Borders is closing for good!

[Winchester]

Originally Posted by katachtig

Bookstores are so great for discovering new books. There is an experience that isn't replicated with the e-books or with online ordering that I truly miss. Wandering around the stacks looking at dozens of book spines at the same time, taking a book down and randomly flipping through the pages to see if the book is what I want.

With e-books and Amazon, I can only preview what they want to show me. They steer me towards things I already have discovered. It is difficult to get around that.

And it's not just bookstores that only carry new books that are exciting. I love to spend hours at the Book Barn in Connecticut, just walking around and checking out all the different genres. The Book Barn and its two annexes sell used books. My GF and I will literally spend hours and hours there. It's an amazing place to visit.

There's a certain thrill from buying books that you don't get when buying e-books. At least, that's how I feel. Maybe that's why I love going to the library, too. I never know what I'm going to find.

 

[konstargirl]

This is heartbreaking..

 

[jcat]

Originally Posted by eternalrx

no one reads anymore

People still read, but not necessarily hardback or paperback books. A lot of people say that having a smartphone, e-book reader, tablet, laptop or netbook has actually led them to read more because they can carry a whole library around with them and also access scores and scores of free books.

 

[sneakymom]

I know. Sad. Though most books I only read once so I use the library more than anything. And hey- that's what I'm paying taxes for

I did buy one book through Amazon a few months back, but I had a $10 credit that needed to be used.

Cheryl

 

[MoochNNoodles]

This is sad. I love the bookstore smell...wish they could bottle it.

I have an e-reader but it's best used for fiction I think. When I need to study something it's just different reading it in a physical book. I still love browsing bookstores. You do find some interesting things. I've found the 'bestsellers' don't always appeal to me. I like to check the local section of the stores too. I've found some great things about my area or by people in my area Amazon sure isn't going to tell me about. But then with Amazon I've been able to purchase a friend's book when no big publishers have wanted to publish his books.

 

[ducman69]

Originally Posted by MoochNNoodles

This is sad. I love the bookstore smell...wish they could bottle it.

They do bottle it, available online of course.

The smell mostly comes from outgasing from the adhesive used for the binder. Ex of mine showed me all the crazy scents you can buy online from cigars to crayons to marijuana to play-doh. She would alternate between Mountain Dew and Dr Pepper lipgloss just for me for example, heh. Quite authentic actually!

So just buy some of that online, spray it on the back of your e-reader, and voila! If you're still not convinced, go to hulu.com and search "Hoarders" and you'll insist on ditching all your books and magazines for a Kindle or similar in no time!

 

[parsleysage]

Hmmm. Guess I'm a lone holdout who refuses to touch an e-reader. I like the feel of a book in my hand and turning the pages. It's also safer to take in the bathtub which is where I do a large portion of my reading.

 

[MoochNNoodles]

Originally Posted by Ducman69

They do bottle it, available online of course.

The smell mostly comes from outgasing from the adhesive used for the binder. Ex of mine showed me all the crazy scents you can buy online from cigars to crayons to marijuana to play-doh. She would alternate between Mountain Dew and Dr Pepper lipgloss just for me for example, heh. Quite authentic actually!

So just buy some of that online, spray it on the back of your e-reader, and voila! If you're still not convinced, go to hulu.com and search "Hoarders" and you'll insist on ditching all your books and magazines for a Kindle or similar in no time!

OOOOO! Playdough! Good stuff! I think I'll just give it another year or so and my daughter should be old enough to play with it! haha!

I have a kindle and I LOVE it. I read from it pretty much daily. I thought I'd hate it when they first came out. Then I saw a girl reading from one when I was in B&N one day. I still like a paper book from time to time, but the kindle is deffinitely good! Especially when we travel! Saves me a whole bag almost!

 

[jcat]

Originally Posted by Ducman69

If you're still not convinced, go to hulu.com and search "Hoarders" and you'll insist on ditching all your books and magazines for a Kindle or similar in no time!

That was the deciding factor for me. My husband was keeping track of approximately how many books I was accumulating, and would start throwing them out by the hundreds when I reached around 1,000. I still have several bookcases full, but once I got my Kindle I donated hundreds to an Anglican church here (English-speaking congregation), so we finally have some room.

One huge advantage of e-books is that it's getting easier to get foreign-language books. Ducman, I don't know if you've noticed yet, but now that amazon.de is selling the Kindle, amazon.com is selling German e-books.

 

[calvin&i]

I do have kindle and an ipad but I just have a romance with paper books and bookstores. I am in a profession where reading is the key and so I have to read a lot (had to read 450 books to take my prelim exams - that was a bit of a torture though), but I just love the feel of holding a book. Most of the books I have to read (non fictions) are not in the electronic form. Not a hoarder, but being in academia, I have and buy tons of books - one of our largest expenses, and they are neatly arranged in book shelves. Oh well - what can I say? I love books. They may be inconvenient, expecially when I have to carry dozens at and from the library and I have also contributed to the closing of book stores by ordering online. But I will be sad if this becomes a world with no books.

 

[trouts mom]

Chapters better never close down. I would die.

I need to be able to walk through a book store and pick the books up. I can't buy them online, or read them on a device...that is foreign to me!

 

[resqchick]

It is sad, I used to enjoy perusing the book stores, Borders and Barnes and Noble. Not just for books either-they have journals and other cool stuff.

I did get a Nookcolor (Barnes and Noble e-reader) for Christmas last year, and now I can carry all my books with me and I can borrow from the library as well. 5 books at a time for free. The Nookcolor has paid for itself 20 times over considering how many books I read a week.

I have donated most of my books to the church, and the local library.

 

[nerdrock]

I have a Nook (regular) and absolutely adore it, but we also have a used book store here (City Lights) that I frequent quite regularly. I absolutely adore the smell for old books and no matter how they "bottle" it, it's just not the same. I go there and just search through the book.

My boyfriend and I also travel about 10 hours north of us every year (at least once a year), to visit his family. There used to be a book store called The Highway Book Store that was right on our route from North Bay up to Timmins (somewhere in between there). Every time we'd stop there we'd spend at least $50 on books and what not but it closed this May, just before we left to come here this year (this past week). It was so sad to drive by where it was and know what there was no book store there to stop at and spend an hour or two just browsing and picking up what we wanted.

 

[konstargirl]

Originally Posted by parsleysage

Hmmm. Guess I'm a lone holdout who refuses to touch an e-reader. I like the feel of a book in my hand and turning the pages. It's also safer to take in the bathtub which is where I do a large portion of my reading.

Me too!!!

I rather do that than touch some e-reader thing.

 

[ava456]

it stinks, Borders was my favorite store! I hope Barnes & Noble stays around for a long time, but I guess paper books/magazines and CDs are slowly becoming extinct.

 

[feralvr]

Originally Posted by parsleysage

Hmmm. Guess I'm a lone holdout who refuses to touch an e-reader. I like the feel of a book in my hand and turning the pages. It's also safer to take in the bathtub which is where I do a large portion of my reading.

No, you are not alone! I LOVE the feel and smell of books

, I also refuse to use an e-reader. But I really think that is the way of the future

and I will be forced too someday, when I am real old

.

We are actually going in a little bit to Border's to check out the sales. I am SO bummed. Will miss you Border's.

 

[darlili]

I was at Borders today - while I love my public library, and my Kindle (and am looking anxiously to the day when I can borrow e-books to my Kindle - I think that's coming up soon, right?) and Amazon, I will miss Borders. I remember when they opened in Chicago - the idea of having chairs to sit in and browse, and a place to get coffee, and bathrooms!!! It was heaven. Now, Borders pretty much ran Krochs & Bretano's out of business here, but I was still sad, standing in line with my little stack of cat and other resource books in my arms. While I do love the Kindle, there really is something about leafing through a book that's just missing with an ebook.

I do keep thinking of Star Trek 2 - and Kirk's birthday present from Spock.

 

[feralvr]

OMG was it ever crowded!!!!!! I did pick up a few cat books and a book for my sister, inspirational. I am going to wait a few more days and see if they drop the percentage off. It was only 10% to 20% off on most books. Pet books were 30% off. I think it will go higher in the days to come. So I will be a vulture and keep watch

. Plan to load up on some books. Still such a shame

they are closing...

 

[darlili]

The cat books at the Wheaton IL store were already pretty picked over; it's a five minute drive for me so I'll probably stop by the next few weekends but I did go ahead and get the books I wanted most today. The lines were very long but the associates kept them moving very well.