Bookstore operators worry about their industry's future. (Harrisburg Patriot-News, 2/26/2011)
Excerpt: With its five floors of rare, used and out-of-print books, Midtown Scholar has the feel of a college library. The shop’s stained-glass fixtures, large earth-tone mural of Pennsylvania’s history and what looks like a reproduction of the Liberty Bell that hangs from the vaulted ceiling makes the venue almost like a little gallery on Third Street. Bistro tables mingle with the stacks of books, and patrons work on laptops while they sip coffee and nosh on pastries. Soft jazz plays in the background.
By design, Pappenfuse tried to create more of a community center, where people are encouraged to come together and discuss everything from good books to the city’s future.
“In order for a bookstore to be successful, it has to be more than simply books,” he said.
His customers agree.
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