Hey Books! opened in East Village on April 9, in time for National Independent Bookstore Day and the biggest weekend of the year for local readers: the San Diego Book Crawl. The small bookstore for new and used books joins 13 other independent stores across the county teaming up for the eighth annual event from Saturday, April 26 through Monday, April 28.

“Both me and Matthew have a background in independent bookstores in San Diego, and so we’re really excited to have all of the people who love crawling coming to our store,” said Anika Omark, who owns Hey Books! with Matthew Hein.

The book crawl’s goal is for readers to visit as many independent bookstores as possible, racking up prizes like patches and tote bags the more places they spend $10 at. Local artist Kaley McCabe designed stickers and other prizes while author and illustrator Susie Ghahremani designed the limited edition collectible pin for the fifth year in a row.

For the first time, Downtown San Diego has a participating bookstore in the crawl. Nearby Library Shop SD also participates, but the store at the San Diego Central Library’s ground floor sells reading accessories and knickknacks, not books.

“There was a time when Downtown San Diego had at least five bookstores. So we’re not just the bookstore for East Village. We’re also the bookstore for really Downtown San Diego,” Hein said. “San Diego is a real city. It should have a bookstore.”

Hein previously worked at the Book Catapult in South Park, another book crawl participant. Unlike Downtown, Uptown San Diego has several independent bookstores, including North Park’s remaining bookstore Verbatim where Omark worked at for years. It was Downtown’s lack of a bookstore that spurred the two to open their own endeavor.

“We just knew that this bookstore, Hey Books!, needed to happen and the area needed a bookstore,” Hein said.

There are a few bookstores near Downtown who participate in the book crawl: Hillcrest’s Bluestocking, Barrio Logan’s Libélula Books & Co. and Bay Books across the Coronado Bridge. Omark said the independent bookstore owners have worked together to put on the popular event while also supporting Hein and her as they open their new endeavor.

“There’s a lot of camaraderie,” she said. Outside of San Diego’s independent bookstore eco-system, East Village small business owners have also helped the pair, answering questions and providing encouragement.

Located at 921 E Street, Omark frequently hung out there while attending San Diego High School and kept returning in the intervening years. She was excited to add a bookshop to the area she considered her old stomping ground.

“We were looking at commercial real estate, and saw this building, and I said, ‘I know exactly where that is.’ I know the block. I love the block. It has a record store. It has a comic book store two blocks away. It has a couple of great restaurants,” Omark said.

The area attracts those who live and work in Downtown, Padres fans, tourists and more. All are welcome at the bookstore.

“As far as we have a mission, it would be that books are for everyone and we’re a bookstore for everyone,” Hein said.

Hey Books! is open Sunday through Thursday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

For information on Hey Books!, visit heybooksorelse.com.

To learn more about the San Diego Book Crawl, visit sdbookcrawl.com.