#BookStores

[animentality]

[zinjanthropusboisei]

Oh I love this so much

[typhlonectes]

Independent bookstores around the country have a particularly clever lifeline, one perfectly suited to the unprecedented moment we find ourselves in. The strange part? It came into being just weeks before the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic, and before the bookstores started closing up shop wondering if they’d reopen at all.

The lifeline in question is called Bookshop. 

In simple terms, it’s a super clean, user-friendly online bookstore whose raison d’être is supporting independent bookstores — not simply with exposure or resources (though that’s certainly a factor), but with cold hard cash...

[razziecat]

Some bookstores actually have displays of "banned books" (meaning books that have been banned in some school libraries or even from public libraries). If you can afford to, buy a couple of those, especially ones that explore racism, bigotry, fascism, colonialism, factual U.S. history, and the facts about trump and the gop. Hang onto them. They may be very valuable (not monetarily but educationally) in the coming years.

Here is my small piece of advice/plea for for the future for y'all for today, and I may be lightly skirting an NDA to say it, so please listen:

If you can, buy physical books.

I work in publishing and I'm scared about what the election results are going to mean for the future of books by and about marginalized people, especially books for children. There are a lot of things you can do by trying to get involved locally, especially to mobilize against book bans and laws targeting libraries and schools. Voting with your wallet is still an extremely important tactic, because we're going to be hit with economic issues re: diverse books before we get hit with legal ones. But my immediate concern is what might happen with e-books.

It's already a known problem that if you "buy" a book on Kindle or another e-reader, that you're essentially renting it from that retailer, and if that retailer decides to remove that book, they can wipe it from your device. We also know that servers can be shut down. Content policies can change. It could get very difficult to find a copy of the files to pirate, much less to purchase.

But you can't delete a physical book from the world.

Physical books are about to become very important repositories. Collect them, if you can. Go to library sales. Go to thrift stores. Go to your local bookstore -- and bonus point here: independent bookstores are and will be great hubs for organizing in the coming days. Hell, I'd even encourage you to go through Amazon to send a message that these books are still financially viable. Lord knows the latter doesn't want to advertise them to you.

I know (I know) that physical books are expensive and getting more so. I know space is at a premium in a world where we're being pushed to live in smaller and smaller apartments with more and more roommates. But if there's a book that was important to you, and if it's a book you think a bigot wouldn't want to exist in the world, I urge you to get your hands on a physical copy of that book. If nothing else, to preserve it for the next generation.

ALL of us can be librarians. ALL of us can be archivists. ALL of us can work together to preserve marginalized voices, and to ensure that they are heard.

I love you. Keep fighting. We're in this together.

[harrowfuckinghark]

hey gang, just so you know, half price on all hardcovers at Barnes and Noble 26 and 27th of December. Yes that includes special edition classics, that includes dnd books, that includes new hardcovers, that includes signed books, this includes cookbooks, and I’m pretty sure it includes kids picture books. Save money on books!

-with love, your local broke barnes and noble employee

[lowcountry-gothic]

Scene study#7, by Thomas Ngan.

[fangtastic-vampyra]

buying books & reading books..two different hobbies.

[fracturedporcelaindoll]

Beautiful~

Anne Michaels, from her novel titled "Held," originally published in 2003

[p-assionateheart]

[lone-nyctophile]

[somerabbitholes]

i found the nicest bookstore tucked under a building at assi ghat in varanasi

[charliejaneanders]

Just FYI… Folio Books (where you've been able to order signed copies of my books, and they ship all over the USA) is going out of business at the end of Feb. :(

I'm heartbroken.

But if you want to get a signed/personalized book by me from Folio, the last day to do so is Feb. 16.

[alicewhitesblog]

[facts-i-just-made-up]

A few months ago, an electrician came to my house to fix a faulty light switch. I figured it was best to have a professional check it just in case. The switch was a simple replacement but I mentioned how if it were a fire hazard or expensive repair, I wanted to have someone around who knew their stuff better than I did, at least.

He was a kind old fellow who took the time to explain what was wrong and also to show me how to recognize whether it was dangerous, which stuff to check and all. Really good guy, asked what I did and I told him about the books and blog and stuff, but forgot to mention the art stuff I did too.

A week later I ran into him at a bookstore. He was getting a pile of books on painting, drawing, etc. I asked if he was going into art stuff and he explained that he'd always wanted to but never had time. Finally at the age of 78 (I'd have guessed 60 but when he said it his wrinkles seemed to deepen as if to confirm), he was retiring and wanted to try. I mentioned that I did a lot of art stuff and would be happy to share anything I knew. He said he'd take me up on it if he had any questions, he'd write me here on the blog.

Months passed and I forgot about him, mostly. I never did get a message but I wished him well when he came to mind, whenever I hit that switch for my porch light. This morning at the same store, I ran into him again. He asked why I hadn't replied. I apologized, and explained that I hadn't seen it. He said he had sent it to my art blog, which didn't have notifications on. I hadn't told him about that blog at all, but he found it linked from my writing blog and asked there.

I promised to check it the moment I got home. He didn't mind, just grinned and said it was no hurry, he had his retirement to enjoy and whenever I got to his question it would be fine, nothing urgent. I apologized again and actually cancelled the rest of my errands so I could get home and reply immediately. I felt really bad.

I got home and opened my art blog and there it was, a single anonymous question from an old man who didn't have an account. Here is what he'd sent:

Yes it can, Mr. Alvarez. It can indeed.

[aesthetic-crows]

To celebrate the start of autumn ༄˖°.🍂.ೃ࿔*:･

[ariasmontage]

a good brunch heals my soul.