Plus, small local bookstores have no idea who you are (in general) when you walk in the front door. No tracking codes, no "browsing history" in your back pocket

Plus, small local bookstores have no idea who you are (in general) when you walk in the front door. No tracking codes, no "browsing history" in your back pocket. You get to have full and total anonymity (even if you're a regular, your path through the store will be yours and yours alone). You can browse the aisles and look at any old book's spine you please, pull it off the shelf and read the inside cover or maybe some employee notes on a card if there are any. And the next time you come in, that book won't be in the front window since you touched it. You can start the whole process over again.