Happy Monday! Here’s this week’s question:

How do you choose what do buy from your local bookstore? Do you have a list, or just browse? What is the selection in your bookstore like? Do you find what you’re looking for? Do you feel pressured to buy the kind of books the store makes prominent?

I’ll be honest and say that I usually don’t buy too much at my local bookstore. When I worked there and had my awesome employee discount, of course I bought books and CDs… all the time. To the point that I worried I wasn’t actually making any money there! But now I’m very selective about what I purchase.

Since I joined BookMooch, my first line of action is to look and see if a book I want is something I can mooch from another member. If the odds look slim, I’ll put it on a mental list as something to buy from my local bookstore — when I have a coupon! I do love to browse in the store, and often go in with one particular title to look for, but usually wind up checking out the covers and new releases for books I would like to… mooch. It’s just a giant circle!

When I go into my bookstore with a certain title in mind, I usually find it — especially since I know how to work my way through the inventory system. And my boyfriend works there. I wouldn’t say I feel “pressured” to buy the books my store makes prominent on displays, but I do take an interest in them — which is exactly the plan! And I’ve found some cool titles there that I probably wouldn’t have discovered on my own.

Overall, it’s just fun being in a bookstore — there’s a buzz and a vibe there. Even if their books aren’t the “cheapest” — and they’re not, of course — there’s an energy to an actual bookstore that online retailers can’t exactly replicate. And against my better judgement (and my massive TBR stack that haunts me, night and day) I usually wind up bringing something home. Hey, they have all those bargain books at the front! I’m only so strong!