Independent bookstores are under economic threat, but they are worth preserving

Independent bookstores are under economic threat, but they are worth preserving. We won’t truly appreciate them until they aren’t there. That means we should buy our books from the indie bookshops before they disappear. Indie bookstore owners know their clientele and what kind of books pique their tastes. They also know what sells in their area.

There’s a world of difference to be appreciated between little Time Out bookshop in Mt Eden and a Whitcoulls. To call them both “bookshops” is like saying Antoine’s and McDonald’s are both restaurants. They are, but … We patronise the one we prefer. Sometimes both in the same week.

No trip to Thames is complete without browsing in Carson’s, or Page & Blackmore in Nelson, or Scorpio in Christchurch.

If you want a book by the fifty most popular authors Whitcoulls will have it. But if you want to broaden your reading repertoire ask an indie bookseller for their recommendation.

Have a discussion with a bibliophile who knows and loves and reads the books they sell. You’ll likely be informed and pleasantly surprised.