A World With No Borders?

I was very sad to read the news on Monday that the Borders chain is giving up the fight. I'm not terribly surprised--they have been closing stores all year--but it still came as a blow.

After our local Waldenbooks closed, our town was down to a couple of used bookstores and a small Christian bookseller. My family began making regular pilgrimages to the next town over which had a Borders. I was always impressed with their staff, who surprised me with their deep knowledge of books, no matter how bizarre our questions. When my son was on a comic book buying frenzy, one of the clerks told us all the great places in town where he could find the odd issues he was seeking. I had a fascinating discussion with another clerk about YA Christian fiction and the way that it is shelved. You expect that level of knowledge and service at a small bookstore, but it's rare in a large chain.

Unless another bookstore moves into our region, I guess that means we have to travel even further afield to find a new favorite bookstore. Don't get me wrong--I love Amazon and have since they broke on the scene a few years ago (Christmas shopping in the middle of the night without leaving the house? Cool!), but I will miss the fun of walking the aisles at Borders and talking with the clerks.You just don't get that with an on-line seller.

How are you feeling about the loss? Where do you buy most of your books? Where will you buy them now?

Do you think E-books are to blame for Borders' demise? PCWorld doesn't. Read their article here. 
Are you worried about your Kobo reader? Read Kobo's response, here.