“Borders and Waterstone’s are in a bind. As critics argue, they ought to be able to present themselves as specialists, offering ranges that their supermarket rivals cannot match. But they are too large to afford to be seen to ignore the bestsellers. So they have to promote Peter Kay and Jamie Oliver and Martina Cole as well, even though they struggle to compete with the prices offered by Tesco and Amazon. The market, determined by discounts, compels them to lose money.”