As was mentioned at the beginning of my last post, I just got back from summer vacation (the first one in a WHILE - thanks COVID). While waiting for 5 hours on a layover in the Houston airport, I finished my book, and I finished it quickly. I brought two books on this trip: In Cold Blood by Truman Capote and People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry. With two books down, I was on a roll - I needed to find another book. This began my Airport Book Odyssey: the hunt for a book I (1) wanted to read and (2) wouldn't be too heavy for my tiny little travel backpack. I, along with my siblings, marched up to the handy-dandy interactive map and clicked "Books/Magazines/Newspapers". Several results surfaced (5 of which I visited).
I visited the CNBC smart shop, Houston Chronicle, Southern Living, Shady Lane, and Texas Monthly News. Through my journey, I wanted to answer the questions: Why am I so selective about where I buy my books? Should I be selective? What are the pros of airport books? (haha are there any...?) Cons?
Along this journey, I realized writing this piece would be more worthwhile than buying a book for myself. Hopefully, you'll see why.
I enter this photo as Exhibit A: a photo of our farthest walk (at the last gate) - the lovely and beautiful Shady Lane.
The Shops: Pros
Quick and convinient, the airport shops I visited offered what consumers in an airport want. Tic tacs, candy, chips, newspapers, cheap chargers, and even books: all of the shops I visited did their fundamental job. The job of an airport kiosk or shop is to give those who made it past security what they need and fast. Layovers for more than 3 hours are the only circumstances in which consumers luxuriate in going to these stores, and even then, it is not glamorous.
You need a book; you get a book. It is that simple. The simplicity is certainly a pro.
You need a book fast; you get a book fast. It is that simple. The swiftness is certainly a pro.
Read & Return: often, airport shops have programs where you can buy a book and return it at a program-owned location for a full refund with the presentation of the receipt. (I personally HATE this business model and whole idea, but I understand it is a pro for a lot of people. If you want to do this, visit your local library! Just a piece of advice, these "drop-off" locations are few and far between. You'll end up keeping the book, but for a lot of consumers this seems like a pro so in this section it shall stay!)
The Shops: Cons
Let's say (hypothetically) that you've gone to a lovely book review blog (let's just say it's, I don't know THIS ONE) and you have to have They Wish They Were Us by Jennifer Goodman right now, here in the airport. You might not get it. In fact, you probably won't get it. Let's say your back up is your old favorite you haven't read in forever Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. You definitely won't get Austen's most famous work.
Why? Airport shops have a limited amount of shelf space for books. While I tip my hat to you for wanting to read these two books, Goodman's is almost a year old and Austen's is a classic. Neither of these books are going to sell extremely well in an airport due to their age (even if it is just one year) and/or classical nature.
The limited stock is certainly a con; however, I understand having to stock books that sell, as an airport is not known for selling books but for air travel.
Also, I noticed all of the airport shops I went to had a "bestseller" list (whether they claimed it was from the New York Times or some random publishing company). All of these lists were different. While some kiosks had similar lists, number 8 at Shady Lane was not the same as number 8 at the Houston Chronicle.
Confusing / sketchy "Top Ten Bestseller" lists are certainly a con.
Exhibit B: Pay special attention to the "Hot Read" signs (???) and the "Bestseller #_" (By the way, congratulations to Katrina M. Adams for being both Bestseller #6 and #7 with Own the Arena...?) (taken at the Houston Chronicle)
Exhibit C (taken at the CNBC smartshop)
When stopping into an airport for a quick book, consumers are looking for a light book to throw in their bags. All of the books seemed extra large and were almost all hard backs. While I love a good hardcover and large collector's edition of my favorite books, my main mission when stopping into these kiosks wasn't to grab a keepsake.
In fact, the term "airport novel" is an actual word for a book a person buys, reads in the transit time, and discards upon arriving at his/her destination. Is it easy to chuck a $26 hardcover and slick jacketed book into the trash when I get to the next airport? NO!
Exhibit D: This is NOT an "airport novel" (However, this is the only book - in this exact format - I saw at every store on our airport book Odessey. Observe the previous exhibit for evidence...).
Exhibit E: These are airport novels: mass-market, paperback, sometimes a little sinful, easy to throw away.
In conclusion (for those who do not care to read my long-winded explanation of the pros and cons): Do I understand why airport books are important? Yes. Did I almost buy a book myself? Yes. Do I think airport kiosks serve a purpose? Yes. Do I like them? No. Do you they make sense? No. Are they effectively designed for readers? Defintely not.
Why am I selective about where I buy books?
I like buying from independent booksellers and indies. But why do I? Amazon's cheaper and airport kiosks sell the same books with hardbacks and book jackets. Indie bookstores can also be finicky, expensive, inconvenient, and have a restrictive stock of books. So why deal with bookstores with political agendas and high prices?
Put simply, it's a trust thing. I trust Parnassus Books in Nashville, Tennessee (the bookstore I shop) to curate a stock of books I like to shop from. Also, going into a physical store with iconic tall shelves that have a need for Belle-esque rolling retrieval ladders is an experience - one I want to have. Even though my purchase of two books yesterday was $50, I also paid indirectly for the person at the cash register to speak to me about my books. I paid for seeing the twinkle lights and hearing Patsy Cline's sultry voice belt out "Leavin' on Your Mind". I paid for my paper bag that no matter how many I get, I will keep collecting to my sentimental heart's content.
Sure, I buy books from Amazon as a quick gift and my textbooks from Follett, but there is a tangible reason why I visit Parnassus on Mondays or Wednesdays. It's close to the same reason why some spring for that real Gucci bag or Hermes scarf one time in their life over a knock off you could buy 50 of at a time. The real Louis Vuitton tote looks almost exactly the same as the ten times less pricey knock-off. Who knows if you are carrying the real thing or a fake one? No one except you would know. No one would know if you got that copy of Elin Hilderbrand's newest book from Amazon, from the airport, or from Sundog Books in Seaside, Florida while vacationing with your family when it finally stopped raining long enough to get lunch at Pickles and a book. But you would know.
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