Cleverly disguised as an ad for a fantastic book by an amazingly talented artist and writer, Chris Monroe.  I work hard to promote the many excellent books I come across – a great number of them from within this region:  blogging (at least semi-regularly), writing a weekly newsletter and talking to people through facebook and twitter and, most rewardingly, at the store – talking about books and authors that I love and that people have shared with me.  It’s hard to then see a book that I’ve worked to introduce people to being used as a way to drive money to amazon.

I’m not saying you need to buy it at the store where I work.  Or buy it at Fitgers.  Or buy it up at the Mall.  Or even that it’s the end of the world to buy it from amazon.  But I do want to confront this notion that amazon is either neutral or the only game in town (which it most decidedly is not since it has nothing to do with our town whatsoever) when it comes to links about media, especially books. IndieBound lets you search all books in print and then, after you’ve learned a bit more about them, lets you find a locally owned, independent store of your choice.  You can search for varieties of local businesses across the US. You can add you favorite local businesses.  Authors can affiliate themselves with IndieBound and receive a portion of the sale (not being an author, I have to rely on rumor that the terms are more generous than amazon).

I’m not advocating amazon abstinence, but really try to measure your options more carefully. Get excited about local businesses. Get excited for local events. Celebrate our musicians, writers, actors, publishers, artists, etc. who really make this area so wonderful.