I love book stores. Public Libraries to a lesser extent, but not school libraries.
I feel a sense of peace, just being in a bookstore. Walking in, fills me with a calming feeling. Even if I can’t read the books, I feel this calm. the smell of the books, and the quiet of the store.
My local bookstore has no English books anymore. I still love going in there. I can escape into the shelves. They have tables and chairs set up for people to just sit and read their new books at. People sit in the children’s book area reading quietly with their kids. But it is all so quiet, and calming.
These people get it. Books relax.
Every time I think about physical book stores closing in favor of online stores, I feel like crying. Any other store, I don’t mind being online. But book stores need to be real.
Some of my best memories are getting lost in bookstores around the world. I will happily get lost just looking over the titles, and selections available.
There was a bookstore downtown Beijing. It was in the WangFuJing tourist district. It was called the “Beijing Foreign Language Bookstore”. When we arrived in Beijing, it was a four story shop. the top floor was first language books. English and Japanese novels. All age levels, and genres. 3rd floor was textbooks and educational books for learning foreign languages. 2nd and first floors were for the travel guides, information books about places, and other Local information books in English.
For years I loved taking the children there. We would go there almost monthly. I loved it as much as the kids did.
During the Pandemic, the bookstore shrank down to 1 floor. The books were damaged, and on sale. It was now only the foreign novels. The place had lost its lifestream, and was struggling to stay open. It lost. I tried to go there a few months ago, and it was locked up with a “for rent” sign on the door.
I was heartbroken.
Even though I cannot read the books at our local shop, I still patronize them. My wife and I will get bookmarks, notebooks, trinkets, whatever we can to keep the store open.
Please everyone, don’t buy books from online sources if you can. Go to your local bookstore. If they don’t have the book you want, they can order it for you. Don’t let bookstores and libraries close.
Baldwins Abroad 