Paul Castle is an author, artist, and influencer based in Seattle. Along with his husband Matt and his dog Mr. Maple, he makes daily videos about his experiences living in the city as a legally blind person. Usually, these are cute, showing funny pranks between the couple or highlighting the many skills his trained service dog can do. Sometimes, his videos stir up controversy, like when a local (unnamed) business denied Castle entrance because he had his seeing-eye dog with him.
However, one video released earlier this summer has caused fans across the internet to express outrage.
In June, Castle shared on his TikTok page that copies of his new children's book, The Secret Ingredient, were returned to him by a bookstore that had previously expressed its intent to sell copies. Castle posted a video in which he began crying after a text-to-speech device read the email response from the store.
"We have returned the boxes to you," the device read aloud. "While I think your book is very charming, it's just not something we can carry in our store at this time." The message clarified that the person who had originally placed the order for the books was not "up to speed on the policies" of the store.
The Secret Ingredient is a sequel to Castle's first children's book The Pengrooms, a story about two male penguins getting married. The sequel showed the titular Pengrooms delivering special cakes to all their friends, which included many diverse families, and ended with the couple adopting a baby penguin.
The returned books also included a box of "Pengroom" plushies.
Castle fully refunded the entire purchase and said that while he was disappointed in the experience, he did not fully fault the store: "She informed me that my book's message did not align with the store. That hurts, but [she has] every right to make that decision, just as I have every right to create these stories."
"I was supposed to do an in-person reading and signing, which is why they ordered so many books...," Castle explained. "The person who initially reached out no longer works for the company, and that was when [this other person] entered the picture, and that was who sent the email to me."
The woman who originally made the book deal for the store with Castle expressed that she was a big fan of his and read his book to her son every week.
While Castle and his husband admitted to feeling "heartbroken" after the books were returned, they posted an update a week later with good news: the returned books were immediately sold to fans via online orders. "The response from all of you has been so mind-blowing and surreal. We sold out," Castle said in his video response. "These are immediately going back out. From the bottom of my heart, I can't thank you enough."
The canceled book event was the third book signing Castle had scheduled for the summer. He previously sold two hundred copies to a Barnes & Noble in Seattle, where he held an event and one hundred at Charlie's Queer Books, which also bought 50 stuffed Pengrooms.
"The books are now going to people who want them, and it just feels so right in my heart," he said. "I truly believe stories like this are incredibly important, and after this weekend I know I'm not alone. I will cherish this memory for a very long time."
The Secret Ingredient is now restocked and available at https://Paulcastlestudio.com, along with The Pengrooms and original art created by the couple.
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