Sir, – Sara Keating suggests that ebooks "might actually be the saviours of the industry" (Weekend Review, March 9th).
Maybe for the publishers – as they can continue to publish books in whatever format: but absolutely not for the bookseller! Are bookshops not part of the books industry?Bookshops do not even get a mention in her article, except when she points out that research suggests that “readers of all persuasions still prefer to use bookshops for browsing”.
That is exactly what is happening – people are browsing, asking for recommendations and then going online to buy. Bookshops will not survive in these circumstances. It is very simple – unless people continue buying books in a bookshop, we will sadly follow the same path as HMV. – Yours, etc,
LIZ MELDON,
The Rathgar Bookshop,
Rathgar Road, Dulbin 6.