Dear Lynn: On Real Book Stores
Dear [Lynn],
Nope, not amazon.com. I’m talking a real, live bookstore that you can visit that has the aisles and aromas. These are the originals. Nothing virtual about them. 
You know, the ones that have stacks of free newspapers and publications for the taking near the entrance. You can pick up any book and it smells so new, that you’d swear that if you touched the print, you’d smear the ink as it might still be moist. The shelves run from the floors to the ceilings. And the rows seem to go off into infinity if you look toward the back of the stores from the front. There’s the café’ and stage area on the second floor, where authors come to speak and perform. Last week, this petite young lady entertained the crowd with her guitar, singing songs she wrote about her travels out west. Kind of reminded me of Melanie – remember Melanie? She sang that “I got a brand new pair of roller skates. You got a brand new key.” song back in the early 70s. This lady had the audience in stitches and she did it all with her lyrics. Real book stores also have singles nights and poetry readings, and offer quite a tasty cuisine.
In downtown Philly, you can find a Borders, Barnes and Noble, Tower Books, and probably a few smaller ones that I’ve not visited yet. They even have this store at 17th and Market Sts. that sells nothing but maps, globes, travel guides, and aids. Also, at Neshaminy and Oxford Valley Malls, WaldenBooks and B. Dalton Booksellers can be found. I’ve spent many hours in each and every one.
Other things later.
Tom Hesley