Out and About Bookshop
Katy Butler and Charlie McDonald
It was a mild clear day in the Bay Area. Two friends were paddling in kayaks in the Bay, talking about their upcoming life transitions. One was planning to leave the classroom after a decade. The other was about to graduate from business school. They wondered aloud what it would be like to buy a bus and fill it with queer books. After scouring Craigslist, one of them found a short school bus for sale nearby. It was owned by a queer couple and painted like a trans flag. They bought the bus, and Out & About Bookshop’s journey began!
Out & About Bookshop is a mobile LGBTQ+ children’s bookstore connecting children and families in the Bay Area with affirming stories. It came (out &) about as owners Katy (she/her) and Charlie (they/them) noticed a need for positive joyful representations of queer youth. The news cycle in 2022 was filled with regulations and laws targeting LGBTQ+ youth across the country. As they each prepared to welcome babies into their families, they knew they needed to create the kind of spaces they wished existed in the world.
Once the bus had been purchased, plans were underway to make it safe, functional, and inviting. Charlie’s background in woodworking came in handy as they renovated the interior of the bus from the ground up over a two-month period. Katy and Charlie started their days at hardware stores, working long into the afternoon (and sometimes evening) putting all of the finishing touches on the shelves, the seating, and the pegboards. Out & About Bookshop celebrated their launch on October 1st, 2022 with a morning of author visits, crafts and browsing.
The unique nature of being a bookstore on a bus means they can reach more readers. Katy and Charlie can pull up to parks, markets, schools and more. This helps them reach more communities, including those that are historically underserved or have a gap in access to queer stories. They are fiscally sponsored by the L.C. and Lillie Cox Haven of Hope in order to provide community programming at no cost to participants. They have led storytimes, crafts, and movement and will host their first book club this month. Out & About hopes to launch field trips and Rainbow Club visits as well!
Given the challenging landscape for LGBTQ+ youth in this country as well as attacks on Drag Queen Story Hours, Out & About does not share the bus’s location on social media. Instead, readers can sign up for a weekly newsletter that lets them know where the bus will be. Happening upon the bus accidentally is also a treat - they love when neighbors stop by to chat and find their next great read.
When they debuted a sandwich board style sign in November, they had someone do a u-turn in order to come inside the bus. This queer mom had been searching for books to diversify her child’s library, but kept finding the same books with two moms everywhere she looked. As she boarded the bus, she grabbed book after book with tears in her eyes. She was late to her appointment but she couldn’t stop thanking Katy & Charlie for making this space available to everyone.
At a school event, one child boarded the bus with a they/them pronoun pin prominently displayed. They sat on the bench browsing through books just so they could write reviews to tape on the shelves. After writing several reviews they stood up and announced this was such an “important way to show representation for kids like me.” They were ten years old!
Katy and Charlie’s greatest hope is that their bookshop will increase access to LGBTQ+ stories and uplift the amazing work of LGBTQ+ authors. Out & About is a space where all queer families can come aboard and see themselves and their families represented in all of the books around them. It is also a space where any child and any family can find a book that resonates with them. LGBTQ+ books are for everyone, and Out & About Bookshop can bring them right to readers!
