Quick Post: Borders NZ

Who blogs about a bookstore? Better yet, who blogs about a Bookstore RUMORED to be closing?

I do.

We all have simple pleasures in life. Maybe you had more of them as a child than as an adult but I think appreciating and recognizing these simple pleasures is a fundamental skill that has kept me sane amidst everything that has been thrown my way thus far. Discovering Borders was one of them.

I like to think that I am a healthy reader. Mostly fiction mind you, but an avid reader nonetheless. I was so precious about my books that I recall in 6th grade my dad had all my books packed and boxed and shipped to our office to be burnt because he thought all the reading was affecting my grades. How archaic you might think, but I swear, all true! At the end of the exercise, our family driver had a total of three boxes containing around 250 odd paperbacks collected from when I started in 4th grade. I cried, pleaded, and cajoled to no avail. My dad still asked for them to be disposed -- but I think my blotchy face, red nose and puffy eyes got to the driver, and he only burned one of the three boxes and secretly returned the rest to me. Needless to say, the reading continued.

When I was in Ireland, the first thing I did was look for their version of the National Bookstore in Manila. They had Waterstones, Easons, and Hobbes and Something or other that catered to bookworms like me but to my frustration, I didn't recognize their authors or follow their tastes in literature. Apart from the huge international bestsellers and a few cookbooks, I was like a man dying of thirst in the middle of the Dead Sea. Maybe it was the way I was raised or the culture I was most exposed to, but my sense of familiar is in finding works that are more... well... American.

I was so starved for my "proper" books that when I walked into a Borders store during our New York trip I seriously teared up and had a moment of shuffling feet where I truly did not know which direction to go to first! Again, true story!

After my Irish stint,  I moved to Auckland and was very amazed to find that they have Borders! While its operated by a different company, in NZ, its still the same Borders trademark, similar layout, similar offering, and all my wonderfully Continental books and then some. After my first store tour, I actually felt a quiet sense of security that I will never be bored again or miss any new releases so long as I live in New Zealand. Its the most insane thing to be able to go on and on about a store that sells books, but here I am doing just that. Because this is my simple pleasure - being able to find the books that I want to read, stories that speak to me and make me laugh, and knowing that each book I take home with me can bring me into a different world all my own.

Then the other night, I find out for the first time that Borders NZ is having a massive sale, at least 30% off on most merchandise and is rumored to be on the brink of closure. For the first time, my heart didn't skip a beat when it heard the word that the letters S-A-L-E make up together. Instead, it dropped as I thought "you have got to be kidding me."

There were talks of poor sales as people prefer e-books, on line purchases, or opt for pre-owned copies instead. Talks of receivership and other words I don't really fully understand. 

This evening I went to their website and read what it said about Voluntary Administration. From what I gather, they are just getting someone more business savvy to reassess their business and I am hoping that it truly isn't the death sentence everyone is perceiving it to be. 

As silly as it may sound to some, but reading is my anchor and without it I am lost at sea. Knowing I have a place that enables me to read is a solace in itself and I am hoping that knowledge stays intact. No e-books. No pre-owned copies. To me and possibly to true enthusiasts out there, nothing will beat unwrapping a book, and turning those crisp pages the first time and feeling that quick tingle of excitement you get from anticipating what is to come. 

I hope Borders stays on NZ shores.

http://www.borders.co.nz/voluntary-administration-information