Books and the Stores They Are Sold In

Recently I have been trying to return back to the tried and true paperback book.

You know the ones, the brand new ones with that new book smell and crisp pages. The loved ones with floppy ears and bent pages. Books that you can share with others once you have finished reading them. Ones that can’t be changed because the ink has dried long ago. And the ones that don’t require electricity to read or headphones to listen to.

This is the book format of my childhood.

Now just to be clear, I consume books on ereader screens, phone screens, through earbuds, from electronic library collections, and from subscriptions. The ability to have all of these options is amazing, but the humble paperback holds a special place in my heart.

I found my current paperback book sitting cover out on a shelf in a local bookstore. Now, I personally like that some bookstores have finally found a happy medium of displaying books. I like when bookstores display some books with their spines out and others with their covers out.

The bookstores that are highly curated seem to always have only books with their covers out and no books with their spines out. Why is this? Honestly, I don’t know. It is definitely a look. Though it is not for me. It lacks the sense of adventure. I usually do not go into a bookstore knowing what I am going to buy. Instead I like to walk through the aisles. Waiting to see what catches my eye or piques my interest. And for those of you who say you cannot judge a book by its cover, this may be true after you read a book. Though think back to when you pick up a random book. I know I absolutely only look at books that have covers I like.

Now, a bland cover can have one saving grace. This is when an employee sticks their neck out to quietly promote a book by writing a short summary. You know those little pieces of paper that have writing on them that hang off of the edge of the shelf in front of the book. These will sometimes sway me. I am drawn to them even more when they have little drawings with the summary about the book. While this is probably just subbing for the bland cover.

So, when I go into a bookstore, I want to feel at home, cozy, and relaxed. There should be at least a few seats for me to sit in so that I can see if I like a book. The lighting should be bright enough to read comfortably, but dim enough to give that cozy experience. This may sound like I am asking a lot, and it may be. Personally, I think these are the things that draw people in and promote the humble paperback.

Though what really matters is taking the time to read or listen to a book. There are so many spectacular stories out there. I will see you on the next post, dear reader.

-Abe