Being Bookish at Barnes & Noble

Now that its closing is complete, Borders is nothing but an empty echoing space with a perpetual cage down over its doors. As I lounged on the chairs in that wing the other day eating a , I watched a little boy pull on the clattering chains, and it made me a little sad. Something new will fill that space, but probably not another book store; and as much as I love clothes and accessories, I feel it’s a sad state that books couldn’t cut it.  To look on the bright side, I took a revitalizing trip through just across the street.

I must admit I always somewhat preferred Barnes & Noble to Borders anyway. The latter’s fiction section always seemed pitifully and strangely small compared to B&N’s more extensive coverage. That store also lacked the strength and brand recognition of their own imprints, like the paperback Barnes & Noble Classics or the illustrated Leatherbound Classics (an obsession of mine.) Barnes & Noble’s brand, even down to their simpler, darker décor, just always rang a bit more intellectual or highbrow to me than the KMart-owned Borders.

Of course, this market is changing, and the Freehold B&N reflects that. Where the bestsellers, new arrivals, and recommendations used to be is now a large area devoted to the store’s e-reader, the Nook. To stubborn me, the amount of space used on this seems excessive – having relegated those other sections to a single aisle in front of the registers – but the product has been a big success for the company, so it must be working.

I also found it interesting on recent inspection that the teen section now occupies the front area to the right of the magazines. When I was that age searching for the next Face on the Milk Carton book, teen was a pair of shelves directly abutting the bathrooms. Some might see it as depressing that Twilight takes top billing over the pantheon of English literature, but I find it encouraging that young readers are so important to garner such attention. It also bears noting that the children’s section remains unchanged with its adorable story-time stage.

What I find most troubling about Barnes & Noble these days is the amount of space dedicated to not-books. That teen section also contains shelves full of “digital accessories” like iPod speakers. The back right area has been turned over to educational toys and games, with another puzzle display to the left of the information booth.  In the rear, there is even still a DVD and CD (!) section, which I suspect most shoppers pass over in favor of chains like Best Buy. Then there are of course the cards, journals, and gifts up front – which I must admit I love, and often turn to for special occasions. 

Don’t get me wrong; I understand that B&N is diversifying their store, adapting to stay afloat – and successfully.  It just seems to me that the bookshelves are shrinking and shrinking, going the way of the bygone easy chairs.  However, it is still our resident bookseller, and the place to find wonderful adventures, mysteries, romances, and more.