As spectacular as this picture looks, it's even better in real life.
I'm a lover of books, and of reading and I think I have quite a nuanced relationship to bookstores and libraries than some modern interpreters with respect to the importance of books, their inevitable digitization and public use.
Some may argue that if text is now freely available, it's value is not fully appreciated. It's true, in the past people could not afford books and their existence ensured the survival of the text. Of course that's different today with the internet.
For me, bookstores and libraries have always complemented each other.
When I was growing up, my idea of a great Saturday (when I wasn’t in shul), was to take the bus downtown, stop for an hour or two at the main library, look through a number of books on a particular subject, and check out some of them. Next, I would stop at Manny’s diner for lunch, order a hot pastrami sandwich, accompanied by a dill pickle and a cup of potato salad, all for 65 cents, and follow that with visits to a couple of used book stores, where sometimes, if I could afford to, I would buy one or two books, and then take the bus home, reading one of my armful of new acquisitions on the way.
Now that I live in a relatively small town, some days I walk downtown to the library to return the books I’ve read, peruse and then check out some more books, often from the "new books" shelves. Other days I visit one of the two bookstores in the center of town and sometimes make a purchase, occasionally of a new book, but more often than not, I still buy used books.
Some books I buy because I know I want to own them forever or because I anticipate that it will take me a long time to get through them. Other books, like the one I finished reading last night and greatly enjoyed, I’ll take back to the library tomorrow, with a bit of sorrow for what could be viewed as a forced parting from a new friend.
So I guess I tend to view books-to-purchase somewhat differently from how I view books-to-check-out-of-the-library. But I will admit that my choice between these two options has never before been at all influenced by the thought of how my choices might affect the livelihood of authors.
