ONE LESS CORPORATE BOX TO BROWSE >>>

When it comes to book shopping, there's nothing I like more than an awesome local bookstore. King's and Tacoma Book Center have consumed oh so many of my dollars over the years.

But when it comes to book browsing, well, it's tough to beat the kind of scale you find at the giant cube that is Borders by the Tacoma Mall. I've spent hours sifting through travel books to everywhere or sitting in a corner of the food section drooling over recipe ideas. And then there's the time spent standing baffled at the sheer number of Star Wars books that have been written since I gave up trying to read them all. ...

So it's with no great feeling of tragedy, but still a touch of sadness, that I learned of the Tacoma Borders' imminent demise. With the Gig Harbor store already on the way out, Tacoma-along with Federal Way-was added in a second wave to the official closure list last Thursday.

Proceedings begin today with the commencement of the requisite inventory clearance sale, and most newly-axed stores are targeted for late-May closing.

So long, Borders. You were a giant, corporate box, but I liked wandering around in you anyway.