The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians: True Stories of the Magic of Reading is a collection of 61 first-person testimonials from booksellers and librarians working in diverse roles across the United States and Canada. The book celebrates these unsung heroes of the literary community by showcasing their shared passion for reading along with their unique personal stories. Published in 2024, the collection was curated and produced by prolific best-selling author James Patterson, working alongside authors Matt Eversmann and Chris Mooney. It provides insight into some of the challenges that booksellers and librarians face in their quest to share the magic of reading in the modern age.

This guide uses the 2024 Penguin Random House hardback edition.

Summary

Each of the book’s 61 chapters presents a first-person account written by a different bookseller or librarian about their experiences in the literary field and their personal relationship with reading. These chapters are each titled with the name of their contributor and are grouped into five parts titled with different quotes from the book. The main body of the text is preceded by an author’s note written by James Patterson. Patterson laments that statistically few Americans regularly read books and expresses admiration for members of the literary community, like booksellers and librarians, who work to promote books and support readers.

The book’s first part comprises 12 chapters. The personal narratives in this section primarily focus on the bookseller and librarian’s role in connecting readers with the right books. Chapter 1 is about Alexis Sky, who works at The Book House and Market Block Books in New York. Chapter 2 covers Lorrie Roussin, who works as a middle-school librarian in Texas, while Chapter 3 is about Judy Blume, a best-selling author who owns and operates a nonprofit independent bookstore, Books & Books, in Florida. In Chapter 4, Sharon Perry Martin works as a public library director in Texas, and Chapter 5 focuses on Susan Kehoe, who owns and operates Browseabout Books in Delaware.

Sally Brewster, owner and operator of Park Road Books in North Carolina, is the subject of Chapter 6, while P. J. Gardiner in Chapter 7 is a public library collection development librarian in North Carolina. Chapter 8 is about Nancy Moore, a store manager of the chain bookstore Barnes & Noble in Massachusetts. Next is Erin Blake, a planner-distributer for the chain bookstore Books-A-Million in Alabama. McKenna Jordan owns and operates Murder by the Book in Texas in Chapter 10. Chapter 11 is dedicated to Beth Jarrell, who works as a reference librarian and digital archivist in a public library in Florida. The final chapter of this part is about Jessica Claudio, a store manager of a Barnes & Noble in New York.

Part 2 also has 12 chapters. A central focus of many of the testimonies in this part is the personal connection the contributor feels with books and their conviction in the importance of sharing books with others. The first chapter follows Carolyn Foote, a country-wide public library consultant. Chapter 2 focuses on Cody Higgens, who works as a store manager for a Barnes & Noble in Alabama, while Chapter 3 is about Lynn Greene, a manager for a Books-A-Million in Florida. Chapter 4 is dedicated to Diego Sandoval Hernandez, who works as supervising librarian for Jail and Prison Services with the Brooklyn Public Library in New York. Chapter 5 is about Lexi Beach, the owner and operator of Astoria Bookshop in New York, while Kelly Moore is the adult services librarian at a public library in Texas in Chapter 6. 

Chapter 7 focuses on Holly Strong, a store manager for a Barnes & Noble in Wisconsin. Chapter 8 is about Meg Wasmer, the co-owner and operator of Copper Dog in Massachusetts, and Chapter 9 focuses on Mike Bursaw, who owns Mystery Mike’s in Indiana. Next, Erica Marks is the youth services program director for a public library in Ohio. Chapter 11 focuses on the owner and operator of Bookends & Beginnings in Illinois, Nina Barrett. The final chapter is about Elaine Petrocelli, the president and co-owner of Book Passage in California.

Part 3 contains 13 chapters that share testimonies focused on the important role books play in the lives of the contributors and those around them. The first chapter is about Miranda Berdahl, the owner and operator of Wind City Books in Wyoming, while the second is about Dodie Owens, an adult services librarian at a public library in Colorado. Chapter 3 focuses on Angie Tally, the manager of the children’s department at Country Bookshop in North Carolina. Joel Bangilan is the librarian at the Holocaust Museum in Texas in Chapter 4, while Roxanne Coady is the owner and operator of the independent bookstore R. J. Julia in Connecticut in Chapter 5. Chapter 6 is about Cathy Jesson, the owner of the Canadian independent bookstore chain Black Bond Books.

Chapter 7 is about Suzette Baker, the former head librarian of a public library in Texas who was fired for taking a stand against censorship. In Chapter 8, Mary Elisabeth Anderson is a co-manager for a Books-A-Million in Florida. Suzanne Lucey and David Lucey are the focuses of Chapter 9 and Chapter 10, respectively. They co-own and operate Page 158 Books in North Carolina. In Chapter 11, Kate Czyzewski is a senior staff member at Thunder Road Books in New Jersey, while Chapter 12 is about Jamie LaBarge, a senior inventory cluster support for a Barnes & Noble in Kansas. The final chapter of this part focuses on Dena Heilik, the head of the fiction and movie department for the main Philadelphia public library in Pennsylvania.

The fourth part also has 13 chapters. A running theme here is the assurance that literacy is important and valuable, regardless of which books a reader reads. The first chapter is about Mary Terry, an inventory commercial specialist for a Barnes & Noble in Texas. The second chapter focuses on Mara Zonderman, the head of reference and adult services at a New York public library. In Chapter 3, Katherine Walcott is a general manager of Coles in Alberta, Canada. Erin Duffy is a store manager of a Barnes & Noble in Texas in Chapter 4, and Chapter 5 is about Cappy Yarbrough, the publicity assistant for Chronicle Books in Washington.

Chapter 6 focuses on Patrick Nichol, a bookseller at Indigo Shawnessy in Alberta, Canada. Next, Lillian Dabney works as an adult services librarian for The Seattle Athenaeum in Washington. Chapter 8 is about Taylor Rose Berry, who owns and operates Berry & Co. in New York, while Caterina Haynes is a district manager for a Books-A-Million in Florida in Chapter 9. Chapter 10 is on Karen Roy, who formerly worked as a medical research librarian and children’s librarian in locations across the USA. The subject of Chapter 11 is Anne Holman, the co-owner and operator of King’s English Bookshop in Utah. After that, Amy Cheney describes being a public librarian and running the Juvenile Justice Literacy Project in California. The final chapter is about Kai Burner, the assistant manager, children’s buyer, and gift buyer at The Bookworm of Edwards in Colorado.

The final part consists of 11 chapters. Many contributors of chapters in this section pay homage to their lifelong passion for literature and the positive impact that bookstores and libraries can have on a community. The first chapter is about Emily Schall, the adult services librarian at the Culture and A.V. departments of a public library in Ohio. Chapter 2 focuses on Pamela Blair, the co-owner and operator of EyeSeeMe African American Children’s Bookstore in Missouri. In Chapter 3, Sarah Galvin is the co-owner and operator of Bookstore Plus in New York, while Kathleen Johnson in Chapter 4 is the events coordinator for Prairie Lights in Iowa. Chapter 5 is about Martha Hickson, a high school librarian in New Jersey. 

Chapter 6 is about Charlene Stoyles, the customer operations leader for a Canadian subsidiary of the Indigo bookstore chain, Chapters St. Johns. Bill Kelly is the adult programming manager of a public library in Ohio in Chapter 7, while Janice Turbeville in Chapter 8 is the project manager of a store planning and design team for a Barnes & Noble in Washington. In Chapter 9, Sarah Hobbs works as a customer experience representative for an Indigo Books in Ontario, Canada. Chapter 10 is about Bob Wells, the founder and former owner of Rainbow News and Café in North Carolina. The final chapter of the book is about Casey Gerken, the owner and operator of Innisfree Bookshop in New Hampshire.