Someone asked me the other day why we run a book bestseller list that is so widely different from what is published in most daily newspapers and periodicals. The list we run, I said, defines who we are as well as about anything in this entire newspaper.

The weekly independent Book Sense Bestseller List is on page 18 of this week’s paper. It is compiled from sales reports from hundreds of small, independent bookstores across the country. Stores like Sloan’s in Waynesville (soon to be The Waynesville Book Co.), City Lights in Sylva, Chapter 2 in Cashiers, and Books Unlimited in Franklin.

Take a look at the titles in the list. It isn’t completely dominated by the likes of Stephen King, John Grisham or Anne Rice. Their names may appear on the list, but many of the authors — and their works — are unknown to most of us.

Unlike the more famous New York Times bestseller list, these writers and books became popular by word of mouth, perhaps by local book clubs, perhaps because a teacher at a small college mentioned the book to a group of students or other faculty members. More readers picked up on the book and, slowly, it gains steam and more bookstores order it.

That isn’t how it happens in the world of big-time publishing. Take a book by, say, Grisham. His publisher lets the big boys — Barnes & Nobles, Books a Million — know when the next novel will be shipped. These stores order millions of copies without having read the book. Their goal is simply to make piles of money, and they, along with the publisher, help advertise the new book. Hence, a book that has a million orders makes the bestseller list before it is ever read or reviewed.

This is not a criticism of these top writers. I like nothing better than to curl up with a Grisham mystery and just let time pass me by. And I occasionally visit these big bookstores. Come holiday time, or whenever I frequent big cities, I usually drop in and sometimes make a purchase.

What I find disturbing about the big stores, though, is the same problem I have with Wal-Mart. One of my favorite lines to my children is “I hate Wal-Mart.” I don’t literally hate the store, and I am glad its employees have secure jobs and that the corporation contributes to local charities.

But taken as a whole, the millions we spend at Wal Mart do little to enrich our community. The riches go to stockholders who live in seaside mansions in California or in penthouses in Chicago, New York and Miami. Quite the opposite, every dollar we spend at independently owned downtown stores and shops are re-invested in our community. We are building community when we shop at these stores, re-investing in the value and belief system that define this town and this region. Local schools benefit (and taxes are kept lower), the owners of that store buy cars, buy homes, and buy property right here. They care about their employees’ lives.

Of course people must make personal and business purchasing decisions that do not always adhere to this philosophy. I fight this every day — the need to save money so I can re-invest in my company — but at least I try to remain conscious of how my business decisions do affect my community, and I make every effort to trade locally.

One of the great mistakes of the capitalism we practice today — and one not imagined as the great global marketplace mushroomed as technology improved — is that cheaper at the checkout counter is always better. That is not true. Saving a few cents on one end by sending our money to corporate giants costs us on the other end by weakening the economic strength and independence of the community we call home. It also weakens our local heritage because the more expensive hand-made items from this area go unsold. Many people I know spend hours volunteering on the local boards of different community groups — simply because they want to make this a better place to live — and then turn right around and help undo their own work by sending their hard-earned dollars to a big city hundreds of miles away.

So we choose to publish a list of books sold at independent mom-and-pop stores. It’s that complicated and that simple.

(Scott McLeod can be reached at info@smokymountainnews.com)