I like their Take A Pitbull Home For The Weekend program, and if you call them service dogs, you can even take them into grocery stores with you.

You do have to sign a waiver of liability for the last program, mind you ...

Sad news indeed.

(Am I the only one that shops at Powell's?)

Thanks for linking to my post on this topic and the previous one about angry Borders employees.

Amazon will now own ABE, Bookfinder, Fillz, Chrislands and a minority stake in LibraryThing. Amazon now has competing interests in Shelfari and LibraryThing which is a bit odd.

The playing field for independent booksellers shrinks with Alibris and Biblio the remaining players. While quick changes likely won't occur, we can look at the history of Bibliofind, a previous Amazon acquisition, as a type of track record. (Hint: It no longer really exists.)

Long term, will Amazon put more money into ABE marketing, helping to squeeze out the other players in the space? Will they standardize shipping and make it a profit center, making it less attractive for sellers? Will they replace ABE's search with it's own, an improvement in my book?

And will the only other titan, Barnes & Noble, sit by and do nothing? In a few years we could see the sites consolidate, and when only a few options remain, sellers could feel the squeeze.