5 words that describe who you are: Mom, Queer, Whimsical, Hopeful, Tired

Go-to book genre: I go through seasons of genre focus. Overall it’s usually Mystery/Thriller but I’ve been reading more romance. And lots of picture books.

Top 5 favorite books: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, Nevermoor by Jessica Townsend, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid, The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune, and A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas.

If you could be any fictional character, who would you choose and why?
Probably Bailey from The Night Circus so I could go in and experience the circus as a visitor and then come to know it from an insider perspective as well.

What do you love most about working in a bookshop?
Making recommendations. Getting to connect a person to a book I genuinely think they will love is the closest I’ve come to the feeling of a “life’s purpose.”

5 words that describe you: Queer, Latina, Silly, Open-Hearted, Gentle

Fictional character that represents you: Ms. Honey meets Abby Caddaby from Sesame Street. Kind and compassionate, yet still a glitter fairy pom-pom princess.

Your go-to genre order: Fantasy, Mystery, and a side of Nonfiction! Always served with extra craft books please!

Books that live rent-free in your mind: Under the Whispering Door, The Plot, Black Cake, Ten Thousand Doors of January, Anxious People, The Writing Retreat

What do you love most about working in a bookshop: Meeting wonderful people in our community, making new friends, and seeing someone's face light up when they find something they love!

5 things that light me up: chocolate (I have a chocolate library), absurd humor, old dogs, angry baking, nature when it's trying to eat my house or showing up as a curse in my backyard.

Go-to book genre: During the summer I am all about Mystery/Thriller. When the weather turns cool I hunker down with Fantasy.

Top 5 favorite books: If I was honest here this list could go on forever, but for the sake of practicality:
My favorite fantasy books are the Caraval Series by Stephanie Garber
My favorite mystery/thrillers are: How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix,  and Lock Every Door by Riley Sager
My perfect fantasy/mystery combo: Ladies of the Secret Circus by Constance Sayers
And my most favorite absurdly wacky book (EVER) is the epic A Peculiar Peril by Jeff VanderMeer

If you could be any fictional character, who would you choose and why?
Harriett from The Change by Kirsten Miller because we all deserve to believe in ourselves that much and age doesn't make you an old crusty husk.

What do you love most about working in a bookshop?
Connecting with people who love stories as much as I do.

5 Favorite Things: Strong black bitter coffee, ships in bottles, movies where someone says “secure the perimeter!”, books with long scenes of people just sitting in parlors, long walks on the beach

Favorite Genres:
If it’s a topic your 7-year old nephew finds fascinating, I can probably recommend a book on the subject— dinosaurs, pirates, bugs, gross medical stuff, sports.

5 Favorite Middle Grade Series:
Every one a classic!
• The Baby-Sitter's Club Mysteries
• Goosebumps
• Magic Attic Club
• Baseball Card Adventures
• The Fudge Books

What do you love most about working in a bookshop?
I love being surrounded by books and helping a new or young reader discover a book that they will cherish.

5 words to describe me: inclusive, outdoorsy, crafty, practical, & funny (although my family might argue about that one.)

My "go to" book genre:
I love everything except thrillers, but historical fiction has a special place in my heart. 

My five favorite books are:
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
Anxious People by Fredrik Bachman
The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes
The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner
The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams
The Island of Sea Women by Lisa See 
Fat Girls Hiking: An Inclusive Guide to Getting Outside by Summer Michaud-Skog
The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer

OK... my 10 favorites.

A person I would like to meet:
Dolly Parton!!! She has done so much with her Imagination Library; gifting millions of free books to children. She is also a strong advocate for a variety of research and social issues.  

A place I would like to visit:
I love to camp, travel in the USA, and cruise. And wherever I go, I look for independent bookstores, libraries, and Little Free Libraries to visit.