tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post6103358932462187082..comments2024-01-16T03:42:46.705-05:00Comments on The Downward Spiral: Book Store BluesBill Hickshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17551954408189665078noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-12194339115137762522012-01-24T11:30:35.484-05:002012-01-24T11:30:35.484-05:00Soon books won’t be what people need
To survive, l...Soon books won’t be what people need<br />To survive, let alone succeed;<br />While that’s pretty bad, <br />What’s even more sad<br />Is when no one will know how to read.BenjaminTheDonkeyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18304901070197940843noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-82551955774694662862012-01-22T01:40:22.403-05:002012-01-22T01:40:22.403-05:00Saddest piece yet. But so true. I still remember H...Saddest piece yet. But so true. I still remember Horizon Books in Traverse City, Mich. I spent hours there and at the library. Gone all gone. Nobody reads anymore. Ray Bradburys Farinheit 451 has finally come true. But its all been done digitally. What a dark day.defshepardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01029515057003737645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-90508570138614138322012-01-21T09:06:01.603-05:002012-01-21T09:06:01.603-05:00@Anon - I'll just bet James Kunstler would LOV...@Anon - I'll just bet James Kunstler would LOVE your town. :)Bill Hickshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17551954408189665078noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-67247768876673405952012-01-21T04:50:21.659-05:002012-01-21T04:50:21.659-05:00Is Orwell's 1984 a popular donwload book, I wo...Is Orwell's 1984 a popular donwload book, I wonder? <br />Irony of ironies if it was.Paulnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-3604466003648750522012-01-20T23:54:52.154-05:002012-01-20T23:54:52.154-05:00Yes, where I live, as Barnes & Noble closed, a...Yes, where I live, as Barnes & Noble closed, a tattoo parlor opened not a mile away. Today there are no bookstores in town, but there are two thriving tattoo parlors. That about sums it up, I think.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-17626736720727481662012-01-20T18:54:01.383-05:002012-01-20T18:54:01.383-05:00Great comments, everybody. Clearly this is an iss...Great comments, everybody. Clearly this is an issue that touches a nerve with us book lovers.Bill Hickshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17551954408189665078noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-82603937158601946752012-01-20T16:45:45.750-05:002012-01-20T16:45:45.750-05:00i think books will survive. i agree with alan moo...i think books will survive. i agree with alan moore: <br /><br />"I just tend to have quite a lot of faith in the book itself as the publishing world equivalent of a shark. Sharks have not evolved in millions and millions of years simply because they haven’t had to. They were pretty much perfect to start with. And I feel the same way about books. I doubt that published books are going to go anywhere any time soon."<br /><br />from an interesting interview at http://www.honestpublishing.com/news/honest-alan-moore-interview-part-1-publishing-and-kindle/g.brazelhttp://ehrlum.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-91606494136825753752012-01-20T14:35:24.128-05:002012-01-20T14:35:24.128-05:00Reminds me of this Penny-Arcade comic -
http://ww...Reminds me of this Penny-Arcade comic -<br /><br />http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2009/3/9/Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-87920188031945627562012-01-20T14:11:29.520-05:002012-01-20T14:11:29.520-05:00DS downloads light reading onto his phone, but buy...DS downloads light reading onto his phone, but buys print copies of things he wants to make sure to have long-term.<br /><br />I don't buy e-books, so would welcome hearing from educated readers who do, whether or not they're edited as well as print titles.Thrivalistanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-26451907180972496922012-01-20T12:50:26.240-05:002012-01-20T12:50:26.240-05:00Bill, it's very sad news to read about the dem...Bill, it's very sad news to read about the demise of the US book store. This is one issue where I am happy to report Ireland is not following this trend (not yet anyway). While book sales are down, by 5.6% in 2010 (http://www.askaboutwriting.net) and 10% in 2011 (http://www.irishpublishingnews.com), this decline is less than the decline of the overall economy, so while the book market is taking a hit, it is holding up better than many other sectors. Some of this decline is presumably caused by ebooks. But every major town still has several book stores. And there are still lots of books stores in the major cities.<br /><br />Incidentally some months back I was thinking of buying an ebook reader, until you pointed out to me that in the future ebooks will vanish. Acting on your advise I am continuing to support my local book store.irishwildeyehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13653892284914268881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-48198800305311991462012-01-20T11:49:04.818-05:002012-01-20T11:49:04.818-05:00good one!good one!greatbluehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12272481895573751738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-365445362537136172012-01-20T11:42:10.340-05:002012-01-20T11:42:10.340-05:00@Gail - it's Brave New World - where rather th...@Gail - it's <b>Brave New World</b> - where rather then fascists burning books, no one would want to read one...starskeptichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02661141833059602897noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-1446877488226629332012-01-20T11:35:31.787-05:002012-01-20T11:35:31.787-05:00@John Andersen: I hope by 'community' libr...@John Andersen: I hope by 'community' library - you're not referring to the public libraries because those will be underfunded and eventually closed...starskeptichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02661141833059602897noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-4137214391410482242012-01-20T09:55:09.572-05:002012-01-20T09:55:09.572-05:00In the good old days the fascists used to burn boo...In the good old days the fascists used to burn books. Soon they can just evaporate them. Delete!<br /><br />The children's library in my locale is a disgrace. Why do they have computers with games on them? The kids fight over them, and the books just sit on the shelves.Gail Zawackihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01800944469843206253noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-12708175804541136102012-01-20T09:10:02.594-05:002012-01-20T09:10:02.594-05:00I worked for them for five years, but left just be...I worked for them for five years, but left just before the Nook gadget came on the scene. I saw the company become more and more micromanaged from NY, to the point of absurdity. I also watched not only the games/toys/puzzles take over floor space, but saw the science and history sections vanish to almost nothing, while such areas as religion and "religious fiction" expanded dramatically.Patrickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09809202917469138601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-85772063970546219192012-01-20T08:28:19.009-05:002012-01-20T08:28:19.009-05:00Hi Bill,
I'm an avid reader, but I haven't...Hi Bill,<br />I'm an avid reader, but I haven't bought a "NEW" book in years. I like reading non-fiction mostly science, engineering, math, etc. The price of new books in these subjects is >$50, one volume I especially liked was $200+ at B+N. Who can afford that? It's bad enough that I have to think about buying the used stuff at $10 - $25 each. <br />Is this our future, skulking around garage sales and junk stores looking for books cast off by someone else?<br />The real problem is it isn't secondhand books; they're just a symptom of our continuing economic decline.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-88062642556305759952012-01-20T08:23:56.284-05:002012-01-20T08:23:56.284-05:00Bill-this is the most incredibly sad piece I think...Bill-this is the most incredibly sad piece I think I've read here. Obviously I'm not discounting the death and constant warfare pieces, but that can only get worse in a world that doesn't even value basics like this. I know there is a tendency to look back and view the past with less than accurate blinders, but this is concrete. People are reading shit if they read at all and a lot of it is on digital devices that could disappear. This all makes me want to scream.<br />Kathleen<br />(sorry posted this as anonymous-when I try to log in it asks me all these extra things even though I thought I signed on...see how much I truly love electronic stuff...oh well)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-6544436213102465192012-01-20T07:56:47.234-05:002012-01-20T07:56:47.234-05:00Working at B&N as have for the past ten years ...Working at B&N as have for the past ten years is even more depressing. The sad part is books are selling as well as ever, but the idiots who run the company, aided by the fools in the financial press have determined then ebooks are the only focus of the store. Nevermind that without the damned Nook, the stores are still profitable. We have to dedicate staff to that damned nook table over staffing for book customer service. Hence we sell fewer books. Don't get me started on the devoting half the store to toys and games that no one buys. I'm coming to believe that the corporate flack you so love are actually as stupid as they sound, judging by the corporate bosses I've met. Sadly, it's not flack speak, it's how they talk and think. As long as they have a job, screw the regular workers.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-59065000875130888342012-01-20T07:34:31.075-05:002012-01-20T07:34:31.075-05:00My wife and I are on a mission to collect all of t...My wife and I are on a mission to collect all of the classics of literature, peer-reviewed history books, and practical how-to books we deem will be important in an energy constrained future. It is clear our home library combined with our community library will be essential reference material to carry on the business of living in a meaningful way.John Andersenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17222958547864356881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3862216000300765627.post-17473676534732356232012-01-20T07:05:59.428-05:002012-01-20T07:05:59.428-05:00Welcome to the new Dark Ages. This time, instead ...Welcome to the new Dark Ages. This time, instead of being overrun by a barbarian horde, we turn into one.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com