Explore Chicago’s Indie Bookstores with Read & Run Chicago’s 2026 Bookstore Day Run Crawls
As an organization that supports libraries, indie bookstores, and other small businesses through our programming, it’s no wonder that April’s annual Independent Bookstore Day is one of our favorite bookish celebrations of the year. This Independent Bookstore Day 2026 on April 25, Read & Run Chicago team members will be leading five different simultaneously happening guided runs between some of the city’s most beloved indie bookstores.
Keep reading to see what Independent Bookstore Day Run Crawls we’re hosting and why.
[Related: Best Chicago Bookstores to Visit in 2025]
TL;DR—Pick your crawl
👟 [West Loop → Pilsen → South Loop] with Fernanda Wetzel | Open Books West Loop, Madison Street Books, Pilsen Community Books, Open Books Pilsen, Sandmeyer’s
👟 [Milwaukee Avenue] with John Foley | Passages Wine and Books, Quimby’s, Los Amigos, City Lit Books, Skunk Cabbage Books, Bucket O’ Blood Books and Records, Perpetual Books
👟 [Hyde Park → South Shore] with Cynthia Chen | Call & Response Books, Seminary Co-op, 57th Street Books, Powell's Books, Build Coffee and Books
👟 [Lakeview] with Allison Yates | Unabridged Books, Three Avenues Bookshop, Roscoe Books, The Last Chapter
👟 [Albany Park → Andersonville] with Betsy Tomszak | Restoried Bookshop, Women & Children First, The Understudy, Time and a half Books, The Book Cellar
Unabridged Bookstore in Lakeview. Photo credit Chris Mendoza.
What is Independent Bookstore Day?
Bookstores across the U.S. celebrate Independent Bookstore Day the last Saturday in April. This year on Saturday, April 25, over 1,500 bookstores nationwide will offer discounts and deals, giveaways, contests, and more.
In Chicago, 55 bookstores participate in the Chicagoland Indie Bookstore Day Crawl. Those celebrating Independent Bookstore Day on April 25 will receive a “passport” at the first bookstore they visit, and it will be stamped at each additional bookstore—no purchase required (but, truly—will you be able to resist?). There are lots of incentives to stop by as many bookstores as possible on this day:
10 bookstores visits and corresponding stamps gets you 10% off at all participating bookstores until Indie Bookstore Day in 2026
15 bookstores visits corresponding stamps gets you 15% off at all participating bookstores until Indie Bookstore Day in 2026
Both 10 and 15 completions will earn you swag (and according to the organizers, “bragging rights”)
This year, there are several ways you can participate. Visit bookstores on your own or with friends, or join an organized group. Organized group options range from bus crawls, bike crawls, to run crawls hosted by Read & Run Chicago. Read here for details.
How can you join Read & Run Chicago?
Read & Run Chicago team members are hosting various simultaneously happening guided runs (at a pace of 11:00 minute per mile and above) of varying lengths visiting varying numbers of Chicago’s indie bookstores depending on the route. Please note that some of the Chicago bookstores along our guided routes are not participating in the official Chicago Independent Bookstore Day celebrations, meaning you will not get a passport stamp for visiting, and those visits will not count towards earning 10-15% off purchases until 2027. If you’re determined to earn the 10-15% discount, we encourage you to explore on your own this Independent Bookstore Day.
All of Read & Run Chicago’s guided runs for the 2026 Indie Bookstore Day are free and open to all, and no RSVP required.
By joining one of our run crawls, you acknowledge that Read & Run Chicago is not responsible for any personal harm endured by participants.
Read below for information on each Read & Run Chicago route and designated bookstores.
Questions? Scroll the the bottom for our FAQs.
Route 1: Hyde Park
Guide: Cynthia Chen
Mileage: ~4
Start time: 11am
Start and end location: Call & Response Books
Bookstores: Five total (Call & Response Books, Seminary Co-op, 57th Street Books, Powell’s Bookstore, and Build Coffee and Books)
Join Read & Run Chicago community lead Cynthia Chen on this point-to-point route in Hyde Park and South Shore highlighting five bookstores, including two of Chicago’s best Black-owned bookstores. As Cynthia is Lincoln Park based, she’s excited to explore bookstores outside of her neighborhood and surrounding areas and to buy books by Black authors. Since Cynthia anticipates doing a lot shopping, she’s also on the hunt for a “book mule.”
Feeling ambitious? Add on a few more miles to visit Da Book Joint in South Shore.
Route 2: West Loop + Pilsen + South Loop
Guide Fernanda Wetzel at Madison Street Books. Photo credit Kyle Nowaczyk.
Guide: Fernanda Wetzel
Mileage: 5.9
Start time: 10:00 AM
Start location: Open Books West Loop in West Loop
End location: Sandmeyer’s Bookstore in South Loop
Bookstores: Five total (Open Books West Loop, Madison Street Books, Pilsen Community Books, Open Books Pilsen, Sandmeyer’s Bookstore)
Join Read & Run Chicago programs manager Fernanda Wetzel for a point-to-point route crossing three different Chicago neighborhoods—West Loop, Pilsen, and South Loop—to celebrate five different bookstores that not only have personal significance to Fernanda, but also promote literacy programs around the city. Since Fernanda’s daughter was young, their family has loved visiting Open Books (and now frequently donates her daughter’s gently used books back to the same store so other children can enjoy), and along with Madison Street Books, these two bookstores were godsends during the pandemic when everything else was shut down. Fernanda can’t wait to welcome any neighborhood explorers and community-minded Chicagoans who love books and reading.
After your last stop at Sandmeyer’s Bookstore, stick around to grab a cup of coffee with Fernanda.
Route 3: Milwaukee Avenue—West Town to Avondale
Guide: John Foley
Mileage: 6.5
Start time: 9:45 AM
Start location: Bucket O’ Blood Books and Records in Avondale
End location: Perpetual Books in West Town
Bookstores: Seven total (Passages Wine and Books, Quimby’s, Los Amigos, City Lit Books, Skunk Cabbage Books, Bucket O’ Blood Books and Records, Perpetual Books)
Join Read & Run Chicago guide John Foley for a point-to-point route crossing five different Chicago areas on and around Milwaukee Avenue—Ukrainian Village, West Town, Wicker Park, Logan Square, Avondale—to celebrate seven different bookstores, many of which are new (or at least new to you), like the last stop, Perpetual Books!John says this route is best for “new places and unique spaces,” including Los Amigos, a bilingual children’s bookstore started by a Chicago Public Schools teacher. The run will start at Bucket O’ Blood Books and Records owned by two of John’s friends, Jeni and Grant—their horror book club (about to surpass 100 books read this summer) has been ongoing since early 2016 and John has attended almost the entire time, forging friendships along the way—John is also excited for Skunk Cabbage Books and Quimby’s, “because I always find something at both places that I didn’t even know that I wanted to read,” he explains. Find all sorts of treasures—even those you didn’t realize you wanted!—with John this Independent Bookstore Day.
Route 4: Lakeview
Guide: Allison Yates
Mileage: 2.8
Start time: 10am
Start location: Unabridged Bookstore
End location: Roscoe Books
Bookstores: Four total (Unabridged Books, Three Avenues Bookshop, Roscoe Books, The Last Chapter)
Join Sarah Sabet for a point-to-point route in Lakeview for a route that gets you the most bang for your buck—four bookstores in less than three miles. Unabridged Bookstore holds a special meaning for Read & Run Chicago—not only because of both its important history as Chicago’s longstanding LGBTQ safe space and because the incredible Owen Keehnen works there—but because it was the starting location for Read & Run Chicago’s first public event, a running tour in June 2021 inspired by John D’Emilio’s Queer Legacies: Stories from Chicago’s LGBTQ Archives. Romance lovers will also enjoy a visit to The Last Chapter, Chicago’s claim to the love-filled escapism movement’s fame.
Route 5: Albany Park to Andersonville
Betsy and her run crawl in 2025.
Guide: Betsy Tomszak
Mileage: 3.3
Start time: 10am
Start location: Restoried Bookshop
End location: The Understudy
Bookstores: Five total (Restoried Bookshop, The Book Cellar, Time and a half Books, Women & Children First, and The Understudy)
Join Read & Run Chicago facilitator and podcaster and book club host Betsy Tomszak for a point-to-point route taking you all the way from Albany Park to Andersonville. Over three miles, you’ll get a sense of the breadth and depth of Chicago’s bookstore scene, including Betsy’s primary neighborhood bookstore and ranging from the “classic and lauded Women & Children First to The Understudy, which focuses on theater as literature,” Betsy explains. Women & Children First routinely proves itself as one of the best sources for book recommendations, some of which you won’t get anywhere else, while Time and a half Books is one of newest stores to hit the scene, and Restoried Bookshop is a highly underrated bookstore focusing on AANHPI literature adn other writers of color. You’ll want to join this route to find an amazing selection of translated literature and graphic novels.
If you’re nervous about pace, pick this route. Betsy will be leaning more towards the above 11:00 minutes per mile mark.
Readers & runners in Bronzeville. Photo credit Kyle Nowaczyk.
FAQs
How long will I visit each bookstore on the Read & Run Chicago guided runs?
Each guide will decide how long to spend at each bookstore depending on the needs and wishes of the group. If you’d like to purchase a book or spend extra time at a certain place, speak up! Otherwise, most guides will determine a shorter period of time for you to browse, take photos, get your stamp, and then move on to the next location.
How should I prepare? What should I bring?
We will not be providing any food or drink along the route, so please bring whatever hydration, fuel, or anything else you need to comfortably run the distance of the route you choose. If you’ll plan to purchase books, bring a backpack.
Should I wear anything special?
Yes! Wear a piece of Read & Run Chicago clothing (if you need to purchase, merch is here) or a button, or any book-related attire (bonus if it gives us a laugh). Of course, since we’re running, wear comfortable running shoes and clothes you’ll be willing to sweat in. Not sure how to dress? Try this resource.
How fast will the running be?
Read & Run Chicago always runs at about an 11:00 minute per mile pace, but this may be slower due to stoplights, foot traffic, and other unforeseen circumstances. This is not a race or a training run, just a chance to move outside with fellow book lovers.
What if I don’t want to run?
No problem! If you will not be running but would still like to join Read & Run Chicago’s routes, you can use any other mode of transportation (bike, scooter, rollerblades, racing wheelchair, etc.) behind the group so long as you ensure your own safety. Our routes are built for running, but we welcome all types of movement.
If you’re prefer to explore Chicago’s indie bookstores another way on Independent Bookstore Day, opt for one of the bus crawls or bike crawls, or explore the 55 bookstores on your own.
Do I have to join an organized group to participate in Independent Bookstore Day?
No! Anyone can visit the participating bookstores on their own.
Will Read & Run Chicago hold my purchases for me?
No. Please plan to bring a backpack if you plan to purchase books along our routes.
How should I share my photos?
Please tag @readandrunchicago on Instagram and @read.run.tours on TikTok for any photos or videos you take during one of Read & Run Chicago’s 2026 Independent Bookstore Day run crawls.
What if I have to leave in the middle of the run, or if I’m running late can I join after the run has already started?
You can join or leave the Read & Run Chicago routes at any point, keeping in mind our routes are point-to-point and do not include any transportation. If you would like to join the route midway through, check the chat in the RSVP pages to find out where the group currently is. Guides will write in the chat when they are leaving each bookstore and arriving at the next.