Publishers Weekly announced the shortlist for the 2019 PW Bookstore and Sales Rep of the Year Awards at Winter Institute 14 in Albuquerque, N.M. this morning. The awards were launched more than two decades ago in the U.S.

“We are proud to continue to sponsor these two awards, highlighting those who provide the backbone to the bookselling industry, independent bookstores and sales reps,” said PW executive v-p and publisher Cevin Bryerman. “This year’s bookstore shortlist encompasses a number of stores that have contributed to the current rise in independent bookselling.”



Many of this year’s bookstore finalists may be small—one is only 1,000 sq. ft--but they have had an outsized impact on their communities. This year’s sales representatives are affiliated with large houses, university presses, a distributor, and a commissioned sales group.

The first PW Bookstore of the Year Award was given in 1993; the PW Sales Rep of the Year Award was initiated in 1998. This year’s award winners will be named in March and will be featured in the BookExpo preview edition of Publishers Weekly magazine on May 13. The awards will be presented in New York City at the Celebration of Bookselling at BookExpo.



2019 PW Bookstore of the Year Shortlist

A Likely Story (Sykesville, Md.)

Classic Lines Bookstore (Pittsburgh)

hello hello books (Rockland, Maine)

Literati Bookstore (Ann Arbor, Mich.)

Watermark Books & Café (Wichita)



2019 PW Sales Rep of the Year Shortlist