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The Daily Tar Heel

Unchained Tour supports local bookstores at Flyleaf

A hand-painted 1972 Bluebird bus will roll into town today, carrying a team of storytellers, including Neil Gaiman, author of “Coraline” and “Stardust.”

The bus is traveling across the southeast for the Unchained Tour, which supports local, independent bookstores.

Flyleaf Books on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard was instrumental in bringing the tour to Chapel Hill.

Featuring artists, musicians, writers and performers, the tour stops tonight at the Varsity Theatre on Franklin Street.

Four raconteurs — Gaiman, Edgar Oliver, Dawn Fraser and Peter Aguero — will tell their stories in front of a live audience at the sold-out event.

Aguero, a musician and storyteller, said that supporting independent bookstores is important, but there is another message behind the show.

“The more I travel, the more people are all the same,” he said. “The purpose of this is to unhook yourself and be with other people.”

He said his favorite part of performing is the exchange of energy between the performer and the audience — something that is not possible with a movie, computer or cellphone.

Aguero said the addition of Gaiman sets the tour apart from others he has done.

An award-winning author, Gaiman is known for his books, but he has also written an episode for the British sci-fi show “Doctor Who” that won a Hugo Award. He was also featured on an episode of “The Simpsons.”

Samita Wolfe, producer for the Unchained Tour, said Gaiman is the tour’s big name — though the other storytellers are no less interesting or exciting.

Jamie Fiocco, owner of Flyleaf, said she is happy to be a part of the Unchained Tour.

Although Fiocco has not seen the show yet, she is very excited for it, she said.

“I called other booksellers who thought it was great,” she said.

Fiocco said that in preparation for the tour bringing more people to Flyleaf, she has ordered extra books — including, but not limited to Gaiman’s.

“I ordered other books that were enjoyed — to go with the storytelling theme.”

Contact the desk editor at arts@dailytarheel.com.

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