For those of you that may be a little out of the loop when it comes to the book world, I wanted to share some sad news: Borders Book Stores are all closed.

(Photo credit to reddit user Jessers25, taken at an empty Borders location)

In an article posted by GalleyCat, Borders employees vented some frustrations that I wanted to share, because several sound as though they came out the mouths of librarians.

Some of my books still have Borders stickers covering the ISBNs on the back (why, I still don’t quite understand… the prices were always the same as the MSRP) and I normally love peeling those stickers off. Now, I think I’ll leave them on. I wonder if I still have a Borders bookmark around here somewhere.

Sadly, I know that now when I visit one of my best friends down in Rhode Island and we go to the Providence Place Mall… we won’t be able to browse around Borders and gossip about the books for hours. No more “Oooh, have you read this one yet?” or “Oh, yeah… that one… Don’t waste your money” and “Seriously? THAT’S a NY Times Bestseller?!”

I must mention: I do support ebooks. They are inevitably the future for a lot of published content like newspapers. I understand their convenience and availability, but consumers need to understand that they are simply buying a licence to view the content — a license that can be revoked at any time. Translation: We do not OWN ebooks! (Likewise with any music downloaded from sites like iTunes, and that is a scary thought.) I will always stand by my printed pages. I love the book as an object just as much as I love the stories bound between their covers. I appreciate their scent, the creases in their spines, the yellowing edges of their pages, their size and weight… However, my shelves will never look like this:

Someone asked me once why I buy so many books that I haven’t read yet – why do I let them take up room on my shelves – why don’t I just buy ebooks? And I told them that it’s because I’d like people to see how full my shelves are.

Now, yes, some may say that is a bit shallow; however, I love seeing them up there because they give me a sense of purpose. Some gravity, maybe. (Gravitas, certainly!)I know that this is MY collection, my own special library. I know that one day my children will root through my bookshelves just as I rooted through those of my parents. I want them to discover their own favorite stories. I will read to my children, and when they’re old enough, they’ll read to me. With the help of a librarian (and maybe a professor ❤ ), my family will be rich with imagination, knowledge, and understanding.

There has been a resurgence in Book Arts programs across the world. Another one of my best friends has her own printing press (please check it out!) in the Bahamas — and I fully support her endeavor. Does anyone remember reading Steven King’s The Dark Tower series, or any other post apocalyptic literature for that matter? Paper is precious. Paper is rare. Paper is worth more than gold. Once I have the time, I’d love to learn how to make my own paper. Hey, if Gordon Ramsay can print his menus on paper made from sheep poop, I can certainly learn a thing or two about tree pulp.

~

P.S.
This entry is chock-full of links, so be sure to click around on the bold print to see where it takes you!