Borders, unable to find a buyer willing to get it out of bankruptcy, plans to close its remaining 399 stores and go out of business by the end of September.
“When Borders started up 40 years ago,” I explain to my son, “there was a certain percentage of the American public that bought books and read them.
“It wasn’t nearly as large as the percentage who preferred to sit on their fat asses and watch television but it was there. There was a profit to be made from it.
“Today, if I tell someone about a book I’m reading, they look at me like I’m confessing a perversion. Reading a book?!
“Not only does no one read books but if anyone does get a notion in their head to read one, they’re likely to buy it online and/or download it onto a device.
“The market for people who walk into a store and buy a book has dried up like a raisin.”
“Books, schmooks,” the boy replies.
great post—I have passed this on to several