Book review, Education and Science, Lithuania, Markets and Companies

Used books' stores, on the contrary, look forward to the bright future, since in this kind of retail points, books, read by someone else, can be found much cheaper than in ordinary shops. Second-hand bookshops offer books up to tenfold cheaper that is the key to their success in the crisis times, informs LETA/LETA.

"We've tried and now see that we gain from the crisis. Customers do not buy that much books in stores as before, they prefer to come here," said Aiste Degutiene, the establisher of read books club which was opened in the Vilnius Old Town in the beginning of January this year. Interested persons are offered a possibility to bring their books to the store, and exchange them for some other book, brought by someone else, or stay in the club and skim an interesting edition while sipping a cup of coffee or tea.

Customary bookshops and editorials currently are not able to offer cheaper books because the sales plummet, at the same time, they do not plan to increase prices either. It is expected that commercially beneficial books will be mostly published in the nearest future to guarantee the reliable income.

"Libraries have ceased acquiring books, therefore, we reduce the volume of editions. The less books are published, the higher is the price," told Saulius Zukas – the head of Lithuania-based publishing house Baltos Lankos.

Publishers admit that in 2010 the choice of books will be smaller.

"The most risky is publishing of picture albums. But we are able to publish them in case we have supporters. Anyway, for books with larger budget we need more current assets, which lack now. Therefore, apparently, commercial books will dominate on the market, at the same time we look for both serious and exciting literature," noted Zukas.