"The only reason independent bookstores are surviving is because there are still people--many people, thank goodness--who want a bookstore in their neighborhood, and understand that if they want that bookstore to survive, they need to spend money there.
"Using a smartphone to compare prices to Amazon is downright rude--and it's also missing the point of what indie bookstores can provide. Shoppers who are just looking for a discount won't necessarily find what they are looking for at an indie bookstore. But shoppers who are looking for an experience--real human interaction, booksellers who get to know what kinds of books they like, a community gathering place--they will find what they are looking for. It doesn't involve a smartphone. It involves the real world and fantastic books--not an app on a screen."
--Michele Filgate, a writer and bookseller/events coordinator at the Community Bookstore, Brooklyn, N.Y., in a Center for Fiction column headlined "Smart Phone, Dumb Move."
From Shelf Awareness
1 comment:
When I pull out my smartphone in a bookstore, I'm not comparing prices. I'm scanning it to see if any of my Goodreads friends have recommended it.
Although once I found I'd already read and reviewed that book myself. My review? "Forgettable".
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