Comments | lampblack: My Borders went out of business a long time ago.

lampblack

My Borders went out of business a long time ago.

Jul 24, 2011 01:15

My Borders was the original independent bookstore in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It had an amazing selection of books, with a strong art book selection. It was staffed by adults with a vast knowledge of, and love of books. They were paid wages that recognized and rewarded their knowledge. A visit to Borders to buy books was a regular treat for me ( Read more... )

Comments 5

subversa July 24 2011, 14:30:00 UTC

It's funny that you bring it up about Borders, because I was never in one in my life before yesterday. SubHub and I went to lunch at a favorite Indian buffet and saw the FORTY PERCENT OFF sign and had to investigate. It turned out that FORTY PERCENT OFF was really 10 percent, but they had Bath Tangle by Georgette Heyer, and I'd been desperately wanting it. They also had, in a locked case, a WWII BBC documentary that the husband had lusted after for umpteen years, so we bought it too. But yes, it looked like a low-rent Barnes and Noble on the inside.

lampblack July 24 2011, 21:34:22 UTC

Poor Borders. There was an article in the local paper about being careful about the "sale" prices, heh heh. Still, it's nice that you both found things you wanted!

venturous1 July 24 2011, 15:42:49 UTC

I loved that bookstore - I lived in A2 from 78-84. Those wood and glass doors were the entrance to an inspiring sanctuary. (Is Dawn Treader still on State St? **is hopeful**) Years later when I moved to suburban DC, and hated the sprawling burbs of No. Virginia, I stumbled upon a 'Borders' in an ugly shopping center and thought I was hallucinating. I walked thru a replica of those doors, and felt like maybe I could survive in this Big Weird Place. So initially the chain was a blessing, but of course, it grew and was sold to larger and larger entities (wasnt it owned by Kmart at one time?) and I saw how the indie stores were suffering, and tried to favor them with my business.
Alas, that Online Store has garnered much of my business now, as I both sell and buy from A***** Marketplace, further reducing the sale of new books by anyone.

lampblack July 24 2011, 21:50:55 UTC

Squee, The Dawn Treader! Which is still on Liberty... and is very much the same inside. Excellent selection of science fiction and fantasy. I also love The Book Beat in Oak Park, which specializes in art and photography books and modern literature.
Yeah, Borders was a KMart aquisition. In retrospect, they didn't do too badly at first either.
The current CEO is blaming ebooks etc for their demise, but... I stopped being a customer because there weren't any books in the stores, and it wasn't a comfortable place to be watching the staff being treated like bad animals.
I'd refer you to The Book Beat for your art book needs, but their website is a bit impossible to navigate. You have to be there among the piles of books... :).
Professor Snape would be rolling his eyes at this Ravenclaw talk.

juniperus July 25 2011, 14:59:14 UTC

I remember that store -- that was a store worth mourning, definitely. And I've spent quality time in Dawn Treader, too. We have some relatively decent used bookstores around here --lots of SF/F.

I preferred Borders--even the corporate-mess that they were--over Barnes and Noble, used to go to the one neat my folks' house whenever I visited.