Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve Jordan
Based on everyone I've ever talked to or heard from, having store personnel that engaged customers, discussed likes and dislikes, and recommended books based on that information, have been the most popular places for book buyers to go.
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For the independent bookstores that have survived, or those that held on the longest, that's been the key. They've been staffed with voracious, knowledgeable readers that liked nothing better than to talk about and recommend various books and authors.
I'm lucky, in that I pretty much live in that kind of environment now, but back in the day the staff was the criterion by which I chose my bookstores. There was a Little Professor store in Florida that was owned by a couple who were amazing--true book lovers. It kept me coming back, even though I drove past the new Books-a-Million to get there.
Reading may be solitary, but books are social nexus.