My search for books of various kinds takes me all around the web so when I come across a bookstore’s website, I know what I like and what I don’t. Now that we have a Borders store here in Perth, I’ve got interested in their books and  their style, because I don’t get that sinking “big chain” feeling with them the same as at other “big chain” stores (including the Aussie one I won’t publicise by naming, which doesn’t like little Australian publishers and therefore earns my distinct dislike!).

The Borders UK site is friendly, and cute: it has fun stuff like the “Spookily Accurate Book Suggestor” which claims to give you suitable  book suggestions based on books you like (but their database mustn’t be full yet – I got great suggestions for some books but none for others, including Pride and Prejudice); and I rather like the auto-completion stuff which figures out what title or author you’re typing long before you finish it.

I checked for a few of my more obscure favourite books and found them there; they even do text books (I’m no lawyer, but their collection of law books seems pretty large, and not so interesting – unless you’re a student I guess) and of course I’m partial to the section of books about travel guides and travel narratives.

The funny thing is that after my long complaints about having footnotes in novels, especially in Pulitzer Prize-winning Oscar Wao, then Borders includes this as their fiction book of the month. Obviously they can see past the footnotes to the pretty prize slogan across the top. Me, I’m still having trouble liking it.

Disclaimer: Occasionally I’m asked to review various products or websites; this is a paid review, but rest assured I don’t review anything I don’t like.