We’re all about supporting local this holiday season and beyond, and this upcoming book sale is the perfect opportunity to do just that. Hosted by Vancouver’s first Indigenous-owned bookstore, Massy Books, the annual sale spotlights underrepresented voices in B.C., offering an array of great reads for an even better cause. What’s more, shoppers will be able to peruse the sale’s largest collection of new titles yet, thanks to the donations of Massy Books and BC Yukon Book Prizes.

Co-organized by Parents for Palestine, the sale supports Gazan and Indigenous families with books priced between $1 and $5 each.

According to Massy Books owner and founder, Patricia Massy, half of the proceeds will be donated to the National Zakat Foundation, which provides relief to Gaza evacuees coming to Canada, with the other half supporting two independent GoFundMes. The first raises funds to support the affected families of the grizzly bear attack on a class from the Acwsalcta School in Nuxalk Territory (Bella Coola).

The second will provide funeral costs and support to a grieving mother and the wider Lubicon Cree community, whose daughter, Jasmine, went missing in Whitefish, Alberta.

Vancouver’s first Indigenous-owned bookstore

It’s been just over a decade since Massy first started selling books in Vancouver, though she has 15 years of previous bookselling experience under her belt.

“I started selling books online to supplement my income while I was going to university,” explains Massy in an interview with Curiocity. “This turned into selling books at the Eastside Flea market on weekends, then to a temporary pop-up shop on Main and 5th, and now our permanent location at 229 East Georgia St., where we’ve been since 2018.”

When she opened her pop-up shop in 2017, Massy learned that her family had uncovered seven generations of booksellers. One was traced to a bookstore in Cork, Ireland, called Massey Books, and another in Dublin. The latter was even mentioned in a short story in James Joyce’s Dubliners!

“Learning this lineage made selling books feel destined,” Massy explains. “I understood that selling books was something I was meant to do.”

As a Nêhiyaw and Métis person, Massy rarely saw herself reflected in books growing up. In Massy Books, she not only sought to create a space that celebrated and amplified Indigenous voices, but one that brought attention to underserved communities across the globe.

This commitment led to co-founding the Indigenous Brilliance Reading Series, a collective rooted in centring Indigenous and Black stories, including work by Indigenous women, Two Spirit, and queer writers.

“Today, Massy Books is more than a bookstore. It’s a gathering space, an informal fundraising engine, and a community hub that brings attention to the issues that deserve collective focus.”

Highly anticipated titles

It’s time to dive into the sale itself, which is coming up on Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, at Progress Lab 1422. Featuring “a few years’ worth of new books,” the sale will include a mix of Indigenous history books, memoirs, and more fiction and children’s books than it has ever had.

“BC Yukon Book Prizes donated new books several years ago for another sale we had, but nothing like the amount this year,” says Massy. “All books are in new condition.”

Below are just some of the sale’s most anticipated titles, according to Massy:

Other popular authors to look for include Amber Dawn, Canisa Lubrin, Cecily Nicholson, and Cathy Stonehouse.

In addition to hardcovers, there will be a massive collection of 50 folio books in slipcovers, also in new condition. The day of the sale, visitors can expect two storytime time slots for children in the morning and afternoon, as well as a bake sale.

Massy Books’ annual book sale will take place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Massy Books annual book sale

When: Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025
Time: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Where: 1422 William St. 
Cost: Free admission, books priced between $1 and $5 each

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Isabelle Vauclair

Staff Writer, Vancouver – Isabelle is a West Coast native with an appreciation for Vancouver’s natural landscape, patio scene, and community spaces. She loves to discover new hidden gems in her neighbourhood and share them with readers across the city.

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