Strive Bookstore events are free and open to the public
Located in Downtown Minneapolis Medical Arts Building 825 Nicollet Mall, First Floor
Enter building on 9th Street (74 S. 9th St. is above door)
Cheers and Chat with the Rotary Club of North Minneapolis
Thursday evenings at Strive are all about you—our community. This is an open, welcoming time to use the space in whatever way you need: reading, writing, reflecting, or simply enjoying the calm presence of books around you. This week, we’ll be hosting the Rotary Club of North Minneapolis, and you’re warmly invited to join in or stay afterward (until 8:00pm) to soak in the peaceful bookstore vibe. Whether you come to connect or to quietly unwind, Thursdays at Strive are becoming a space where community and comfort meet.
Thursday Evenings at Strive Bookstore
We’re inviting you to join us for something simple, intentional, and needed—Thursday evenings at Strive. Each week, we’re opening our doors for a quiet, welcoming space to read, write, reflect, and gently connect with others. No agenda, no pressure—just time to immerse yourself in books and creativity. Bring a book, a journal, or just yourself. Whether you come to sit in stillness, spark a conversation, or reconnect with your love of reading and writing, there’s a place for you here. Let’s make Thursdays a new tradition—a steady space for community, creativity, and care.
Thursday Evenings at Strive Bookstore
We’re inviting you to join us for something simple, intentional, and needed—Thursday evenings at Strive. Each week, we’re opening our doors for a quiet, welcoming space to read, write, reflect, and gently connect with others. No agenda, no pressure—just time to immerse yourself in books and creativity. Bring a book, a journal, or just yourself. Whether you come to sit in stillness, spark a conversation, or reconnect with your love of reading and writing, there’s a place for you here. Let’s make Thursdays a new tradition—a steady space for community, creativity, and care.
Thursday Evenings at Strive Bookstore
We’re inviting you to join us for something simple, intentional, and needed—Thursday evenings at Strive. Each week, we’re opening our doors for a quiet, welcoming space to read, write, reflect, and gently connect with others. No agenda, no pressure—just time to immerse yourself in books and creativity. Bring a book, a journal, or just yourself. Whether you come to sit in stillness, spark a conversation, or reconnect with your love of reading and writing, there’s a place for you here. Let’s make Thursdays a new tradition—a steady space for community, creativity, and care.
Thursday Evenings at Strive Bookstore
We’re inviting you to join us for something simple, intentional, and needed—Thursday evenings at Strive. Each week, we’re opening our doors for a quiet, welcoming space to read, write, reflect, and gently connect with others. No agenda, no pressure—just time to immerse yourself in books and creativity. Bring a book, a journal, or just yourself. Whether you come to sit in stillness, spark a conversation, or reconnect with your love of reading and writing, there’s a place for you here. Let’s make Thursdays a new tradition—a steady space for community, creativity, and care.
Thursday Evenings at Strive Bookstore
We’re inviting you to join us for something simple, intentional, and needed—Thursday evenings at Strive. Each week, we’re opening our doors for a quiet, welcoming space to read, write, reflect, and gently connect with others. No agenda, no pressure—just time to immerse yourself in books and creativity. Bring a book, a journal, or just yourself. Whether you come to sit in stillness, spark a conversation, or reconnect with your love of reading and writing, there’s a place for you here. Let’s make Thursdays a new tradition—a steady space for community, creativity, and care.
We Are Open to Stamp Passports!
Bring your 2026 Twin Cities Independent Bookstore Passport to get stamped or just come in to enjoy the vibe and shop.
Independent Bookstore Day
Join us for bookstore fun!
Meet our new children’s book author, Derek Francis and have him sign your copy of “Our First Bus Ride”
Enjoy the ChuckChunk Ice Cream pop-up
Search for the Libro Golden Ticket for a chance to win a year’s supply of audiobooks from Libro.fm!
Enter a raffle for a free tote
Thursday Evenings at Strive Bookstore
We’re inviting you to join us for something simple, intentional, and needed—Thursday evenings at Strive. Each week, we’re opening our doors for a quiet, welcoming space to read, write, reflect, and gently connect with others. No agenda, no pressure—just time to immerse yourself in books and creativity. Bring a book, a journal, or just yourself. Whether you come to sit in stillness, spark a conversation, or reconnect with your love of reading and writing, there’s a place for you here. Let’s make Thursdays a new tradition—a steady space for community, creativity, and care.
Thursday Evenings at Strive Bookstore
We’re inviting you to join us for something simple, intentional, and needed—Thursday evenings at Strive. Each week, we’re opening our doors for a quiet, welcoming space to read, write, reflect, and gently connect with others. No agenda, no pressure—just time to immerse yourself in books and creativity. Bring a book, a journal, or just yourself. Whether you come to sit in stillness, spark a conversation, or reconnect with your love of reading and writing, there’s a place for you here. Let’s make Thursdays a new tradition—a steady space for community, creativity, and care.
Thursday Evenings at Strive Bookstore
We’re inviting you to join us for something simple, intentional, and needed—Thursday evenings at Strive. Each week, we’re opening our doors for a quiet, welcoming space to read, write, reflect, and gently connect with others. No agenda, no pressure—just time to immerse yourself in books and creativity. Bring a book, a journal, or just yourself. Whether you come to sit in stillness, spark a conversation, or reconnect with your love of reading and writing, there’s a place for you here. Let’s make Thursdays a new tradition—a steady space for community, creativity, and care.
National Black Bookstore Day Celebration
Stop in and help us celebrate with cake & community
MAYOR FREY WILL PRESENT US WITH THE OFFICIAL PROCLAMATION, DECLARING TODAY AS NATIONAL BLACK BOOKSTORE DAY IN MINNEAPOLIS
The rich cultural heritage of the United States has been profoundly shaped by Black storytellers, scholars, publishers, and entrepreneurs who have preserved and shared knowledge through literature and community spaces. Celebrating the first annual National Black Bookstore Day on April 7 is an opportunity to honor the legacy, resilience, and ongoing contributions of Black-owned bookstores—both locally and across the country.
Book Talk with Randal M. Jelks
About the Book
With care and no-holds-barred insight, My America removes the veneer of respectability often placed on Hughes's work and life to reveal his political adeptness. In a world threatened by fascism, Hughes's writing wasn't afforded the luxury of subtlety. He made a spiritual and political decision to stand on the side of the oppressed. He believed art should be practiced for the sake of justice. And democracy can be practiced with joy.
Langston Hughes is one of the few American writers who consistently wrote about democracy from a joyous perspective, and My America explores how his works speak to the political anxieties and crises we face today. Jelks deftly examines the themes in Hughes's work, including creative expression, communal dignity, class struggle, and human suffering and what they mean for our inner well-being as democratic persons and political participants.
About the Author
Randal Maurice Jelks is a professor, documentary producer, and award-winning author. His writings have appeared in the Boston Review and the Los Angeles Review of Books, as well as blogs, journals, newspapers, and other periodicals. He is the coeditor of the academic journal American Studies.
Website: randalmauricejelks.com
Substack: Notes from the Black Bottom
Instagram: @drjelks
About Angela Ajayi
Angela Ajoyi’s story “Galina” appeared in Fifth Wednesday Journal and won the 2017 PEN/Robert J. Dau Short Story Prize for Emerging Writers. Her essays, short stories, and book reviews have appeared in Literary Hub, The Los Angeles Review of Books, Pleiades, and the Minnesota Star Tribune, where she was a contributing book critic. Everything is Freedom, her debut novel-in-stories, is forthcoming from Forest Avenue Press in 2027. She live in Minneapolis.
Book Release & Signing with Christopher S. Dennis, PHD
NOTE: ENTER THE MEDICAL ARTS BUILDING AT THE 9TH STREET DOOR (74 S. 9TH ST. IS ABOVE THE DOOR)
ABOUT THE BOOK
Lonely Graduation: The Journey After the Milestone by Christopher S. Dennis, PhD, is a powerful meditation on what comes after success. Blending memoir, research, and the lived experiences of high-achieving individuals, the book gives voice to an ordinary but under-discussed emotional reality: the profound loneliness that can follow significant accomplishments, especially among first-generation graduates, leaders of color, and others navigating transitions without inherited roadmaps. (Excerpt from the Lonely Graduation website: https://www.campusculturegroup.com/lonelygraduation.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dr. Christopher S. Dennis is an author, educator, and leadership consultant whose work sits at the intersection of ambition, belonging, and the emotional cost of achievement. A national expert in human-centered governance and leadership transitions, he helps individuals and institutions navigate what he calls "Lonely Graduation", the quiet, disorienting moment after success when purpose must be redefined.
Book Talk with Ralph Remington
Please join us when author, Ralph Remington returns to Minneapolis to discuss his debut book, Penetrating Whiteness.
Learn more about Ralph Remington at @RemingtonRalph on Instagram, @ralphRemington on Facebook.
Book Launch for "Our First Bus Ride"
Mark your calendars - we will send reminders and updates about the launch of Derek Francis’ new children’s book, Our First Bus Ride.
African Storytelling with Dr. Joseph L. Mbele
Join us for an enchanting storytelling experience with Dr. Joseph L. Mbele! Through lively tales and laughter, Dr. Mbele will share African stories that delight all ages while celebrating the beauty of connection across cultures. Bring the whole family for an afternoon of fun, learning, and community!
Note: PLEASE ENTER THE BUILDING ON THE 9TH STREET SIDE - WE ARE ON THE MAIN FLOOR OF THE MEDICAL ARTS BUILDING
Seeds for Growth
Join Neighborhood Development Center and Huntington Bank at Midtown Global Market, 920 East Lake Street, Minneapolis, MN
For Small Business Seeds For Growth! This event is focused on elevating local professionals and business owners to the next phases of their journey. This is a dynamic, fun event full of networking, a panel discussion, valuable resource tables, free headshots, pitch workshops, and more.
Children's Storytime
Bring the children to the bookstore and enjoy storytime with us. The children will receive a free copy of the picture book, Together, United. We love reading and sharing books!
"With My People" Book Talk and Panel Discussion
A memoir of hard-fought lessons and the price for justice.
Using Pulphus’s account of events and notes to students, With My People reveals how youth can navigate setbacks to resist state violence and create opportunities for justice to prevail.
Panel Discussion will include: Author, Jonathan Pulphus, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, Dr. Jaden Janak, and moderator, Mary Taris
Jonathan Pulphus (he/him) is an equity advocate and organizer. He is from St. Louis, Missouri, and graduated from Sain Louis University in 2017 with a BA in African American Studies and a minor in Women and Gender Studies. While in attendance, he was awarded the James D. Collins Award for academic excellence and the Jamala Rogers Young Visionary Award for community service. Pulphus’s committment to service and organizing helped lead to the signing of the Clock Tower Accords, an agreement from SLU to work and equity. He served as the president of Sain Louise University’s Black Student Alliance and was cofounder of Tribe X, a community organization.
Source: https://www.broadleafbooks.com/store/author/9132/Jonathan-Pulphus
Thought of Writing a Book?
Have you ever dreamed of writing a book? ✨
Now is the time to turn that dream into reality. Join Mary Taris, founder of Strive Publishing, and Torrion Amie, author and educator, for a free workshop that breaks down what it truly takes to get your book written.
This hands-on session will equip you with practical strategies, insider insights, and the confidence to finally move from idea to finished manuscript.
📅 Seats are limited—RSVP today and take the first step toward becoming a published author! Enter at the 9th Street door.
25th Anniversary Mental Health Education Conference
Strive Bookstore is honored to participate in the upcoming Mental Health Education Conference on Sunday, October 19, 2025, at Temple Israel in Minneapolis. This free community event marks 25 years of learning and dialogue around the importance of mental health.
We’re especially excited to serve as the bookseller for keynote speaker Melody Moezzi, award-winning author and mental health advocate. We’ll have two of her powerful titles available for purchase: Haldol and Hyacinths: A Bipolar Life and The Rumi Prescription.
Join us for a day of resources, inspiration, and community connection—and take advantage of this free opportunity to deepen your understanding of mental wellness.
✨ Save the date: October 19, 2025 | Temple Israel, Minneapolis
We look forward to seeing you there!
Book Talk and Signing
“It is easy to find many books and articles that promote social-emotional learning in schools. It si rare, however, to find a book with the breadth and depth of understaning of the topic that Jit Kunda displays in Duty of Care.”
"When We Free the World" Film Screening
At Strive Bookstore, our commitment goes beyond the walls of our shop. Along with hosting author visits, book clubs, and workshops right here in the store, we also support events out in the community—promoting them, participating in them, and showing up where stories and connection matter most. From resource fairs to conferences to neighborhood celebrations, we’re proud to bring the joy of books and diverse voices into spaces that strengthen our community.
24 The Book: Reading and Musical Event
“On February 24, 2022, russian President vladimir putin ordered a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Nearly 6 million refugees have fled the Ukraine and are spread across Europe, according to the UNHCR, the United Nations Refugee Agency. An additional 8 million Ukrainians have been displaced within the country as of May 2022, and those numbers continue to grow. It is estimated that 90% of Ukrainian refugees are women and children.
The number 24 has become fatal for the Ukrainian nation.”
A Creative Multigenre Reading
Join us for this free event at Strive Bookstore. We will share excerpts from the writing we have been working on in the fresh eyes collective and brown noise writing communities.
Please enter the Medical Arts building at the 9th Street door (74 S. 9th St.)
"The 9" Book Launch Party
Join us after work for this exciting book launch and meet & greet with local author, Tyra L. Nelson.
Earth Seed Film Screening
What is EARTH SEED?
Led by People’s Kitch Collective (PKC), their focus on art and activism as a food-centered political education project, is based in Oakland/East Bay Ohlone Land. The project is rooted in Octabia Butler’s Parables series and the legacy of the Black Panther Party for Self Defense, EARTH SEED enacts radical hospitality as a survival practice. It does so by deepening our relationships with BIPOC activists, artists, educators, farmers, youth, and elders. EARTH SEED centers a pilgrimage through California from present-day Los Angeles to Medocino Woodlands from March - June 2023. PKC will visit with people and places building models for survival and our collective future.
The People’s Kitchen Collective
People’s Kitchen Collective (PKC) works at the intersection of art and activism as a food-centered political education project. Based in Oakland, California, our creative practices reflect the diverse histories and backgrounds of our crew. Written in our families’ recipes are the maps of our migrations and the stories of our resilience. It is from this foundation that we create immersive experiences that honor the shared struggles of our people. We believe in radical hospitality as a strategy to address the urgent social issues of our times.
Book Signing with Local Author
Join author C. Veronica Dennis for the celebration of her newest novel, Gladiator Wives - a thrilling, dramatic, and emotionally rich story about five couples navigating love, betrayal, and redemption in today’s complex world.
Author & Illustrator Event: Kid Edition
Join us for the Author & Illustrator Event: Kid Edition at Midtown Global Market on August 2 from 12–3 PM!
Meet 24 talented authors and illustrators, enjoy fun interviews, and celebrate the magic of children’s literature.
Street and ramp parking available (ramp access via Lake St & 10th Ave). Don’t miss this family-friendly event!
Big Honking Truck Parade
Join us for the Big Honking Truck Parade—a fun-filled evening featuring over 20 trucks, cars, and boats, including police cruisers, fire trucks, snow plows, garbage trucks, and vintage fire engines from the Minnesota Fire Engine Club! The Marketplace opens at 4 PM, where you'll find the Strive Bookstore table (outside on 8th and Nicollet) stocked with great "truck books" for children of all ages. The parade kicks off at 6 PM on Nicollet Mall, followed by a chance for kids to explore the trucks, snap photos, enjoy treats, and soak up the joyful downtown vibes until 8 PM!