While I always enjoyed book stores, I fell in love with them while living in Denver; the Tattered Cover became like a second home for me. I do value my Kindle and e-books (something about taking my entire library with me everywhere, along with being able to get shorter books inexpensively), but I still think people should also own physical books as well, at least copies of their favorite tomes.
BTW: Back in 1997 Joss Whedon tackled this subject on 'Buffy' - in 45 seconds he managed to predict the future LOL
I can't disagree with the convenience of e-books back when my Nook was a constant presence. Easy to get a new book from the store, or library, easy to travel with, and generally a fair price. I guess ultimately what killed it for me was a combination of the tactile experience with real books, and the desire to see them on the shelf.
I love real books and lament the loss of so many corner bookstores. However, I must say that I'm as exclusively ebook these days, well as much as possible, simply because I don't have physical room to house more physical books. Perhaps, one day, when I'm rich beyond reason and have a mansion with a dedicated library space won't be an issue anymore. :D
I very much understand this problem. Twice in my adult life I've had to do major purges of books due to a lack of space, one purge quite extreme. I still think of, and miss some of those books. But, alas, reality!
Cameron, I couldn't agree more! I love, love book stores and have been an avid collector of old classics for years. I think you're right with the comeback. Enough of isolation, Amazon and the end of the cool book stores. With my 88 year old mum staying with us for a few months, her and I headed to Barnes & Noble too! It was exactly as you described. Full of beauty and happy people. We bought books for everyone as well, and our favorites were a few gorgeous poetry books in lovely hardcover with the old golden edges. Our daughter-in-law is homeschooling and asked for some really lovely books and I also gave her a leather bound set of original Charles Dickens classics I had found when I was very young. Knowing they will be treasured is why I got them. I, too, love to catchup online, like here, and read - but I think a home should be full of richness in books, art and music.
>>>Our daughter-in-law is homeschooling and asked for some really lovely books and I also >>>gave her a leather bound set of original Charles Dickens classics I had found when I was >>>very young.
What a truly wonderful gift. When I was really young, my grandmother gave me a beautiful set of books, educational but set in story. I devoured them then, and have held onto them my entire life. When my own granddaughters are the right age, I plan on passing the set down to them.
Yes! At first it was hummm 🤔 but when I saw the excitement I knew it was time to let them go. Not only did she try to read them A Christmas Carol straight from those books, (a bit too young to grasp the old English) my DIL found a children's live outdoor theater production of the story, drove almost two hours and they absolutely loved it. It's why we collect. In the hopes that someone will treasure them, like us, someday ♥️✨
I hope it's a very special moment when you decide to let them go to your granddaughters too. ox
I've got two granddaughters now (and I think that will be all the grandchildren.) One is less than a year old, so too young to read. The other is older, and reads well, but isn't excited about reading, seeing it as more of a chore than anything else.
It took me some time to figure out why that is, but I think I have a handle on it now. I've read a number of books that her (private) school utilizes and provides, and in reading those books it's clear that the primary criteria for their selection is that they can't possibly offend anyone. This of course means that they are as dry and dull as dirt.
I can't blame the school for that, it is a sign of the times we live in, but it would certainly serve to dampen anyone's enthusiasm for reading. Had I read that stuff as a kid I never would have turned into a reader.
So, I'm working on fixing all of that now. Exposing her to good books with good story and interesting characters. I hope that it will allow her to develop a love of reading.
It's so discouraging to hear that - but it's the world we're in unfortunately. The greatest part of being a grandparent is that we can share our passions and hope it's "the special part of us" they will glean and take with them in their memory forever.
We have a hard story that God is putting back together (hence my reason for taking to writing a few years ago). My husband is a 50 year double bass player and I a pro photographer of many years. We both adore art in many forms. This is our heart and we share it with our grandchildren. Now at 7, 7.5, 5 and 4, we have grandchildren who adore reading, music and LOVE to draw, sketch. Our only grandson, who everyone thought would be 100% into sports, lives for reading and art. Our children share it with our grandchildren too, since that's how they grew-up - but it's not like they fully appreciated us until "a little bit" presently. There's a bit of wokeness involved in one section of our family and a complete 180 with a holistic family. We are just here loving them right where they are at. Watching them live their lives and learn. I love it.
I think if I was a school administrator, selecting books in 2024 would be an effort done in terror. It seems that almost everyone runs around today looking for something in which to take offense. But, of course characters are what make books interesting, and a character designed to offend no one is going to be a bland character indeed.
I agree wholeheartedly that passing down our loves, our passions, is one of the best things we can do as grandparents. Sometimes the little ones will come to share our joys, sometimes not, but being able to expose them to what we love widens their worlds, and that is so very important.
I read voraciously as a kid but inexplicably quit reading until a few years ago. Now I love scouring bookstores for books I’d like to read. I love the feel of the pages and the ability to mark passages and look through my library. And I love when I acquire a pre loved book that someone left notes in. Thank you for this enjoyable read, and I hope you are right, that books and bookstores are making a come back.
Thank you, I'm glad you liked the post! I really do hope that a comeback is underway, I'd love to have a new bookstore in my town, and a good used one as well.
B&N, Borders, etc.. Big box stores that destroyed local small business book stores. They curated the same thing, lacked variety, and turned reading into going out to get coffee.
Amazon, Kindle, eReaders... Pretty much hurting B&N, pushed Borders to close, and made being a generic big box store almost impossible... And that's a good thing. They even made a movie about how evil the big book box stores are (You've Got Mail).
Enter the pop up mom and pop little specialty book stores that are starting to pop up again. Few and far between, but coming back. And that's a good thing.
If anything, this is a reset that is happening. Hopefully those small mom and pop shops keep popping up and spreading and people go to them. I won't be sad to see the end of the corpo boom store.
I was in a B&N and a Booksamillion last week and it was bad. More toys and knickknacks than books. Not a single Hunter S. Thompson book in either of them. And I'm not sure why all of the fantasy titles seem to now being using the same type of art but it's all looks the same.
Undoubtedly you are right, the big box places wiped out the independents that I loved when I was young. And they never were a good substitute. Then got wiped out by Amazon in turn.
But, I certainly hope we see a resurgence of independents. I've not seen that happening here yet, but I'm really glad to know that they are slowly coming back in your corner of the world!
My experience in my local B&N recently was different from yours. It did have a massive selection of books, and minimal knickknacks. At least to my eye. But, that could well be expectations. I've been so long without a good bookstore, my standards might well be in the toilet now. 😁
Thanks for the reminder about You've Got Mail! I loved that movie, will have to watch it again.
We travel often in the summer and fall and I times find ourselves in Montana. When heading west out of Missoula there is a wide spot on I-90 that has a fantastic used book store. It is the kind of store that when there is no more room on the shelves the books stack up in boxes in the aisle. I can dig for hours there. I look mostly for three areas of interest, ham radio, freemasonry, and the occult. I rarely buy new books unless I can't find a title any place else. We always look for thrift stores when traveling as many times they don't know the value of a book and I find hard to find titles for pennies. My office has shelves that cover one entire wall with 7 shelves, over 300 books on freemasonry, 100 books on the occult, some fiction like Clancy, and many historical books, particularly on JFK assassination and other presidents. I have a recliner in my office so I can relax and read. As the old TV commercial used to say, "Reading is elementary."
I also manage to find quite a few treasured books in thrift stores. They are an excellent source. My favorite ever was decades ago, a most excellent used bookstore in downtown Everett (when downtown was dead, so rents were really low) I swear they had everything, and the father/daughter who ran it seemed to know where everything was, despite the apparent disorganization.
While I always enjoyed book stores, I fell in love with them while living in Denver; the Tattered Cover became like a second home for me. I do value my Kindle and e-books (something about taking my entire library with me everywhere, along with being able to get shorter books inexpensively), but I still think people should also own physical books as well, at least copies of their favorite tomes.
BTW: Back in 1997 Joss Whedon tackled this subject on 'Buffy' - in 45 seconds he managed to predict the future LOL
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_M108B3mdY
I can't disagree with the convenience of e-books back when my Nook was a constant presence. Easy to get a new book from the store, or library, easy to travel with, and generally a fair price. I guess ultimately what killed it for me was a combination of the tactile experience with real books, and the desire to see them on the shelf.
Thanks for the link, I'd never watched Buffy.
I love real books and lament the loss of so many corner bookstores. However, I must say that I'm as exclusively ebook these days, well as much as possible, simply because I don't have physical room to house more physical books. Perhaps, one day, when I'm rich beyond reason and have a mansion with a dedicated library space won't be an issue anymore. :D
I very much understand this problem. Twice in my adult life I've had to do major purges of books due to a lack of space, one purge quite extreme. I still think of, and miss some of those books. But, alas, reality!
Cameron, I couldn't agree more! I love, love book stores and have been an avid collector of old classics for years. I think you're right with the comeback. Enough of isolation, Amazon and the end of the cool book stores. With my 88 year old mum staying with us for a few months, her and I headed to Barnes & Noble too! It was exactly as you described. Full of beauty and happy people. We bought books for everyone as well, and our favorites were a few gorgeous poetry books in lovely hardcover with the old golden edges. Our daughter-in-law is homeschooling and asked for some really lovely books and I also gave her a leather bound set of original Charles Dickens classics I had found when I was very young. Knowing they will be treasured is why I got them. I, too, love to catchup online, like here, and read - but I think a home should be full of richness in books, art and music.
>>>Our daughter-in-law is homeschooling and asked for some really lovely books and I also >>>gave her a leather bound set of original Charles Dickens classics I had found when I was >>>very young.
What a truly wonderful gift. When I was really young, my grandmother gave me a beautiful set of books, educational but set in story. I devoured them then, and have held onto them my entire life. When my own granddaughters are the right age, I plan on passing the set down to them.
Yes! At first it was hummm 🤔 but when I saw the excitement I knew it was time to let them go. Not only did she try to read them A Christmas Carol straight from those books, (a bit too young to grasp the old English) my DIL found a children's live outdoor theater production of the story, drove almost two hours and they absolutely loved it. It's why we collect. In the hopes that someone will treasure them, like us, someday ♥️✨
I hope it's a very special moment when you decide to let them go to your granddaughters too. ox
I've got two granddaughters now (and I think that will be all the grandchildren.) One is less than a year old, so too young to read. The other is older, and reads well, but isn't excited about reading, seeing it as more of a chore than anything else.
It took me some time to figure out why that is, but I think I have a handle on it now. I've read a number of books that her (private) school utilizes and provides, and in reading those books it's clear that the primary criteria for their selection is that they can't possibly offend anyone. This of course means that they are as dry and dull as dirt.
I can't blame the school for that, it is a sign of the times we live in, but it would certainly serve to dampen anyone's enthusiasm for reading. Had I read that stuff as a kid I never would have turned into a reader.
So, I'm working on fixing all of that now. Exposing her to good books with good story and interesting characters. I hope that it will allow her to develop a love of reading.
It's so discouraging to hear that - but it's the world we're in unfortunately. The greatest part of being a grandparent is that we can share our passions and hope it's "the special part of us" they will glean and take with them in their memory forever.
We have a hard story that God is putting back together (hence my reason for taking to writing a few years ago). My husband is a 50 year double bass player and I a pro photographer of many years. We both adore art in many forms. This is our heart and we share it with our grandchildren. Now at 7, 7.5, 5 and 4, we have grandchildren who adore reading, music and LOVE to draw, sketch. Our only grandson, who everyone thought would be 100% into sports, lives for reading and art. Our children share it with our grandchildren too, since that's how they grew-up - but it's not like they fully appreciated us until "a little bit" presently. There's a bit of wokeness involved in one section of our family and a complete 180 with a holistic family. We are just here loving them right where they are at. Watching them live their lives and learn. I love it.
I think if I was a school administrator, selecting books in 2024 would be an effort done in terror. It seems that almost everyone runs around today looking for something in which to take offense. But, of course characters are what make books interesting, and a character designed to offend no one is going to be a bland character indeed.
I agree wholeheartedly that passing down our loves, our passions, is one of the best things we can do as grandparents. Sometimes the little ones will come to share our joys, sometimes not, but being able to expose them to what we love widens their worlds, and that is so very important.
I read voraciously as a kid but inexplicably quit reading until a few years ago. Now I love scouring bookstores for books I’d like to read. I love the feel of the pages and the ability to mark passages and look through my library. And I love when I acquire a pre loved book that someone left notes in. Thank you for this enjoyable read, and I hope you are right, that books and bookstores are making a come back.
Thank you, I'm glad you liked the post! I really do hope that a comeback is underway, I'd love to have a new bookstore in my town, and a good used one as well.
Me too! Fingers crossed.
Think of it this way...
B&N, Borders, etc.. Big box stores that destroyed local small business book stores. They curated the same thing, lacked variety, and turned reading into going out to get coffee.
Amazon, Kindle, eReaders... Pretty much hurting B&N, pushed Borders to close, and made being a generic big box store almost impossible... And that's a good thing. They even made a movie about how evil the big book box stores are (You've Got Mail).
Enter the pop up mom and pop little specialty book stores that are starting to pop up again. Few and far between, but coming back. And that's a good thing.
If anything, this is a reset that is happening. Hopefully those small mom and pop shops keep popping up and spreading and people go to them. I won't be sad to see the end of the corpo boom store.
I was in a B&N and a Booksamillion last week and it was bad. More toys and knickknacks than books. Not a single Hunter S. Thompson book in either of them. And I'm not sure why all of the fantasy titles seem to now being using the same type of art but it's all looks the same.
Undoubtedly you are right, the big box places wiped out the independents that I loved when I was young. And they never were a good substitute. Then got wiped out by Amazon in turn.
But, I certainly hope we see a resurgence of independents. I've not seen that happening here yet, but I'm really glad to know that they are slowly coming back in your corner of the world!
My experience in my local B&N recently was different from yours. It did have a massive selection of books, and minimal knickknacks. At least to my eye. But, that could well be expectations. I've been so long without a good bookstore, my standards might well be in the toilet now. 😁
Thanks for the reminder about You've Got Mail! I loved that movie, will have to watch it again.
We travel often in the summer and fall and I times find ourselves in Montana. When heading west out of Missoula there is a wide spot on I-90 that has a fantastic used book store. It is the kind of store that when there is no more room on the shelves the books stack up in boxes in the aisle. I can dig for hours there. I look mostly for three areas of interest, ham radio, freemasonry, and the occult. I rarely buy new books unless I can't find a title any place else. We always look for thrift stores when traveling as many times they don't know the value of a book and I find hard to find titles for pennies. My office has shelves that cover one entire wall with 7 shelves, over 300 books on freemasonry, 100 books on the occult, some fiction like Clancy, and many historical books, particularly on JFK assassination and other presidents. I have a recliner in my office so I can relax and read. As the old TV commercial used to say, "Reading is elementary."
I also manage to find quite a few treasured books in thrift stores. They are an excellent source. My favorite ever was decades ago, a most excellent used bookstore in downtown Everett (when downtown was dead, so rents were really low) I swear they had everything, and the father/daughter who ran it seemed to know where everything was, despite the apparent disorganization.
I echo everything you say here! I miss bookstores and have to drive 40 miles to Barnes and Noble!
Maybe, with a bit of luck, brick and mortar bookstores can take off again, leading to a flourishing of independent bookstores around the country!
And a report from CNN:
https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/16/business/barnes-and-noble-is-back-again/index.html
More on the changes at Barnes & Noble from Ted Gioria this afternoon:
https://www.honest-broker.com/p/in-2025-your-boss-will-launch-a-podcast
Scroll down a bit to find it.