Discussion: Book Stores

If you live in Australia I think you can understand me when I say, that we have very limited book stores.

I live in Melbourne Australia and pretty much the only book stores, either Indie or chain are pretty much only in the city area or the cites surroundings. I live about 30 minutes by car, and about 40 minutes by train from the city, so going to book stores not only takes time but money as well. The only time that I can go to book stores is on the weekends and even then if I am going by car, as I am not 18 yet I need someone to take me there.

The other thing is that books at bookstores are quite expensive, a book that I would normally get for $11-$13 online would cost me $18-$20 at a book store and as a student I don’t get much money I wouldn’t really get many books when I go, which is inconvenienced as if I went I would only go every couple of months.

I love book stores, I love seeing all the books, searching through the shelves, reading the backs of books, holding them but I just cannot do it. Even going to shops like Big W, Target and Kmart isn’t the best. They don’t have a big selection and most of the time don’t have books that I am looking for, which makes me quite upset. But when I do find a book, especially at Big W, it’s for a pretty good price.

The one thing I hate about online shopping is that it takes at least 3 weeks to get to me. But I can cheap books with free shipping which is a plus.

You might ask why not just go borrow from the library. Well I do, but then if I like the book I want to go and buy the book anyway. I really like re-reading books so I mostly borrow books from the library if I don’t know if I will like the book.

I would love to go to bookstores, to buy books but it’s just really hard to do.

What do you think of bookstores? Do you have any close to you?

Chiara @ Books for a Delicate Eternity

· Reply

February 13, 2014 at 9:25 PM

I absolutely adore bookstores. Similar to you, I love perusing the shelves. It has such a more magical and wonderful quality about it than scrolling through the pages of an online store. And you also walk away with the book in hand! No waiting time. But a lot of the time they ARE more expensive than when you order online. Regardless, I’d still rather buy a book in a bookstore.
I would hate to be thirty minutes away from my closest bookstore! The only one I have near me is QBD and an indie bookstore. QBD’s YA range is … really quite terrible. I cannot just go in there and expect new YA releases to be stocked. Unless they’re really run of the mill, like Vampire Academy or a Lauren Kate book. There’s such little range, and it’s quite upsetting.
The indie bookstore, however, is pretty good. They have a HUGE YA section, and I find myself staring at it for ages whenever I go in there. And they’re also much less pricey than QBD. The books are more like $15 than $20, which is awesome. Sometimes, they don’t have the exact book I’m looking for, but most of the time they have pretty great stock.
A few years ago, a Borders opened up 15 minutes away from my house. That was one of the best moments ever. And then it closed down about a year later. Which really sucked. Whilst Borders was REALLY expensive, you never had to worry about whether or not a book would be there. I mean, half a level was dedicated to YA, and it was simply amazing. I could stay in there for hours.
It really saddens me that bookstores seem to be on their way out. I love them so much. 🙁

Angel
· Reply

Author

February 13, 2014 at 10:53 PM

yes book shopping is just so much better then online shopping.
I really hate living so far away from bookstores.
That is pretty awesome about the Indie bookstore.
yes same with here in Melbourne. yes!!
It saddens me as well, there is jut something about them, that makes them magical.
Thank you for coming by 😀

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Amanda @ Book Badger

February 14, 2014 at 12:43 AM

I love going to my book stores local to me, but it’s annoying because I know I can get them for less elsewhere, especially online, and being a student, funds are tight, so it makes sense to shop thrifty. I borrow more books from the library now, mainly because there’s books I want to read but can’t go and buy, but sometimes I just like going to the stores just to see all the books, get a feel for them, find some new ideas and so on. I think in the world of online shopping, book stores might start to die out, because people are going to start thinking more practically and buying for less, so I think more needs to be done if the stores are to survive. This is a great post Angel 🙂

Amanda
Who Wore it Better #3

Angel
· Reply

Author

February 14, 2014 at 8:34 PM

I agree with you about book stores dying out. I hope they don’t but i think they will in the future.
Thank you 🙂

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Pamela D

February 14, 2014 at 4:08 AM

There is a Barnes & Noble close to me, but I can get better discounts online. At the same time, I am a poor graduate student, so I have to wait for deals or just borrow the book from the library.

Angel
· Reply

Author

February 14, 2014 at 8:37 PM

I wish we had a Barnes and Noble here in Australia.
thank you for coming by my blog 🙂

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Christy @ Christy's Book Addiction

February 14, 2014 at 4:34 AM

The nearest bookstore is 2 1/2 – 3 hours away from me. I complain a lot because I don’t like waiting for books to get to me. I want to read some books (Ignite Me) the day they come out but I can’t because even pre-ordering them, they still don’t get them to you on time. I even done a whiny post about this last October, haha.

I have noticed that I can get them cheaper online than I would at a store so that is a plus 🙂

Angel
· Reply

Author

February 14, 2014 at 8:47 PM

gosh. yes! i hate waiting for books to come, they take at least 3 weekish.
Online book shopping is a whole lot cheaper + most you get free shipping as well.
Thank you for coming by 🙂

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