Sweet Addiction

I have an addiction problem. Some people are addicted to alcohol or drugs or sex; I am addicted to buying books. Heaven forbid I would walk into a library and borrow a book. No, I must purchase my literature and fill my apartment shelves and table tops with stacks of books.

A girl could do worse. With my addiction, however, comes a confession: I love Borders Books and Music.

Yes, it's true, my first choice for book shopping is one of those dreaded chain outfits. Make no mistake, I frequent independent book stores, as well. My favorite is Skylight Books on Vermont Avenue in Los Angeles. I like that store best because the staff plays the most excellent obscure but accessible music on the store sound system. It definitely adds to the book buying experience. (Like I need anything to further encourage my book buying habit.) Green Apple Books here in San Francisco also is awesome. But back to Borders. You can imagine my distress when I learned that Borders has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Truly, it makes no sense to me. In my opinion, Borders should be able to survive on what I spend there alone.

To add insult to injury, I found out that the two Borders locations I frequent most in San Francisco will be closing. What is a book addict to do? Don't say go to the library. The upside to this dilemma is that I imagine the closing stores will have to liquidate their inventory, and that can only mean one thing: sale prices.

Sales are generally a good thing, but that leads me to another problem. My large book shelf already is full, and I'd like to avoid filling every surface in my home with books. Plus, I already have several recent purchases that have yet to be read and more on the way. In the last week I've ordered four novels from borders.com: Home Land by Sam Lipsyte, This Is Not A Love Song by Sarahbeth Purcell, The Help by Kathryn Stockett and the one I'm most excited about, A Visit From the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan. These selections have not even arrived yet, and already I'm thinking about hitting the doomed San Francisco Borders locations this weekend to check out the potential discounts.

I told you I have a problem.

By the way, I currently am reading Lulu Meets God and Doubts Him by Danielle Ganek. I just started it this week, but so far, it's pretty good. When all is said and done with this Borders store closings ordeal, I might need a forklift for all the books I may purchase.

I guess it's also time to buy a new book shelf.