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Needless to say, I buy too many books. However, today my choice of buying from Amazon.com was confirmed.
I spent about ten minutes in Barnes and Noble this afternoon, waiting for husband CB to call me to pick him up. I cruised the mystery aisle and then decided to look in the fiction, poetry, and biography sections for books by May Sarton, especially after the two affirming comments by Jaliya that included quotes from her writings. There was not even one book of Sarton's anywhere.
Sometime last year our huge Barnes and Noble store was changed in its layout. About one/third of the store is dedicated to children's games and learning aids, probably because there is a large community of home-schoolers in our area. Another large section has cards, journals, and notecards as well as the large "on sale" area. It is disappointing that I can rarely find books I want in the remaining book shelves. Right at the front is large kiosk with a friendly person hawking the Nook, which does sound pretty cool with its new format of color and web-access. (There is also a Starbucks in the middle of the store.)
About 25 years ago I was excited that a Book Stop opened in Corpus Christi. This was a voluminous bookstore that offered discounts to its customers, much like Barnes and Noble still does. It was started by someone from Austin, TX, but it went out of business in the next decade sometime. Then Barnes and Noble moved into its space and eventually built a much larger store.
The only independent bookstore left in Corpus Christi is Rainbow Books, a children's bookstore run by an older ex-school librarian. It is wonderful to go in there and ask for her suggestions and recommendations. She knows about each and every thing she stocks. I have found some surprisingly wonderful little books for my granddaughter Avery there.
Otherwise, I am mostly an Amazon.com book customer. Plus, I am trying to use my public library more often, which is where I am sure I will find books by May Sarton. (They don't stock many theology books though.)
5 comments:
I don't buy as many books as I used to. And yes - the big box book stores, while they have some charms, are not great at large.(pardon the pun!)
I used to buy a lot of books when I used to make more, but now I do not. I do buy from Amazon when I buy books because I often get used copies of things... When doing this, especially if buying multiple books, it is often not cheaper to buy used. I get the free shipping discount if I spend over $25 on new, so I will play around with the numbers.
That said, I do like local bookstores and prefer to use local businesses. That there are so few local booksellers is a sad thing to me.
Thanks for commenting, Fran. At least, I buy less books than I used to, but still too many.
I am a big book buyer too and "Amazon One Click" is a downfall for me. Another thing I don't like about my local bookstores is the lack of customer service or their lack of knowledge.
I am desperately trying to declutter my books but too many times I have an emotional attachment to the books.
I've almost always lived in an area where having a B&N, or the like, was not an option. I soon became Amazon-friendly.
I opted for the kindle (not sure...maybe the nook would of been better with the new things there)...but I use that mostly for enjoyment reading.
If I am reading theology, even poetry, spiritual formation, spiritual direction, leadership, etc...I need to make and make comments.
There is an option for that in the kindle...but it is awkward and time-consuming.
When I lived in a larger city, I used the library quite a bit for books on CD when I traveled.
I am new to the "kindle world" having received one as a birthday gift. There are a lot of reasons I like it, but have only done "fun" reading on it. I agree with Purple, I like a "real" book when it comes to a book I I want to underline in and take notes in order to study.
So true, Purple. The library is a great place for books on cd. Borrowing books on tape was one way we made long distance trips more enjoyable with the kiddos.
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