New Technology and Politics & Prose

The technological revolution continues to re-shape many aspects of our daily lives, offering conveniences we could not have dreamed of a few decades ago, but also creating distances of time and space that often reduce human interaction and enjoyment. At Politics & Prose we know that, for booklovers, no website or Tweet can ever fully replicate the experience of browsing the bookstore’s shelves, consulting with a bookseller, or listening to an author’s reading.

On the upside, new technologies enable customers to stay in touch with the store and engage with us in new ways. And we’ve been excited over the past six months to begin to expand our social media efforts, particularly Facebook and Twitter, and to explore improvements to our website. Several of our talented staff -- savvy booksellers and experts in digital media -- are using their skills and creativity to broaden and enliven the ways in which we engage customers and “followers” electronically. Today, customers can enjoy Tweets and links to blogs by going to our website (www.politics-prose.com) and clicking on our Twitter and Facebook icons at the top right of the home page. (You don’t have to have your own Facebook page or Twitter account to follow P&P. All you have to do is click on the icons on our page.)

In addition to reminders about our daily author events and our rotating staff picks, our social media sites offer book news, essays, lists, gossip, facts, as well as humorous and clever asides from P&P booksellers. We also schedule live chats on Facebook that enable customers to ask questions directly of our staff (and occasionally the owners) and enjoy conversations with each other.

And, of course, customers can always order books directly from our website, and download ebooks to most e-readers (except the Kindle or Kindle Touch), no matter the time of day or day of the week.

While we hope that each of you has the opportunity to come to the store and experience P&P first-hand, we will also remain committed to offering thoughtful, interesting, and innovative ways to keep you connected to us through digital media. Hopefully, this will give you the best of both worlds.

-- Brad and Lissa