January 2012

An article entitled “The Bookstore’s Last Stand,” appeared in the Sunday edition of The New York Times on January 29, 2012.  It chronicles the precarious situation of Barnes & Noble as it fights to survive.

I remember when Border’s went out of business, it gave me pause.  Although, I never like the fact that both Borders and Barnes & Noble wiped out a large number of independent book stores, I did like the discounted prices and the sheer volume of the books.  It’s just business – right?  That’s what we’re told.

Well, to live in a society with no book stores – what a travesty!

The article points out that the Nook has helped Barnes & Noble, (Borders didn’t have a e-reader).  I have a Kindle that I use when I’m on vacation, so I don’t have to bring a lot of heavy books with me.  In my mind, however, nothing – absolutely nothing, can ever replace a book.

Amazon, of course, is a serious threat to Barnes & Noble.  I buy from both Amazon and Barnes & Noble. I get some great used books from Amazon that you can’t get anywhere except the library.   I also download a few books from Amazon.  I go to Barnes & Noble at least once every other week.  I spend close to an hour or two browsing the books and magazines.  I always buy something, usually more than one.

I have a book club and I love to browse around Barnes & Noble looking for books to share with my friends.  I would never read some of the books I’ve read if I didn’t belong to a book club.  What would I do without a book store???

Amazon is great for some things – but clicking through the site just isn’t the same thing.  I want to see the book jacket, and open it, and read about the book.  I love the new smell of the book and how crisp it is to open.  There are so many other senses involved in an actual book store that don’t come into play online.

The publishing industry is starting to look like the music industry – post Napster era.  Maybe we’ll have to have an “American Novelist,” alongside of “Idol.”  How would new authors ever get published, and if they could get published, how would anyone find them.

Reading is my passion and this is distressing.  Maybe small independent book stores will come back into vogue again, or the only place to browse books will be the library.

What do you think?

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