I used to buy a LOT of books at amazon.com.  I have done so for many years.  

Then, in December, Amazon offered its customers a discount if they purchased stuff online that they had scanned  while shopping at local retail bookseller's establishments.   This right after Borders closed 650 stores.  I really liked Borders.  The management at Borders made a lot of mistakes, but amazon definitely contributed to their demise.

Now, I appreciate the ease of use on amazon.  I bought cheap, used books almost exclusively there, because, hey - that's what I can afford.   Books are expensive and I have to feed my habit.  

For me, Desidarius Erasmus said it best in a letter written in 1500, "When I get a little money I buy books; and if any is left I buy food and clothes."  Although in my case, there wouldn't be much clothes buying going on.  

Here is my methodology for book selection:  I log onto my account at goodreads.com, where I have added over 2,245 books that I would like to read.  They are almost exclusively rated 4+ on a scale of 5.  They are all great books.

 Then I sort them by the number of reviews that have been added to the goodreads website.  For example, Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen has been rated by 278,479 goodreads members, and has an average rating of 4.02.  (How is that even possible?)  Another example: toward the bottom of my list is  Krazy Kat:  The Comic Art of George Herriman by Patrick McDonnel.  It has been rated by 151 goodreads members for an average rating of 4.42.   I have noticed that certain books, say, poetry, have inflated values, while books on feminism are rated lower than one might expect.  I adjust my list accordingly.

I do this because I am a reader AND a writer; AND because, in the sixth grade, while walking to school and reading a book at the same time, it suddenly occurred to me that I would never be able to read every book ever written.  This realization stopped me in my tracks and tilted my world on its very axis.   So, I haved developed this way of choosing what book to read next completely out of necessity. 

Using this method, I have recently read:  Pride and Prejudice, The Left Hand of Darkness, The Giver, The Book Thief,  The Poisonwood Bible, and The Red Tent.  They are all fantastic, with The Book Thief an especial favorite of mine.  

I make a list of the top ten books on my list and then go to my local library.  If they have any of the books on the list, I immediately take them.  If they don't, I order one of them through inter-library loan.  (All hail the great and powerful interlibrary loan!)

For books that I cannot obtain in this manner, I used to either buy them used on Amazon, or buy them on kindle if they were very cheap or free. The average price I pay for a book, including shipping, is about four dollars.  For the best books in the world.

So, I am pissed at Amazon for pissing me off.  I also LOVE bookstores, and I cannot allow them to disappear from the earth for the sake of ease and frugality.  Authors need brick and mortar book stores to have readings in.  And for readers to overspend in.  So many are already gone.  

Ok, Bezos.  You had to spoil it for all of us.  So, I am boycotting amazon.com.  I am going to buy from brick and mortar bookstores, even though I'll have to pay more.  Even though it is less convenient.

I urge anyone who loves books to do the same.  Before it's too late.