Requiem for the Bookstore

“Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most accessible and wisest of counselors, and the most patient of teachers.”  ― Charles William Eliot

“Classic' - a book which people praise and don't read.” - Mark Twain

“I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading! How much sooner one tires of any thing than of a book! -- When I have a house of my own, I shall be miserable if I have not an excellent library.”  ― Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice

photo credit-- from Neil Gaiman's Journal (blogsite)

We were having our usual Sunday stroll at Vivocity when a big sign caught my eye. Page One is having a massive 70% discount on their books. Uh-oh. Not good. So I went closer and read this poster at the entrance confirming that Page One is bidding adieu.

This was the third bookstore that has closed down, in my last 16 months in SG. First there was MPH in Novena Square. Then the iconic Borders bookstore in Wheelock Place, just a few weeks after I swore I could live there. And now, Page One. I felt forlorn while reading their farewell poster.

Bookstores are businesses. Simple logic - for a business to thrive, it's must make it's bottomline. Else, cut the bleeding. Which means the sellout isn't that phenomenal. Which means people don't read books anymore. Maybe not as much as they used to. Maybe not at all.

Do people don't read anymore? Was it because the so-called more trendy and sophisticated e-books and reader tablets have replaced the familiar paperbacks? I did wonder.

And so the irony of it all is that when a bookstore is about to close, suddenly half the country decided they would like to read after all!   You can say I'm too prejudiced but I don't care.  We went inside to get more books for Kyla and some for myself but was met by a snake-like queue that goes around the bookstore. And every person has at least 2 bucketfuls each.  I hope they do intend to read those.  We balked at the idea of lining up for the rest of the afternoon.  I promised Kyla that we'll get her books from someplace else. There are also quite a number of children's book store nearby where we live. Quaint ones that reminds you of the Little Shop Around the Corner bookstore from the movie "You've Got Mail." I wish they won't die soon.

Here's a requiem to the bookstore. May their death cease.