Now through June 10, Alpenglow Sports is encouraging people to take part in its fourth annual Community Book Initiative. The month-long event highlights 21 books that were chosen by 10 respected community members who are admired for their environmental, mountain, and/or social ideals. This year, the book titles chosen are around the theme of “stewardship” and all the proceeds from these titles bought through Alpenglow Sports through June 10th will benefit the local nonprofit Clean Up the Lake.

Alpenglow Sports started the Community Book Initiative in 2021, during the pandemic. They had a window display of book titles in their Tahoe City store, and a line out the door of people waiting to get in since 6-ft. social distancing protocols were in place and only a few people were allowed into the store at one time.

“We overheard people talking about the books in the window display and noticed how they sparked dialogue and connection during this period of isolation,” says Alpenglow Sports Event Manager Stefanie Pyatt. She explains that they couldn’t host their regular Speaker Series during that time and after seeing the conversations people were having outside, realized that maybe this was a way to reignite those conversations in the community. In 2021, the waggle dance (a method in which female honeybees communicate) inspired the first theme of the Community Book Initiative. The 2022 theme was “resilience” and in 2023 it was “wanderlust”. In those previous years, the proceeds of the chosen books have benefitted other local nonprofits such as the Boys & Girls Club of North Lake Tahoe, the Tahoe City Friends of the Library, and the Little Free Library local chapter.

“I think it helped get ones [Little Free Libraries] in town and on the West Shore,” Pyatt adds. In 2022, Alpenglow Sports raised $741 from its sold books and last year they raised $1158. A week into this year’s Community Book Initiative, Alpenglow had already raised $335.

According to its website, this is why Alpenglow Sports chose “stewardship” as this year’s theme: “As we thought about what it means to be a vibrant, connected, and responsible community, stewardship immediately came to mind. We see this theme as an opportunity to explore all of the benefits of giving back to our community; from self-growth and purpose, to improved environmental practices that protect this beautiful place we live in, to economic growth and development, to community support, and so much more.”

Some of the books on this year’s Community Book Initiative list include California Against the Sea by Rosanna Xia, Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy, Let My People Go Surfing by Yvon Chouinard (founder of Patagonia), and Ski Patrol Pups written and illustrated by locals Megan Butcher and Megan Jost. Thumb over a book title on the Alpenglow website and you’ll see who chose the title and can read about why they chose it.

When asked what her favorite book on the list is, Pyatt replies, “Calypso [by David Sedaris] is a light, fun, and introspective book. I want to read How to Do Nothing by Jenny Odell because I thought the writeup from Jessica [Lisagor] was a good one, I really connected to it.”

Lisagor lives in Olympic Valley and is into art, architecture, and the mountains. In an excerpt about why she chose How to Do Nothing as one of her book picks, she says, “Something I love about architecture is the presence of absence. At first, we often focus on the surfaces and solids, but as we move through space it’s really about the atmosphere of empty spaces between them. In How to Do Nothing, the author Jenny Odell makes the case for creating ‘negative space’ in our complicated, yet often unfulfilling digitally infused lives.

“When faced with today’s 24/7 online economy, we are pressured to either be productive, improving ourselves, or documenting ourselves at all times. In How to Do Nothing, Jenny Odell reminds us to take a much-needed pause (but not escape) in order to shift direction and make space and time for activism. This includes literal space, like finding an open space to gather, as well as headspace. Odell argues that our atomized app interactions don’t typically lead to effective community action without something more sensorial.”

To see all of the book picks and bios of those who recommended them, visit Alpenglow Sports online at https://alpenglowsports.com/pages/community-book-initiative or in person at 415 North Lake Tahoe Boulevard in Tahoe City, open Monday-Friday from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. and Saturday-Sunday from 9 a.m.-6 p.m.