Is Atlanta a Literary City?

Thursday, October 12th, 2006 | bitter queen, blog entry, geeky

I guess in context, Atlanta is a very literate city. In 2004, Atlanta ranked 15th on the University of Wisconsin’s list of America’s most Literate cities. There are 4 Borders and 6 Barnes & Nobles in the general Atlanta area.

However, I have to say that having bookstores and high literacy rates is not enough. Thanks to the Internet, and the number of corporate music/books chains out there, anybody can buy a book. This also means that there’s a whole lot of junk out there. What’s needed are more niche independent bookstores to cater to different peoples, not just the “we have everything you need” chains.

*addendum*

Atlanta actually has been the most literary city I lived in. It’s rich history and position as the center of the South has made it into a cultural city, through and through. While Miami was essentially an international jet-set city, Atlanta is one where many people of different backgrounds are living in. I don’t think I would ever be able to be invited to poetry readings in Miami, or visit indie bookstores easily. Cultural exchange is the lifeline to a multicultural city, but let’s hope that this exchange creates a better product, not a deprecation.

While it’s no New York, San Francisco, or Boston, it’s Atlanta.

*cue end of Atlanta Ad.*

5 Comments to Is Atlanta a Literary City?

cindy
October 12, 2006

hey man…i was really impressed by atlanta’s southern literary feel when I visited the Midtown/downtown/5LP area. C’mon in Miami we got “Books and Books” as the only indie bookstore around with any decent cred. Sigh…I think I’m destined to live in a bookish city, I need to be like 15min away from a B&N/Borders/any bookstore.
So where’s your ideal place to live?

Stan
October 12, 2006

I want to live someplace where I can walk for coffee, buy a book, and explore without getting bored.

I spent a summer in Boston once, and I fell in love with it, bad roads and all.

ThatGuy
October 13, 2006

I think Atlanta is a very literary city. I really miss the old Oxford bookstore - that place was teeming with treasures and I literally spent hours in there exploring stack after stack of incredible stuff.

Chris V
October 13, 2006

Oxford Books was the best. I’m glad people still remember them. The chains like B&N and Borders are what killed Oxford.

Jef
October 14, 2006

There is a great independent bookstore in East Atlanta Village called Bound To Be Read Books, which has lots of stuff going on. Check out the website: http://www.boundtobereadbooks.com, and sign up for the enewsletter–the cat writes it!

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angelheaded hipster / the sweetest tongue

gay.asian.poet.southern.geek.photographer.

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