The news appeared yesterday that Borders bookstores are about to go into liquidation; the remaining 400 stores may close as soon as Friday. So this evening, I went to my favorite Borders store, the one on Shelbyville Road in Louisville. I wanted to see it one more time before it is gone. I thought I might buy something or other, but they didn't really have anything I wanted to buy this evening. (What I meant to buy was a book on audio CD, but these had been moved to a locked glass case that discouraged browsing.) The only sign of their impending doom was a notice taped next to the entrance offering wood bookshelves for $30. But Borders has been in decline, with a diminishing inventory, for years. I was sad because a few years ago, it was an excellent bookstore. It's particularly sad to remember that they had replaced a fine local chain of bookstores, Hawley-Cooke, which they bought out. Between the two bookstores, I spent many happy hours over the years browsing at that location.
My fear is that bookstores are going to go the way of record stores--it's been years since there was a record store in Louisville that carried a good selection of classical music. But fortunately, Louisville still has some good bookstores. My favorite is Carmichael's a small, independent bookstore (with two locations) that has an interesting and thoughtful selection of books. Hopefully they and other bookstores will be around for a long time.