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To: BGR who wrote (38600)	2/7/1999 3:42:00 PM
From: Glenn D. Rudolph	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 164684

Copyright © 1998 The Seattle Times Company Opinion/Editorials : Sunday, February 07, 1999 Readers comment on bookstore competition and other topics Independent bookstores Elliott Bay Book Co. is must on every writer's book tour; support Seattle institution Editor, The Times: For 15 years, Elliott Bay Book Co. and its cafe downstairs have been my office, my club, my library and my home away from home. If it had a treadmill and free weights, it would be my health club also. It has never occurred to me to buy a book elsewhere. There are a number of reasons why I spend so much time there. I love the architecture, the red brick and the arches, upstairs and down. The bookstore employees are knowledgeable and helpful and the stock of books is vast. The food in the cafe is delicious and comparatively inexpensive. Elliott Bay Book Co. is a must on every writer's book tour. Nearly every evening, a writer reads from his or her new book in the cafe. Tickets to the reading are usually free or nominal. When my wife Jean and I show visitors the city, Elliott Bay Book Co. and cafe are as essential as Pike Place Market. Everyone should patronize and support the wonderful Seattle institution. Milton D. Ghivizzani, Seattle Their loss, not mine While I do try to support neighborhood businesses, I have given up on independent bookstores. Why? Because every time I have gone to independent bookstores to buy books, these establishments never seem to have the ones I want. In fact, it seems to me that independent bookstores carry only books that the owner(s) like. That's all well and good, but upon learning that I want a book they don't have, in every case their reply was, "I'd have to order it," this being said in a way that clearly indicated, "I can't be bothered." Barnes & Noble, on the other hand, has books I want, and I can pay for them and take them home in one trip. Or I can place an order with Amazon.com and the book shows up in my mailbox in a few days. I find it interesting that Walter Carr of Elliott Bay Book Co. seems to know exactly what he needs to do to improve his prospects, yet he indicates he is not willing to do these things. Under those circumstances, I will find it very hard to shed any tears when/if Carr closes his store. While most successful retailers understand the idea of stocking items that people actually want, this concept seems completely beyond the grasp of independent booksellers. It's their loss, not mine. Orin O'Neill, Seattle Support your local bookstore It was with great sadness that I read the Jan. 28 lead story on the demise of independent bookstores in Seattle. We should look at ourselves before we place all the blame on the chain stores for contributing to the problem, because we are the ones who shop at chains. The simplest way to support your local independent bookstore is to spend your money at it instead of at a chain store. Independents need our money and they need it now. We may think that only buying one or two books at a chain won't hurt an independent, but when enough of us do this, then those one or two lost sales turn into hundreds or thousands of lost sales. Seattleites profess to be supporters of our local community. We turn out for a zoo or symphony benefit and vote to support the Mariners or Seahawks, but shopping locally is another critical way to show how we care about our community. When you go into a local bookstore, you know that the books on display were chosen by your fellow Seattleites and were not chosen by how much a publisher was willing to pay for that space. What will happen to our community when we lose Elliott Bay Book Co. and its more than 365 readings per year? Where will we go to browse the latest progressive, multicultural, feminist or gay/lesbian books if we let Red and Black Books fail? I do not deny that most of us find relatively valid excuses to shop at a chain store, but are those reasons strong enough to let the local independents fail? It is our decision. We must act now. Spend. David Williams, Seattle One less heartbeat Your article on the plight of independent bookstores may help us realize what we've got before it's gone. The hard times that have befallen independent booksellers are indeed tragic. If this city values the ambiance, commitment and intelligence provided by bookstores such as Elliott Bay Books, All for Kids and B. Coy Books, then we will show our support of them - one book at a time. Every book bought at Barnes & Noble is one less heartbeat for the independent bookseller. J. Dee Frankfourth, Seattle