This Dec. 11, 2009 photo shows the B. Dalton Book Store at Mall del Norte in Laredo, Texas. With a population of nearly a quarter-million people, this border city could soon be the largest in the nation without a single bookseller. Schoolchildren have pleaded for a reprieve from next month's planned shutdown of the B. Dalton bookstore. After that, the nearest store will be 150 miles away.
(AP Photo/Ricardo Santos)