This article infuriates me.

The sheer size of this man's ego is unbelievable.

It's not a good thing that he evidently was not treated with the respect and care that he deserved to have given him. But...

Being illiterate is the only qualification for getting a job at a chain bookstore in most places

Gee, I hope that made him feel big and safe in his superior intelligence. And I guess it's a good thing I have Spellcheck...

but in Baton Rouge they've added indolence and dim wits. It's not much of a reading town, so the locals seem content to get their Harry Potters and Idiot Guides there.

Gee, does the man realize that 99% of the people that he works with at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge are residents of Baton Rouge? As are most of the students he teaches? This should make him quite popular. I guess it's a good thing he commutes from New Orleans. Since he chooses to reside here, I would assume that we're a much smarter town.

I'm not personally a big fan of the Harry Potter books, but I do realize that they are children's literature. And generally the purchase of children's literature and the encouragement of children to read are a good thing. Those children grow up to be adults who purchase adult literature. I'm thinking that not many of them will grow up to want to purchase his literature though. Nor would they be his desired audience, I would suppose.

However, this is personal.

Oh really? Gee, I never would have guessed that it was personal. The rational and logical tone of the article disguise that ever so well.

My prediction: Barnes & Noble is going down. Sell your stock.

Gosh. The power of this man. Because staff members at one store in a chain that blankets the country have offended him, the entire chain will most likely be out of business soon. It might make good sense for the financially minded of you out there to pay close attention to the minutiae of this man's life. (Gee, that was a big word for an illiterate like me to have used, huh?)

The book not read by Andrei Codrescu at Barnes & Noble is Casanova in Bohemia, available at independent bookstores.

According to the author's website, hyperlinked at the top of the article, it's also available at Amazon.com. That small independent vendor of books on the Web... I would suggest however waiting six months or so. Most of his previous novels have been quickly available in remainder and bargain sections because the publisher has had to sell of the large volume of stock that they weren't able to sell to bookstores, chain or independent.

Mr Codrescu, writing in anger isn't a good idea... you'd think an essayist of your supposed stature would know this...

However, believe me when I say that i will celebrate the day that i find out that your agent isn't able to interest a major publisher in your next work of fiction because of the poor sales of your previous works.