both from time spent at the bookstore and for her invaluable service on the Friends of the Key West Library board. The bookstore describes itself like this: We’re Key West’s locally owned, nonprofit, independently-minded neighborhood bookstore. Affiliated with Books & Books, one of the nation’s great independent bookstores, our home is part of The Studios of Key West, a non-profit arts center and cultural organization.

Welcome Emily! Were you there from the very beginning of Books and Books KW? If not, where did you come from and how did you decide to make the leap? Were you living in Key West, or had you visited?

EMILY: I was there from almost the beginning. The store founders and staff of the The Studios of Key West had done most of the heavy lifting, getting things in place for the stores existence. I began working with the store in November of 2015 about 10 weeks before the opening. I came on to do the buying and set up for the art supply section and be a part-time bookseller. It became apparent pretty quickly that the store needed more than the one full-time staff member originally hired so my position continued to grow. I took over as the store manager in 2018 when the first manager moved from Key West.

Before the store opened, I was living in Key West working as a server and bartender. I moved here from Chicago in 2013.

LUCY: Tell us a little about what a day in the life of a bookstore manager is like? What are your favorite and least favorite parts of the job?

EMILY: One of the things I like most about my job is every day is different. There are so many parts to the job and things to work on so it’s never boring. For this reason, a typical day is hard to describe but usually they start with me checking in with the staff that will be working that day to make sure they’re up to date on all the many things that could have changed since they were last in the store. Then I dive into my to-do. Today for example I need to check in with a couple publicists about events we’re hoping to schedule in the winter, design a poster for an upcoming loyalty member promotion, go over the invoices from the previous month, update our closing procedures, place orders for a few sideline items (non-book products), and look over an order for books that will be published next spring.

And of that’s just what I have planned. Many things will come up during the day such as calls and emails from customers looking for orders placed previously and questions from staff and volunteers.

When staring a computer has gotten to be too much, I’ll talk a little break by cleaning and reorganizing a small section of the store. I like to go to the True Crime section for this because it’s small enough that it only takes about 10 minutes to organize and I like to see what’s new in that genre.

LUCY: As I said in this blog post, Judy Blume is having a moment. And it’s only gotten bigger and bigger with the release of ARE YOU THERE GOD, IT’S ME MARGARET? And a documentary about her career (in which you have a bit part!) and her role in protesting the recent proliferation of book banning. You are living right through this time with her. I’d love to hear about how this has affected life at the bookstore from your perspective…

EMILY: From our end the only thing that has really changed is the volume of people contacting and visiting the store. Judy certainly hasn’t changed. She’s the same Judy. Since opening we’ve always had guests coming to the store to see if they can meet her and get a book signed. With all of the extra promotion of Judy’s other projects in the last few months it’s just exploded to more people looking for her. We’ve had to make some changes to store policies to accommodate. She isn’t able to personalize the signed books anymore and the estimate we give for orders of her books went from 5-7 days to 10-12 weeks. She’s a fast signer but the staff needs a chance to process the order for shipping and with hundreds rolling in a week we just can’t move fast enough.

However, the biggest change is that Judy has had to be away from the store more which has been hard because she does a lot in the general operations. She works very hard in the store so sometimes it’s like we’re down one staff member. I think we all agree that the benefits of the promotion to the store have been worth it but mostly we like having Judy work at the store and miss having her around more.

LUCY: Key West is a lot of people’s dream vacation or retirement spots. With a full time job in the bookstore and volunteer work, do you find time to enjoy it? Tell us about the best and worst parts of the town.

EMILY: I have to say lately I haven’t been able to enjoy it as much. When I first moved here, I’d go paddle boarding a couple times a week. I had a friend visit a few months ago and we went out and I remember how much I loved that but it’s been years since I’ve had a chance to go out during a normal week.

I think the best parts about town is how connected everything is. If I have any idea for something I want to do, a partnership with another organization for example, I probably know someone who knows someone that can make that intro and get a foot in the door.

The worst part, for me, is the misperception that everyone is relaxed and in vacation-mode here. The idea that there’s no stress because it’s this beautiful island with palm trees blowing in the breeze is just false. As we all know it’s very expensive to live here and for many people working on the island this leads to multiple jobs, unpaid bills and lots of stress. That’s just a reality that many have accepted but when someone drinking out of a coconut then tells you to “relax” it can really put one over the edge.

LUCY: Any advice for authors who hope to have their books carried in an independent bookstore, or arrange a signing or speaking engagement?

EMILY: I can of course only speak for myself but… Walk before you run. When working with your indie establish a relationship before asking for an event or any other extra work of them. Most bookstore are run by overworked, often underpaid, staff and volunteers. Even the smallest event is a huge amount of work for them and a financial risk in a business with very thin margins. Most Indies have an online store. See if your book is available through their online store first. If it is, you can link to their store for the promotions you’re doing. I’m more open to discussing events and other special projects for a book I can see we’ve already sold or have had pre-ordered by customers.

(Sidenote, most independent bookstore use an online store system that pulls from a distributor called Ingram. If your book is sold through Ingram, it will likely be available in these online stores. If the book is set with a wholesale discount of less that 20% or if the book is not returnable many stores won’t order it so keep that in mind as well).

Do not ask your local bookstore to sell and promote your book if you’re only linking to Amazon in your own promotions. Amazon is making life for small business such as Indies very difficult. If you sell better through Amazon than stick with that but don’t ask a small business to use their limited resources to help your work if you’re not willing to help theirs.

And finally, don’t drop off or ship books to a store as way of introduction. We receive multiple books a day from people who just want us to see it. Like everyone else our TBR pile is out of control and if we can’t sell them (which we almost never can without a contract) they almost always end up in the recycling. Contact the store and ask about their buying policies and procedures and then follow them.

Lucy: Thanks for your time today Emily! Now I realize I forgot to ask you what you're reading! Red readers, Emily will try to stop by in her spare moments to answer questions and comments, so bring them on! And also tell us about your favorite indie bookstore...