The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians: True Stories of the Magic of Reading

The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians was published in 2024 and contains contributions from booksellers and librarians located across the USA and Canada. These personal testimonies are deeply influenced by the culture and society in which their writers live, so their content is closely tied with the social context of literary industries in North America during the early 2020s. The American bookselling industry is currently dominated by several large companies that have chains across the US and/or Canada, such as Barnes & Noble and Books-A-Million. Independent bookstores are still common, particularly in more affluent areas; however, like chain bookstores, they are under significant threat from falling revenue and increased competition. Public libraries exist across the USA and Canada, and school libraries are standard in most educational institutions. Funded by taxes, they function as vital community hubs and resource centers.

Advances in technology since the digital revolution of the 1990s have had a significant influence on the operation of bookselling businesses and libraries. Many bookstores now offer the option of online shopping, but independent bookstores still struggle to protect their revenue streams from the encroachment of large online retailers such as Amazon. In public libraries, e-books and audiobooks are now offered alongside physical copies of books, and computer/internet access has become a standard service. Public libraries and some community bookstores also act as “third spaces”—social, communal areas distinct from the home or workplace. Additionally, libraries provide vital information, services, and signposting in times of crisis, such as in the aftermath of natural disasters. They offer daily shelter and resources to vulnerable members of society, often alongside classes and other opportunities for learning and development.

While the USA has high literacy rates compared with the global average, only a minority of American citizens regularly read books. National book sales have significantly decreased since the 2000s, a fact often attributed to advances in digital technology. Alternative digital pastimes such as internet games, web browsing, and social media have supplanted reading as a favored hobby for many people. However, many social media users, particularly young people accessing BookTok, are encouraged and inspired to read by online content and recommendations. In fact, the notable but temporary uptick in book sales during the COVID-19 lockdowns implies that social causes and factors—such as widespread economic hardship—are equally if not more significant in diminishing sales.

Libraries are deeply involved in tackling widespread insufficient access to books. There are many potential social causes contributing to a lack of access to books, such as poverty, a lack of social integration for immigrant families, and difficulty in procuring foreign-language books for non-English-speaking people of limited resources. Library services in the community, schools, and prisons provide free access to books, with interlibrary loans making a wide array of titles available. However, a major trend in recent years has been the concerted and well-organized efforts of certain conservative groups to ban books from libraries, particularly school libraries. Such censorship has been met with significant backlash and opposition due to its juxtaposition with freedom of expression.