The author is worried that the sale of the high -street store of WH SMITH may create a "book desert", which reduces the opportunity for young people to enter reading. The publisher hopes that any new buyer will make books a core part of the business.

Last weekend, the retailer confirmed that it was selling about 500 high street stores because it focused on its 1,300 branches at the airport, hospitals and railway stations.

Author Gareth Rubin said that although WH SMITH is often "sneer" because "it is not high enough", it is "the place to introduce books to people." "The child starting from the comics and then moved to children's reading, and then the adult part. People went in to fry the pan and took Jeffrey Archer's thriller. It was good. If it disappears, we have disappeared, we have disappeared, we disappear, we disappear, we disappear. Will lose that "

The company confirmed that this is "exploring potential strategic choices", including "possible sales". Its high street business is profitable, last year's revenue was 452 million pounds and £ 32 million.

"When I was a kid, I used to let WH SMITH gift vouchers spend on Christmas, so I heard that chain stores are selling its high street stores to have a very special nostalgia," Victoria Selman, the author of the novel, )explain. Essence

"Sarah Underwood) said:" I think the importance of this book is not exaggerated in the imports of Whismith and stores. " Readers who are even more reluctant and usually do not access bookstores or those who cannot access books at a relatively high price are important. "

In many towns in the UK, "Wh Smith is the only bookstore that can be visited, so I think this may now be a huge blow for readers in the book desert." She hopes that independent bookstores will become a substitute Essence

Rosie Talbot said this chain is "such a precious part on our streets." WH SMITH was established in Little Grosvenor Street in London in 1792, established by Henry Walton Smith and his wife Anna. Its high street store now hires about 5,000 employees.

Many authors told the Guardian that sales would have a negative impact on the writer. Rubin said that this would be "a nail in the coffin of British writers." "Britain has never really competed with Germany to build cars or China on electronic products, but we can occupy a place on the world stage through literature." He called for the author, publishing the industry and bookstores to provide more government support, including tax reduction.

Selman said that Richard and Judy Reading Club, who cooperated with WH SMITH, was selected to provide her with "a wonderful opportunity to attract new readers who might not meet my novels." The potential sales "may mean the end of the reading club. Therefore, in the increasingly crowded and competitive market, the opportunity for writers to stand out gradually disappear."

Both the two main publishers Hachette and Bloomsbury told the Guardian that they hoped that new buyers would continue to prioritize books as the core quotation, and Pan Macmillan said that the WH SMITH HIGH Street store was "an important part of the book ecosystem." Bloomsbury added that the company's "attracting extensive readers is still important."

David Headley, managing director of the publisher Goldsboro Books, said that a sale of "will cause great damage to the publishing industry and the author." This will leave a gap in promoting the books between business novels and emerging writers, especially when raising the future issues related to Richard and Judy Reading Club.

Chris Vick added: "As people buy books less and less channels, the world is narrower." There are fewer choices, less popular, and less readers. "