The Netherlands has two entries in the 20 Most Beautiful Bookstores in the World list published by the US cultural website Flavorpill.
One is Selexyz in Maastricht, which is housed in a converted Dominican church, and the other The American Book Center in Amsterdam.
Bookshops have to work harder these days to tempt the reader to get up and come to the store. Reading, after all, is getting simpler every day. A few clicks on the computer screen suffice to have a new book delivered to your doorstep tomorrow, without ever having to leave your comfortable home. It's even faster with an e-book or tablet reader - you can download a nice thick novel in no time, without a single tree having to be sacrificed.
Technological developments would appear to have sealed the fate of the old-fashioned bookshop. Yet there are many of bookstores around the world which are worth a visit - in real life, not online.
The Flavorpill top 20 includes literary palaces like the stylish Bookàbar Bookshop in Rome, neo-gothic Livraio Lello in Porto, the elegant former movie theatre Librería El Ateneo Grand Splendid in Buenos Aires and the reading and gaming palace called Poplar Kid's Republic in Beijing.
Bookshops in countries where wifi or tablets are thin on the ground are not on the list. They don't often dabble in design or public image; they tend to stick to the basics: selling books.
(rk/imm)
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i am thinking how to maximally use quietness in library,a pen and a piece of paper will. let's try,at least one area is non verbal not even whisper,even a staff is to use gesture to maintain this tangible interaction among people. facial expressions,eyes,and body language will be read together with abstract language such as english and chinese. directness,relevance,and simplicity will immediately have effectiveness. from thinker to doer,skip talker,our society can be simplified. truly,mouth always takes the tangible in and output the abstract.
But nothing like a real book..I just love the aroma of the paper and the ink...it is intoxicating and makes reading a bliss..
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