Sunday, January 04, 2009

Bookstores

DH and I go to a bookstore at least once a week. During the holidays, we went more often than that. Have you noticed the decline in selection lately? If you read book reviews in a variety of magazines, or listen to NPR you wonder if anybody at Barnes & Noble HW, or Borders have any awareness of those at all. It seems to me that BN and Borders only respond to advertising budgets and/or the "best seller lists"... which are so often the lowest common denominator in sales.

So I have a new resolution: to make friends with my local librarians who DO read reviews and know what's what aside from what has the big "blockbuster" ad budget. And to the extent possible, I will buy blockbusters "used" and special books "new" to do my tiny bit towards waking up editors and publishers.

1 comment:

Pippa * Jeanne said...

This is absolutely beautiful!

Down here in South Africa the book stores are well (& expensively) stocked, but the libraries seem to run dry. In fact, many libraries have closed down, which is a sad loss to any book worm like me.

(: Pippa
Pippa's Porch