September has begun, and with it, the anticipation of autumn weather, school, and great fall reads. Emily Bright of MPR News spoke with three booksellers about current trends and favorite reads during a live conversation at the Minnesota State Fair.

Sarah Brown, manager of Zenith Bookstore in Duluth, which sells both new and used titles; Makkah Abdur Salaam, Lead Bookseller at Black Garnet Books in St. Paul, which is an abolitionist bookstore that sells BIPOC authors; and Lisa Deyo, owner of Sweet Reads Books in Austin, which specializes in Minnesota authors.

The conversation celebrated Minnesota authors across the state and highlighted the huge variety of books drawing readers to the shelves. From history to dystopian science fiction to cozy romantasy, there was a little something for every reader. 

Click the audio player above to listen to their full discussion and check out the book recommendations below. 

Makkah Abdur Salaam, Black Garnet Books

• “Parable of the Sower” by Octavia E. Butler 
• “How to Hide an Empire: A History of the Greater United States” by Daniel Immerwahr 
• “It’s Not Hysteria: Everything You Need to Know About Your Reproductive Health (But Were Never Told)” by Dr. Karen Tang 
• “Holy Ground: On Activism, Environmental Justice, and Finding Hope” by Catherine Coleman Flowers 
• “The Conjuring of America: Mojos, Mermaids, Medicine, and 400 Years of Black Women’s Magic” by Lindsey Stewart 
• “All We Can Save: Truth, Courage, and Solutions for the Climate Crisis” edited by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson & Katharine K. Wilkinson 
• “The Dallergut Dream Department Store” by Miye Lee 
• “The Stars and the Blackness Between Them” (YA) and “Can We Please Give the Police Department to the Grandmothers?” (picture book) by Junauda Petris 
• “Black Disability Politics” by Sami Schalk

Sarah Brown, Zenith Bookstore

• “Snowshoe Kate and the Hospital Built for Pennies,” written by Margi Preus of Duluth, illustrated by Jamie Zollars (publication date: Oct. 28) 
• “Nicked” by M.T. Anderson
• “Scream with Me: Horror Films and the Rise of American Feminism (1968-1980)” by Eleanor Johnson (publication date: Sept. 30) 
• “A Fever in the Heartland: The Klu Klux Klan’s Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman Who Stopped Them” by Timothy Egan 
• “Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves” by Sophie Gilbert 
• “Gichigami Hearts” by Linda LeGarde Grover of Duluth 

Lisa Deyo, Sweet Reads Books

• “Castle Danger” by Chris Norbury of Owatonna, Minn. 
• “Raven Creek” by Therese Pautz of Austin, Minn. 
• “In the Shade of Olive Trees” by Kate Laak of Rochester, Minn.
• Middle grade novels by Peg Kehret, who grew up in Austin.
• “Breathing in Minneapolis,” a poetry collection by Patrick Cabello Hansel 
• “Lone Dog Road” by Kent Nerburn 
• “Lab Girl” by Hope Jahren 

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