shimenawa - Latest comments on Sidewalk traces

In response to: Sidewalk traces

Erich van Rijn [Visitor] — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 17:50:46 +0000

This is indeed a sad day for Berkeley--and for independent bookselling generally. I agree with Mike that it is just a tremor in earthquake country. But I also believe that the loss of one of the chains is potentially less significant culturally than the loss of a major independent.

The level of information overload in this country is reaching such a critical point that very few people even have the time for the sustained attention that a book demands. Bookstores used to provide a kind of vetting function (as Peter alluded to). With the disappearance of that expertise and curatorial effort, my worry is that people who aren't experts at negotiating this sea of information will give up on discovering the kinds of gems that used to sit right on Cody's shelves for anyone who bothered to walk in the door. Online discovery and its possibilities are one thing, but whom do we trust to provide guidance to us in that endeavor, or is all information created equal, and is it all up to us?

Coincidentally, the Cody's location that most recently closed was located nearly across the street from an institution that, in my opinion, may offer a ray of hope here despite all its quirks--the Berkeley Public Library.

In response to: Sidewalk traces

Mike Shatzkin [Visitor] — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 16:40:59 +0000

This is sad, but inevitable. There may be some rearrangement of the furniture, but, in general, we'll see less book retailing space as time goes by in the US (and in most other places) with each passing year. Of much more consequence to the publishers will be the impending acceleration in the downsizing of Borders's buying. They've been cutting back. Whenever the next shoe drops -- through bankruptcy or transfer of ownership -- they'll likely close some huge multiple of the book retailing space we're losing in Berkeley.

This is just a tremor in earthquake country.

Mike

In response to: Sidewalk traces

Monica McCormick [Visitor] — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 15:28:49 +0000

This is sad news indeed. I moved to Berkeley in 1984, worked in another bookstore around the corner, and eventually moved into publishing. When I saw a book I had published on a front table at Cody's, I always felt enormous satisfaction for having captured the attention of those great buyers. The intelligence at work in their selections, the sense of a shared excitement in ideas and literary expression, my feeling of being at home in those aisles -- these have all contributed to my sense over the years of what makes a real bookstore. I'm heart-broken to think that such a rich place cannot be sustained.