HOW WE READ PODCAST

The notion of technology opening up new spaces for reading is not new. From the Gutenberg Press to Project Gutenberg, the history of reading has been punctuated by projects dedicated to expanding the reach of books through technological innovation. Technological innovation has also seen the expansion of communities of reading, across physical and virtual spaces. In series 2 of the How We Read podcast, we explore the transformed technologies and communities of reading. 

S2E1: Do We Still Need Physical Bookstores? 

Rent and rising costs are perennial issues for bookstores that have to compete with e-books and online vendors. How will physical bookstores survive? What forms of technology and tricks of the trade can they turn to improve profits and sustainability? And do we still need physical bookstores?    

Episode Guests:

• Ibrahim Tahir, Founder of Wardah Books   

• Alex Chua, co-founder of Book Bar  

• Sung Yuen Ling, Manager of Maha Yuyi    

Recommended Reads:

• The Bookshop: A History of the American Bookstore

• “Book City” in Two Streets: The Chinese Bookstore Scene in Postwar Singapore

• Passage of Time: Singapore Bookstore Stories 1881-2016