I have found that it is often a lot quieter in bookstores than in libraries. Of course that may be due to the fact that there are usually far less people in bookstores than in libraries. Back when I owned a bookstore customers would often come up to me with a question and whisper the question. I would smile and say, “This isn’t a library. You don’t have to whisper.”

Of course that was back in the Nineties when people were still conditioned to be quiet around books. With the advent of mobile phones that conditioning abruptly ceased. With smart phones an entirely new conditioning took hold; one that taught that loudness and rudeness are the new social norm and quiet and silence are now rude. Our social standards did a complete flip-flop.

Is this sad? To me it certainly is. But to most people under the age of 35 finding that sad makes me an unhip old fogey Luddite who resists evolving along with social norms. Thank goodness there are still a few patches of nature left where quiet and solitude can be found. And thank goodness there are still a tiny handful of bookstores left. But the bookstores and the nature will soon be gone and the world will soon become one very loud, irritating ringtone.