I was lucky enough to attend the City Council Meeting Monday, November 18, when the first order of business was presenting Roger and Nancy Page with the proclamation that our Mayor had designated November 18 as “Island Books Day” in honor of the bookstore’s 40 year history on Mercer Island and in appreciation for the Pages’ passionate and generous support of the Island community. Giving back to Island schools and many of our Island community endeavors is a cornerstone of the Pages’ business philosophy and practice.

But the survival of Island Books, as the Pages are the first to say, depends on every one of us. So we may share in this award, as well.

I am writing to thank each resident, and every off-Island patron, who purchases a book and/or a gift at Island Books. I’m as proud of our community as I am of the treasure of Island Books in our midst. We are the ones who, by shopping locally, have helped Island Books survive in a market where independently owned bookstores are falling–far too frequently—by the wayside, unable to compete with on-line booksellers and big chain bookstores. By keeping our dollars at home, we are keeping Island Books at home as well.

This is a friendly reminder that books and gifts purchased at Island Books during the upcoming “season of giving” help us burnish our Island treasure and assure that it will remain always in our midst.

Finally, for those Island families who somehow have missed the memo that the first Saturday of every month from 6:30 to 7 p.m, regional storytellers share tales for families in the heartwarming and cozy atmosphere of Island Books, I recommend that you check out Saturday Storytelling (upcoming up on Dec. 7 with Margaret Read MacDonald). And if you do, Saturday Storytelling, always kicked off with a lively song led by Mercer Island musician Nancy Stewart, may become one of your family’s treasured traditions.

Meg Lippert