I've certainly done my bit for the industry this quarter. Weekly camp-outs at B&N, cruising through Amazon.com like one of those housewives who won a 'grab all you can in 5 minutes' contests. My bank account is poorer; my bookshelves are richer. All for a worthwhile cause, I think.

Yeah, I've done my part as well - I just ordered 6 titles from the Strand day before yesterday! I can do serious damage with just a few clicks.

My guess is that reading is still one of the less expensive forms of entertainment and with gas prices so high, people can't afford to travel, can't afford to spend $10 or $12 on a 2-hr visit to the movies (cheaper to join Netflix), can't afford to eat out. Can barely afford to eat in. So what's left? Reading and the s-word (which I am not allowed to say or this post will be filtered out). Two of my favorite activities. (Right up there with blogging! You can find me at viewfromamysworld.)

It's wonderful that book sales are up, but remember to BUY FROM INDEPENDENTS!! Amazon.com & chain stores like Borders and Barnes & Noble put the "little guys" out of business. As much as I love the fact that people are buying books in the first place, we all need to remember to SUPPORT LOCAL first!

Writer's Strike! Writer's Strike! House is the only show that I watch that has returned...

Writer's Strike! Writer's Strike! House is the only show that I watch that has returned...

Esse, thank you for reminding me that the strike was a big factor in making people look for other forms of entertainment. Now, I'd never advocate anything that hurts writers, but I wish we could figure out some way to remind people more often that TV isn't everything...

Hey guys, out here in Michigan, where we have been in recession for four or five years, where we have an unemployment rate of 6.9%, and where near my store there are five big box locations, people are still interested in reading. I am not going to brag about my sales numbers, but what I can tell you is that people are still surprised when I follow up on their requests, offer to call the nearest independent (Nicola's) and treat their request as my highest priority, that I will deliver to older folks who need that assistance. Books are escape, and here in what's left of my state, they may not be rising in the numbers we would like to see, but they are holdiing on, and this is better than we could expect. We hope for a new situation, but I always remember that entertainment held steady through the depression.If I had any question about that, when i held down a spot at our local senior fair, I learned a lesson: books, puzzles and other old-fashioned pastimes are one way to get through the long Michigan winter. We may not be making a lot of money, but we have value, regardless. How to hold on? A lot of faith...