The independent bookstore revival in Brooklyn
Brooklyn BookBeat
If forecasts had been correct, the independent bookstore would have been dead by now. First, they were supposed to be out-competed by large commercial retailers like Barnes and Noble, then made obsolete by e-books and finally dealt a deathblow by Amazon and other e-commerce sites.
Instead, since 2009, the number of independent bookstores has grown by more than 30 percent, according to the American Bookseller’s Association. In New York City, Brooklyn may be the borough that has felt this independent bookstore mini-boom most profoundly. A New York Times article titled “Literary City, Bookstore Desert” chronicled the shuttering of Manhattan bookstores due to rising rents. Meanwhile, in Brooklyn, Greenlight Bookstore has opened a second location, Word Bookstore is set to open up a children’s bookstore, McNally Jackson has opened an offshoot in Williamsburg and Books Are Magic has set up shop in Cobble Hill.