Where will Sylvia be next?

I just wrapped a 3-day book fair at Liberty Preschool in Indianapolis, and here’s the short version:
Books everywhere
Art that deserved gallery lighting
Kids who absolutely knew what they wanted, and what their peers bought (“Millie got this one, I need it too.”)

Opening Day isn’t just about baseball.
It’s about:

community
tradition
kids showing up excited for something bigger than themselves

And getting to be a small part of that—again—one year after our very first event?

That’s the kind of full-circle moment you don’t plan for… but you hold onto.

We built out a basketball-themed book booth—because obviously—and gave kids the chance to shoot hoops for prizes. Stickers, books, sport necklaces… low stakes, high glory. Some kids came in confident. Some came in wildly optimistic. All of them left with something in hand and a little extra main character energy.

I saw some familiar faces (hi, repeat customers—I remember you and your excellent taste), and made a few new friends along the way. One passerby stopped just to take photos of me for their significant other who works at a library—which, frankly, felt like being admired by extended family. A security guard snapped pictures to send to her dad, who runs his own mobile barbershop. Respect recognizes respect in the mobile business world.

The Indy Indie Book Crawl took over Indianapolis in the best possible way—stretching across neighborhoods, bookstores, and the very walkable, very bustling Stutz Building, where ten of us pop-up folks set up shop. And let me tell you… this was not your average “quiet bookstore weekend.”

The Horizon League staff was truly top notch. Events like this take an incredible amount of coordination, and every single person I met was welcoming, organized, and genuinely excited about having books as part of the experience.

Thanks to the incredible generosity of Philoptochos and The Book Fairy Community Fund, we brought a one-day book fair to IPS 34 where every single student — all 284 of them, from Pre-K through 5th grade — got to pick out a book to take home.

There’s a special kind of buzz that happens when a book fair rolls into a school that hasn’t had one in a while — part curiosity, part excitement, and a whole lot of “wait… we get to pick our own books?!” That was exactly the energy at Irvington Community Middle School this week, and it…

Parents and kids wandered in and out of the store, curiously browsing, picking up last-minute finds, and soaking in that calm-but-festive energy that only happens when everyone knows nap time is looming. The shopping was intentional. Efficient. Cozy. My favorite kind.

The Shake Up Stocking Stuffer Holiday Mart took over High and Mighty Distillery, and let me just say—this was not your grandma’s craft fair (unless your grandma is into craft cocktails, speed dating, and shopping with a drink in hand… in which case, respect).