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You'd think in a city of that size a lone bookstore could do well, even with all the factors playing against them these days.

the newspaper article wrote:The B. Dalton store was never a community destination with comfy couches and an espresso bar, but its closing will create a literary void in a city with a high illiteracy rate.

Surely that is part of the problem.

If there is a high illiteracy rate there are fewer customers locally.

I live in Ealing which has a population of about 300,000. I don't think there are more than a couple of bookshops. (Not counting places like WH Smiths which sell a limited range of books.) However the rest of London is easily accessible.

I used to live in Richmond, which is smaller (170,000_ but richer than Ealing. It had at least five bookshops including a big Waterstones, two secondhand bookshops, an independent and a specialist children's bookshop.

I hate to say that this is a sign of things to come, but as we move forward into a digital world it is not suprising to see book sotres closing. It sucks because I ahve such fond memories from my childhood of going to boarders, buying an orangena or whatever they are and reading.

I don't think it's due to digitalization.

I have a Sony eReader I use a lot, however I still enjoy buying and reading 'real' books.

I do buy most of my books from Amazon, they are still physical books, though.

It i more about the parent company (Barnes & Noble) just shutting the whole B Dalton line of bookstores. The did say they intend to open a B&N in the future but that is at least 18 months away. I personally think it sucks... especially in a town that has literacy problems. You would think they would be encouraging people to read.

Killkrazy I agree with you to a point, I just know here in the states a lot of people would rather watch T.V or play a video game then read a good book. I know a number of people who think that "lord of the rings" was spot on to the books, when yes it was close, but not spot on. Even Harry potter is leaving out a lot from the books in the movies.

Book buying obeys the Pareto Principle the same as many other things -- about 80% of books are bought by about 20% of the public.

The other 80% of people probably buy one airport blockbuster a year.

I'm one of the 20% who buys all the books. I actually buy more books than I end up reading.

I agree people should be encouraged and helped to become literate. It will remain the foundation of education for a long time.

I honestly feel a ood book is one where I am imagining myself as the characters while im reading. I think to many kids today don't get to experience this and it rather saddens me.

Kilkrazy wrote:

the newspaper article wrote:The B. Dalton store was never a community destination with comfy couches and an espresso bar, but its closing will create a literary void in a city with a high illiteracy rate.

Surely that is part of the problem.

If there is a high illiteracy rate there are fewer customers locally.

I live in Ealing which has a population of about 300,000. I don't think there are more than a couple of bookshops. (Not counting places like WH Smiths which sell a limited range of books.) However the rest of London is easily accessible.

I used to live in Richmond, which is smaller (170,000_ but richer than Ealing. It had at least five bookshops including a big Waterstones, two secondhand bookshops, an independent and a specialist children's bookshop.

The thing that makes this story worse is the statement that the next nearest bookstore is 150 miles away in San Antonio.