When I need some “Paul-time” (as Kim calls it), I’ll often head to one of a handful of bookstores within a short distance from our house.
I think Kim finds it endearing, or maybe I misheard and she just thinks that I am a total geek. Actually, it could be both. I’m not certain.
I love books and I love bookstores. I think part of this comes from my mom, who was an absolute voracious reader. Also, she was the manager of The Book Rack, a second-hand bookstore in downtown Nashua where I spent many an afternoon after school when I was in junior high and early high school.
It gets a little bit worse, I think, as I often start planning family day trips by looking at “Best Independent Bookstore” posts; and when we get there, it’s no secret that we have to stop.
From the article and from a design geek perspective, I absolutely love this argument about the appropriate angle of a specific bookshelf.
James Daunt, the man who will soon try to revive Barnes & Noble, once spent weeks in a noisy, arm-waving debate about the ideal angle of tilt for bookstore shelving. His opponent was an Italian showroom designer who argued, in a series of otherwise congenial meals in some of London’s best restaurants, that the bottom of the shelf should be elevated by four degrees.
Wrong, countered Mr. Daunt. The right answer is three degrees. Yes, the cover of a book catches a bit more light, and attention, if tilted at four degrees, especially on shelves below eye level. But the spine of a book starts to bend, ever so slightly.
“He prioritized presentation. I prioritized the condition of the book,” Mr. Daunt said, grinning to acknowledge just how wonky this discussion was. “These are my stores, so I went with three degrees.”
Here’s another part that caught my eye; regarding the successful turnaround of Waterstones and competing with Amazon.
But the company has largely persisted by selling the pleasure of bookstores first and books second. Because if a store is charming and addictive enough, goes Mr. Daunt’s theory, buying a book there isn’t just more pleasant. The book itself is better than the same book bought online.
“It just is,” he said. “You’ll enjoy it more. You’ll read it quicker. You chose it with your own eyes, your hands, your ears. Now it’s all about anticipation. If you buy a book from Amazon, there’s a little anticipation as you rip the tag off the envelope. But it’s generally slightly flat and disappointing.”
There are two Barnes & Noble stores relatively close to our home. Both of them are mildly disappointing as bookstores go. It would be wonderful to see them evolve and be better.
I’m excited and I’m rooting for him. I was sad when the Borders bookstore close to our IBM iX Cambridge design studio closed. On more days than not, on my way to grab lunch, I would stop in and browse for a little bit. I would hate to see Barnes & Noble close as well.
As an aside, we’re off the London for a vacation in a little bit, and even prior to reading the article, you can be certain that Daunt Books was one of the top things on my list of contributions to the itinerary.