In the midst of the era of every possible form of electronic hyperstimulation, bookstores may seem to be falling by the wayside. When there's so much digital content flooding your life and news updates every minute of every day, it seems like most people would forego the actual place where ideas have been traded for millennia: the bookstore, otherwise known as 'a real location outside of the bedroom you hate to leave since you can just order everything online.' But as dubious as the notion of independent bookstore may seem, they exist, and they flourish, even in 2016.

Large online retailers like Amazon and iBooks control a considerable amount of the book market, with e-readers like Kindle, Nook, and iPad often working in conjunction with such retailers to sell their wares. In addition to these, there are, of course, masses of physical bookstores, commercialized chains that usually offer little to no customer service and stock flimsy, insipid, so-called bestsellers. Their entire model is based on the profit produced, making online booksellers a rather formidable threat to their business. This is because the kind of people that frequent such bookstores are usually those who can do exactly the same thing on Amazon and the like. They walk in with either a clear idea of exactly what they want, purchase it, and leave; or they walk in cluelessly, pick up the first pretty-covered bestseller they see, purchase it, and leave. But online, it's even easier — you don't even need to leave your house. Just a click of a button, and voilà; the doorbell rings a few days later and there it is, at your doorstep. Pretty elementary, I'd say.

But then, there are bookstores that actually care, not about profit, but about readers, and about the read. The independent bookstore. The bookstore where the people who run the store are always inside it, reading and recommending. The one where the books aren't simply pulled off of the shelves because they're "bestsellers" or books that customers came in looking for. The books here are those you can't find at your average commercial bookstore, amid all the flavorless fluff. Meticulously curated, each one poured over lovingly by true bibliophiles, they create an immense selection catered to the truly literary souls — whether they prefer romance, gastronomy, or poetry. Where books are judged by anything but their covers, and readers lounge for hours within the warm embrace of books, flipping through volumes and volumes, for those are books you know are worth your time, worth reading, and worth buying. Independent, cared-for bookstores are not everywhere, but they exist and they are loved and frequented again and again. Even in this digital, fast-paced universe, people haven't forgotten the OG form of entertainment and gaining knowledge: books. And that isn't going to change.

And with that, I'd like to shamelessly plug a novel independent bookstore located in Mumbai, India: Wayword and Wise. Please like the Facebook page and be sure to go visit if you're in the area!