Most big box bookstores don't have as much variety or depth as we've come to expect from exposure to online book sellers. You have to go to a sizeable used bookstore to get that (famous examples being Powell's in Portland and The Strand in NYC).
The problem is that people have diverse interests (niches) and a typical brick and mortar retail operation simply can't afford to carry much depth in any particular niche. The result is a lot of niches shallowly represented, at most big box stores you can't even find all of the books written by a given author, even famous ones, unless they are insanely popular at the moment.
Ironically I think in the next few decades the pre-internet trend will reverse and independent used bookstores will stick around longer than the chains.
The problem is that people have diverse interests (niches) and a typical brick and mortar retail operation simply can't afford to carry much depth in any particular niche. The result is a lot of niches shallowly represented, at most big box stores you can't even find all of the books written by a given author, even famous ones, unless they are insanely popular at the moment.
Ironically I think in the next few decades the pre-internet trend will reverse and independent used bookstores will stick around longer than the chains.