“I have always imagined that paradise will be a kind of library.”

— Jorge Luis Borges

Ah yes, libraries.  Remember those city operated structures that are free to join and endorse the pursuit of knowledge? While many universities offer subscriptions to online databases like J-Store or Lexis Nexus, they were not intended to adequately replace the act of actually visiting the brick and mortar establishment, where one could stumble upon information by chance when making a wrong a turn in the narrow aisles reeking of curiosity.  Since graduating from my university days, I haven’t had a reason to visit the library as galleries, museums, and artist interviews have become my primary sources.  I do however hold these establishments in high regard as it is a public service that welcomes all walks of life and embraces those who seek the same or similar refuge in the silenced walls.

This morning Engadget reported that the book chain Borders has filed for bankruptcy and will close thirty percent of its stores.  Good thing you had your book signing last year, dad!

With that announcement it is clear that the only and consequently leading bookstore on the Westside is Barnes and Noble and for everything there’s Amazon and e-books.  With the creation of the Nook, Barnes and Noble which sells subscriptions to 120 periodicals, as well as books for children and adults has boomed.  Previous reports have cited that the Nook has overwhelmed the e-commerce marketplace and accounts for 53% of e-readership.  The e-reader developed by Borders offered too little, too late and thus their announcement to downsize.  It’s hard to imagine an urban landscape where bookstores represent the minority.  It’s moments like these that we can really treasure independently owned stores like Book Soup as they are the underdogs who are fighting each day against corporations.

With such a dense e-reading population what does that mean for the future of books? Will they become like albums in that they will still be produced, but without a high expectation of hard copy sales? Will there actually be a day when books in their familiar ink on paper bound form cease to exist altogether? I shudder at the thought.   Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com stated that “6 Kindle books [are sold] for every 10 physical books. This is year-to-date and includes only paid books.”  On the one hand the statistic indicates that people are reading, but why would you want to read on a digital screen when you could do it the old fashioned way? Call me a purist, a stick in the mud, I don’t care.  I fully embrace most facets of technology but I refuse to ever “read” a book on a screen.  For one thing, I don’t retain information when presented on a digital format.  And another, I spend all day wired in front of my computer, why would I want to unwind in the evening by looking at yet another screen? Since its launch the Ipad Book Store dominates 22% of the market.  That number is only going to rise as more titles become available and the quality of the device improves.  The convenience of the e-reader should not take real books out of the equation.  Only the pages of books on the shelf hold the memory of the reader, boast room in the margins, and wear their age like a badge of honor.  The intimacy of one’s library can never be duplicated in the sterility of an online catalogue.