Banter- a novel new bookstore in Fremont
A review of Fremont’s newest bookstore, Banter Bookshop.
By Anya Patri
As someone who loves bookstores and physically buying my books, I have been excited to visit Banter Bookshop ever since it opened in Downtown Fremont. And, after going there, I can absolutely say that it is definitely worth it. With an extensive collection, friendly staff, and unique features, this independent bookstore is great to visit if you want to buy Christmas presents, get book recommendations, or explore new genres. Banter also has an amazing donation project that provides books to those who are incarcerated. As the Fremont Downtown is still developing, my favorite addition to the area is definitely Banter Bookshop and I highly recommend giving it a visit.
When you walk in the store, you are greeted with an ever-changing display of current releases and seasonal reads. This December, they have a Christmas tree displayed in the front window with book-shaped ornaments hanging from it. Their main book displays within the store have books that would be great to share as Christmas gifts, as well as winter-themed fiction. There are also self-improvement books to inspire some new year’s resolutions beside the non-fiction section.
Speaking of sections, there are a lot of them at Banter. The non-fiction section is tucked into a cute nook, and includes a variety of different genres, such as science, biography/autobiography, and history. My personal favorite section in the store, however, is the fiction section. It is by far the largest section in the store and is super fun to browse through. It has plenty of options of books in great condition, and I found an amazing book in the process (The Remains of The Day by Kazuo Ishiguro). Arranged beautifully, it has a couple of chairs nearby as well so you can read through the titles before purchasing. Some of the other sections include a children’s nook where there are weekly book readings for kids, a few sections of young adult fiction, mysteries, thrillers, and classics.
There are also some staff recommendations as well as book club readings in case you need some great ideas on your next book purchase. I loved looking through the recommendations and noted them for future reference, such as Moshin Hamid’s The Last White Man. In addition, the culinary and household section has some cool literary-inspired teas, cookbooks, and candles. They are great memorabilia if you aren’t in the mood to buy a book but still want a cute souvenir to bring home. However, in my opinion, the most creative section in Banter Bookstore is the prisoner’s literature project.
The Prisoner’s Literature Project section of Banter is a subset of the greater organization in the Bay Area of the same name. As good literature is often hard to come by in the prison system, this volunteer project aims to donate books on incarcerated people’s wish lists to provide them free reading material and access to books. In Banter, if you bring the books to the counter and buy it, it will be donated to the cause. I think this is a great way to contribute and volunteer in the community, and it is also a wonderful way to raise awareness of the issues with American incarceration.
During my time at Banter Bookshop, I asked some of the great staff there what their favorite things about the store were. Some of them stated that it was wonderful to have a new bookstore in town, and many also listed the warm and friendly atmosphere and the variety, both of customers and books. As Banter isn’t a big corporation, it is really great to have a smaller, independent bookstore to support and the atmosphere is so comfortable and fun. There are great displays, and you can tell how much the staff love books and this store in general, which is awesome to see. I would absolutely recommend stopping by, browsing, and finding something new to read.