The website vs. the bookshelf: Buying books online and from your local book shop
Unless you have been living underground for the past decade or so, then you are probably aware of how the Internet has changed the way we live our everyday lives—from traveling and booking tickets, to communicating with far-way loved ones to buying the latest commodities. The industry of books is one of the areas that have been greatly affected by the birth of the Internet. During our parents’ time, books and reading were confined to libraries, bookstores or local book shops. Nowadays, you can purchase a book right from the Internet and have it shipped directly to your house. You can now also download dozens of E-books—some for a fee and some free of charge—and read them right from your computer. This raises the question of whether it’s better to buy books online or from your traditional local bookstore.
The convenience factor. Convenience and ease is undoubtedly one of the advantages of purchasing books online. All you have to do is log on to the Internet, go to the site of your choice, type in the details of the book you are looking and voila! You receive various options with various prices. With a few clicks of the mouse, your new book can be on its way to you in a couple of days. Many people prefer this method of buying because they can do their book shopping from the comfort of their own home, and without even spending money for gas to travel to their local book shop.
Reader review. Another positive feature of online book shopping is the fact that you can read as many reviews as you want by people who have already read the book. Websites like Books Buyer is an example of a site that lets readers exchange opinions, questions and views about a certain book. There are also other websites that will be able to tell you what other users like yourself are checking out or considering.
Stepping down from the bookshelf. Due to the enormous popularity of online bookstores, many local book stores are meeting their demise–meaning that they are choosing to close the shop. This is a sad reality not only for the book shop owners, but also for its patrons. Regardless of the prevalence of the Internet, there are still some people who prefer to shop in the familiar venue, surrounded by the smell of books and wooden bookshelves.
The book surprise. One of the best things about walking into a concrete book shop is the fact that you never know what you may walk out with. Some people walk into a book shop with the aim of looking for one particular book, and then walk out with an entirely different one. Some people also aim to buy a couple of books and end up purchasing a dozen. The bottom-line is that a book shop can still give us that experience of being pleasantly surprised by a new book that we were not even looking for, unlike the case with online shops where you need to know the particular book you are looking for or else be prepared to read reviews and choose your book this way.
A matter of taste. So ultimately, is it better to order books online or buy from your local shop? You can do both, depending on your present preference and your particular needs at that time. If you are desperately searching for one title and are in a hurry to have it, then order online. If you want to take your time flipping through different books and seeing what interests you, then visit your local book shop.
