Why I Sometimes Pay Full Price

I like to think that I was one of Amazon’s first customers.  Certainly that first Christmas after they opened for business would suggest as much when I received a post-it note pad and travel coffee mug with the now familiar curved arrow logo to thank me for supporting their business. That was back when Amazon was just books; of course now there isn’t much you could want to purchase that can’t be had with one-click shopping.  Still, probably 80% of my orders are books that can be on my doorstep in 48 hours or Kindle purchases that provide instantaneous gratification.  For all my love for Amazon, however, this isn’t about online shopping; rather, it is about brick and mortar bookstores and why I occasionally still pay full price.

Amazon can provide webcasts of interviews with authors but it isn’t the same as hearing the writers in person read from their books and talk about what inspired them.  In the Washington metro area we have not only Barnes and Noble and Books A Million, but also several independent bookstores that are, surprisingly (or not) thriving.  Famous authors like John Grisham and Elizabeth Strout as well as lesser-known poets and memoirists make weekly appearances at these stores, and buying their books at full cover price is, well,  the price of this experience.  I recently attended a reading by two poets who have each published several volumes and whose readings were more like performances that fed off of the audience’s clear appreciation.  It was a fabulous evening and I very much doubt I would have enjoyed the same reading via video nearly as much, much less even tuned in.

My daughter moved to Denver last summer and on each of my four visits out there, I have delighted in the fact that Denver’s independent bookstore, The Tattered Cover, is 3 blocks from her apartment.  The store is large with comfortable armchairs and sofas spaced around in nooks and crannies, perfect for curling up while you peruse the featured books on the coffee table in front of you. An in-house café sells coffee drinks and fattening muffins that you can sip and munch as you walk around the store.  They have the best card selection I have ever seen anywhere as well as all sorts of products for the true bibliophile.  As featured on their website, “We are a Denver institution, a community gathering place, and an experience you can't download.”  True that. 

The Washington Post, New York Times and Time Magazine reviews, as well as the latest featured books on goodreads and bookriot are my main source for my “to read” list, and I am sometimes snared by Amazon’s clever algorithm that recommends titles based on my browsing and purchase history.  But what about those great novels that haven’t rocketed to the level of bestseller or been lucky enough to be reviewed?  Again, another thing I love about visiting bookstores – magical finds that may or may not reach stardom.  On my most recent visit to The Tattered Cover, I picked up Improbable Fortunes:  a Novel by Jeffrey Price and Spill Simmer Falter Wither by Sara Baume, two books I have not heard of anywhere else. 

I always experience a moment of hesitation when I decide on a book (or two) for purchase and realize that I will be paying $25 or more for a new hardback, but that’s not so much to trade for an hour of actually seeing and touching the books that interest me.  A friend recently asked why I have a Barnes and Noble membership ($25 annually), commenting that she doesn’t buy enough there to get her money’s worth.  That could be true if you measure it by your 10% savings afforded by the card each time you make a purchase; however, I feel it is worth $25 to know that I can jump in the car and be thumbing through “New and Recommended” in only 15 minutes.