Read this article instead
http://publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/bookse...
It's more informative and less bitter.
My 2.5 Star Trip to Amazon's New Bookstore
21–30 of 30 posts
Re: My 2.5 Star Trip to Amazon's New Bookstore
#22Article is trying too hard to be clever by half. I did not use the phrase Day One, but wondered whether the staff, including presumably Walkie Talkie, had taken a moment before opening that morning to reflect on Amazon’s jargon, including that bit of eschatology. There is a desk labelled Amazon Answers. Presumably the questions asked of Amazon are answered by a human employee of the store, though it’s unclear if some…
The style bothered me as well, I could not tell if the was unconsciously projecting all of their internal conflict into the situation or if they were trying to write at a snark level that would be above the comprehension of some but not all readers. Either way it seemed the author was conflicted deeply about what they were trying to write (or perhaps not write)
The style reminded me a lot of the writing style of Fight Club: lots of anti-establishment bitterness seeping through observations of comical ironies. Probably also a reflection of the conflict between corporate Amazon and the cool kids who want to keep Seattle cool.
Re: My 2.5 Star Trip to Amazon's New Bookstore
#23I went there the day they opened and was blown away. 10x better than any bookstore I've ever been in before. I loved it.
Better than Powell's City of Books in portland? http://www.powells.com/locations/powells-city-of-books I'd find that hard to believe.
+1 this. Highly recommended to check ow Powell's if ever you find yourself in Portland.
Re: My 2.5 Star Trip to Amazon's New Bookstore
#24I've been offline for a few days so... WTF? What's the reason for Amazon opening a brick and mortar? Tax avoidance? legal loopholes? I'm really puzzled..
Your tone got you downvoted, but I'm also interested in Amazon's motivation for opening this store.
Re: My 2.5 Star Trip to Amazon's New Bookstore
#25Earlier quoted context omitted.
The style bothered me as well, I could not tell if the was unconsciously projecting all of their internal conflict into the situation or if they were trying to write at a snark level that would be above the comprehension of some but not all readers. Either way it seemed the author was conflicted deeply about what they were trying to write (or perhaps not write)
The style reminded me a lot of the writing style of Fight Club: lots of anti-establishment bitterness seeping through observations of comical ironies. Probably also a reflection of the conflict between corporate Amazon and the cool kids who want to keep Seattle cool.
According to his byline, the author is from Portland. I think that explains a lot of it, actually.
Re: My 2.5 Star Trip to Amazon's New Bookstore
#26I've been offline for a few days so... WTF? What's the reason for Amazon opening a brick and mortar? Tax avoidance? legal loopholes? I'm really puzzled..
Your tone got you downvoted, but I'm also interested in Amazon's motivation for opening this store.
If I had to put money down I'd say there are two motivations. First it's pure marketing. There are Apple and Microsoft stores in the same shopping center. Amazon is promoting its brand.
Second, perhaps more far-fetched and to me more interesting, it's a long play by a company famous for long plays. Amazon has predicted a future where they put most brick and mortar bookstores out of business, and recognized this future is not good if you want to sell books.
Re: My 2.5 Star Trip to Amazon's New Bookstore
#27Article is trying too hard to be clever by half. I did not use the phrase Day One, but wondered whether the staff, including presumably Walkie Talkie, had taken a moment before opening that morning to reflect on Amazon’s jargon, including that bit of eschatology. There is a desk labelled Amazon Answers. Presumably the questions asked of Amazon are answered by a human employee of the store, though it’s unclear if some…
It's super smarmy, but pretty much par for the course for how TNR and other bastions of American literary tradition treat Amazon. They published an op-ed arguing that ordinary readers (as opposed to trained book reviewers) shouldn't be reviewing books.[0]
[0] http://www.newrepublic.com/article/119875/margo-howard-amazo...
Re: My 2.5 Star Trip to Amazon's New Bookstore
#28Article is trying too hard to be clever by half. I did not use the phrase Day One, but wondered whether the staff, including presumably Walkie Talkie, had taken a moment before opening that morning to reflect on Amazon’s jargon, including that bit of eschatology. There is a desk labelled Amazon Answers. Presumably the questions asked of Amazon are answered by a human employee of the store, though it’s unclear if some…
I am so glad I am not the only one to think that. I was rolling my eyes through the whole thing and I only skimmed through it.
Re: My 2.5 Star Trip to Amazon's New Bookstore
#29I think there's plenty to criticize about Amazon Books, but this review misses the mark. Three stars. 1. The shopping mall is named University Village due to its proximity to the University of Washington. 2. This is how emails from recruiters on LinkedIn always work. There's nothing new here. Cady received LinkedIn messages and an email. It was very personal in tone, but ended with a simple choice: a button to indica…
Also, the seattle area's other awesome independent bookstore, Third Place Books.
Re: My 2.5 Star Trip to Amazon's New Bookstore
#30I went there the day they opened and was blown away. 10x better than any bookstore I've ever been in before. I loved it.
Strange. I went yesterday (had to do something while I waited for dumplings) and thought it was just an ordinary bookstore. What grabbed you so much that I missed?
I love this comment. I wanna see Bezos' face when he learns his fancy new store is just a mundane place to kill time while waiting for dumplings.