Independent bookstore owners in Albuquerque, N.M., "say the demand for traditional books and support for bookstores are far from lost," Alibi Weekly reported in its feature on some of the city's indies, including Page One, Book Stop, Bookworks, Bird Song Used Books and Downtown Books.
Page One filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in February 2011, but buyer Craig Chrissinger called the move "a wake-up call" as the store scaled down, continuing to offer new books while focusing more on used and rare items. "What is working the best is used books because a lot of stuff has not come out electronically yet."
"We live in a pretty disposable society," said Jerry Lane, owner of used bookstore Book Stop. "I'm probably at the tail end of that last generation that thinks opening a house full of these things is a good deal."
Wyatt Wegrzyn, co-owner of Bookworks, observed: "The only reason we're around is because we have a supportive community. We have customers that keep coming back in. I'm so grateful."
