Across the country and in Baton Rouge, reading gets a glow-up

Bookstore owner Missy Couhig didn’t know what to expect. One Saturday back in April, Couhig was preparing to participate in the first-ever Baton Rouge Book Crawl, an event organized across four local bookstores by Red Stick Reads co-owner Tere Hyfield to mark Independent Bookstore Day.

“I got to my shop thinking, ‘I’ll put a few snacks out, maybe have some local authors stop by and just see how it goes,’” recalls Couhig, owner of The Conundrum bookstore in St. Francisville. “I didn’t expect much, with us being so far out.”

But when she arrived about an hour before her 10 a.m. opening, a line had already formed. “It stayed busy like that the whole day,” Couhig says. “There were so many people who came to celebrate independent bookstores. It was absolutely amazing.”

“It’s an interesting time for books.”

[—The Conundrum owner Missy Couhig]

Joining The Conundrum and Red Stick Reads were longtime indie bookseller Cavalier House Books in downtown Denham Springs and newcomer TBR Books and Tea, which opened in Baton Rouge in early April.

The event captured the energy currently surrounding local book retailers, as a robust reading renaissance plays out across the Capital Region.

Red Stick Reads’ new location, which opened in May, is almost double the size of its previous home, featuring reading nooks, a coffee bar and meeting space for book clubs, including Hyfield’s original Reading Era Book Club inspired by Taylor Swift hits. (“Our Song,” for example, prompted Hyfield’s recommendation of the Neverland romance Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson.)

Renewed interest in indie bookstores has guided the revitalization of Barnes & Noble. This year, it plans to open 60 new stylishly compartmentalized stores with inventories curated for local markets. One such new store opened in Denham Springs last summer, the retailer’s first location in the area in more than two decades. This fall, it’s slated to move its Citiplace store to a Towne Center location with a smaller, boutiquey footprint.

It’s part of a national trend that’s seeing reading step out of the nerdy shadows into a sexy new spotlight that includes A-listers like Timothée Chalamet and Ariana Grande showcasing their latest reads on Instagram.

Locally, LSU Women’s Basketball Assistant Coach Seimone Augustus chose to recite an original poem she wrote for her acceptance speech at last fall’s Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Enshrinement Ceremony. To prepare, she studied the work of poet Nikki Giovanni.

Celebrity book clubs led by Gen Z whisperers Kaia Gerber and Dua Lipa have joined OG recommenders Reese Witherspoon, Jenna Bush Hager and Oprah Winfrey in turning readers on to new titles. Meanwhile, the TikTok subcommunity, BookTok, is sparking interest in a range of genres, especially romance, fantasy and romantasy, while also providing trendy inspo for book-related gatherings.

Platforms for literary consumption keep expanding, too. Spotify made headlines when it introduced audiobooks to its streaming lineup last fall—investing in a national industry that grew 14% in the fourth quarter of 2023 compared to the previous year, according to The New York Times. East Baton Rouge Parish Library cardholders can access platforms like the Libby app for free, keeping the habit affordable. And Libro.fm allows readers to support local independent bookstores through their audio reads.

A variety of book clubs have proliferated in the Capital Region, offering enthusiasts themed selections like mystery and “sad girl lit fic,” organized by groups that meet at local bookstores or library branches. So-called silent book clubs have also taken root.

“Book clubs are a big thing right now,” says Red Stick Reads manager Windsor Adcox. “People are creating book clubs with their friends. Our customers get interested in the clubs that meet here at the store.”

Back in January, Cavalier House held local late-night release parties for Onyx Storm, the third title in Rebecca Yarros’ bestselling The Empyrean series.

“It’s an interesting time for books,” Couhig says. “I think we all just want to get away from screens and use our imagination in the best possible way.”

This article was originally published in the July 2025 issue of 225 Magazine.