(Versailles, IN) – Laura Smart, co-owner at Novel HeARTs Bookshop in Versailles is among 600 booksellers receiving a $500 bonus from author James Patterson, the bestselling novelist who has been awarding independent bookstore employees since 2015.
“Booksellers save lives. Period,” Patterson said in a statement released Tuesday through his publisher, Little, Brown and Company. “I’m happy to be able to acknowledge them and all their hard work this holiday season.”
The winners were nominated by co-workers and customers among others.
Patterson chose the winners from thousands of applications.
“We appreciate Mr. Patterson’s financial generosity as well as his generosity of spirit,” Allison Hill, CEO of the American Booksellers Association, said in a statement. “It means everything to have him recognize and reward the valuable role booksellers play in the industry.”
Along with his gifts to booksellers, Patterson has given millions of dollars to schools, libraries, and literacy programs.
In 2015, the National Book Foundation presented him an honorary National Book Award – the Literarian Award – for “outstanding service to the American literary community.”
“Laura is very deserving of this award. She is passionate about making connections with the community we serve, and in turn, the community has welcomed our bookshop with open arms and hearts. Laura is an excellent curator of our books in the store and on our website. She is friendly, always striving to help customers find the right book or gift when they visit the shop,” Novel HeARTs co-owner Cheryll Obendorf.
Novel HeARTs Bookshop opened on June 22, 2024, on the Courthouse Square in Versailles at 133 Tyson Street.
Novel HeARTs sells books and gifts and offers art classes by appointment.
You can find the store at www.novelhearts.com, along with Facebook and Instagram.
For more information, call at (812) 902-2242 or email [email protected].
