Weekend Stubble

An interesting little notice in this week's Seattle Times was widely overlooked: Seattle area booksellers are increasingly moving towards selling both new and used books:

Powell's will operate a kiosk at University Book Store, 4326 University Way N.E., from Sept. 10 to 18. People will be offered either cash or credit that can be used at University Book Store. The books Powell's buys will be taken back to Oregon to be sold there.

Then on Sept. 22, University Book Store, which already trades in used textbooks, will begin buying and selling used books of all kinds on a permanent basis, general book manager Mark Mouser said. Used books have become a growth business for brick-and-mortar booksellers in recent years. Bailey/Coy Books, 414 Broadway E., started selling used books last week.

Weirdly, the story doesn't mention that the other big local independent, Elliott Bay Book Co., also sells both new and used. Nor is any explanation given why this trend started. Weekend Stubble, as a public service, hereby provides you with its own one-word explanation: Amazon.