Borders yesterday

Well, it's official. My local Borders is about as dead as can be. I went to vulturize yesterday. The classical music section was pretty much empty. The children's books were just about gone - I helped to make them even more gone, buying up 5 hardcovers (Madeline, Thumbelina, The Snowy Day, among others).

If anyone wants to say that my daughter and I will simply browse through Amazon's children's book section online and that it will be the same thing simply doesn't know children. Or books. Or the online experience.

Of course, there was a time when only monks had access to books. Shakespeare died leaving 37 books in his possession. None of them were Caldecott Award winners. Or even nominees.

My daughter (2.4 years old) was having a fit last night. I think it started with a piece of lint... Though I didn't think any of the books I had bought her would be useful to her this year, I decided to sit with her and Madeline. She loved it. It was the experience with the book and her father. There were some lines she understood - the girls brush their teeth and go to sleep. There were lines she didn't have a clue about - the girls also "break bread." At the end, "there is no more", she asked for more. I wound up reading Madeline five times. On a loop, essentially.

Some things remain the same while others fade away.