As a resident of the Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvania, with Allentown, Bethlehem, and Easton being the largest and most well known cities in the area, I feel that awe are blessed with an abundance of libraries and bookstores in this area.
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lehigh_Valley)
There has been much talk about readership slowing down, but I do not think that is true. I have heard statistics at the Writer’s Digest Conference this summer that approximately one million books are published every year. This number itself can vary widely depending on the source; for example, the website Worldometers says over 1,800,000 have been published this year.
Additionally, the number of independent bookstores continues to rise. According to Statista, the numbers have increased from 1,651 in 2009 to 2,321 in 2017. These numbers indicate clearly a desire for books to be read. Certainly publishing continues to change, but readership exists.
In the Lehigh Valley, PA, an abundance of libraries and bookstores serve the population of just over 700,000 people.
This post is an introduction to the series; in following posts, I will focus on a particular library or bookstore. I hope you enjoy them.
Works Cited
https://www.statista.com/statistics/282808/number-of-independent-bookstores-in-the-us/
http://www.worldometers.info/books/
Beautiful libraries…they are some of my favorite places!
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Absolutely!
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How lucky you are to have so many books stores in your area! I look forward to reading this new series! Happy reading!
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Thank you so much! And yes, I am fortunate.
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I’m so glad to hear that bookstores are on the rise too! That’s encouraging. I’d heard rumors that bookstores were closing with the success of ebooks.
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I suspect, but I do not have direct evidence that readership of both hard copy and ebooks is on the rise.
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That makes me happy!
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Same here!
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Another friend, Jeff Markowitz, lives close by, in Princeton, NJ. He’s a mystery writer, and would probably love this series, so I will recommend it to him.
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Thank you so much! I appreciate that!
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And rumor has it that the success of indie publishers is what is behind Amazon’s decision to eliminate the author services division of Create Space… a real sign that quality is on the return, and print is reclaiming a bit of the market it was losing…
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I would not be at all surprised by the accuracy of this rumor.
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I read recently about a slight increase in sales of print books – so good to know the bookstore isn’t dead! You and I aren’t far from one another, I live in Northern Bucks County and worked in Easton and Nazareth for 20 years. 👋
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And there are wonderful bookstores in Bucks county!
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Yes! And a great library system as well! 😃
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Yes!
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I have also heard the negative news so your positive figures on the readers growing are wonderful.
miriam
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I am glad that I can report the positive figures!
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I can’t wait to see your list. Any room for 2nd and Charles?
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Yes!!!
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Professor French:Hey, I just got off Goodreads, gave you a 5 star rating for M… Can you give me rating on the Ghost Story Book? Halloween, and all that. I got another sale, this time from England, again!\\ Thanks! Dean Ziegler
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I envy you the treasures to be found in those book stores! One of my favorite activities when I travel is to search out the locally-owned bookstores. And depending on how long I am in town, I have even been known to visit the libraries as well. So much interesting stuff to see and to learn from.
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Yes, such places give us much pleasure and knowledge.
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Reblogged this on Where Genres Collide.
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Thank you!
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You’re welcome, Charles!
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I’m looking forward to this! My town’s library is one of its main community centers — it’s probably neck and neck with the post office for meet-and-greet, and the programming is stupendous. This is true of surrounding towns as well. And I was a bookseller back in the 1980s, when indie stores were being clobbered by big chains (this was long before Amazon started killing off the chains) and the big publishers who gave the chains big discounts. Libraries and bookstores not only introduce us to books but they let us hang out with other people in person. That’s a big plus.
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Yes, it certainly is! And thank you for a wonderful comment!
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Amen to libraries and local bookstores! They are the hub of the wheel in communities. A few years ago the local bookstore closed, and that was as tragic for the community as if the library had closed. Recently local bookstores have opened, and they have the best of the best in books, plus monthly events with authors. And our library is bursting at the seams with programs and readership for everyone. Isn’t that wonderful! I feel like reading and appreciation for books is on an upswing. I am SO looking forward to your posts on featuring certain libraries and bookstores. Terrific!
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Thank you so much! I am very happy that more bookstores are opening, and libraries are being used! They are the lifeblood of a community.
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Indeed they are, Charles. It is very good to see this happening.
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Yes, it is!
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Reblogged this on LIVING THE DREAM.
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Thank you!
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