Dear Mr. Riggio

Dear Mr. Stephen Riggio,
CEO of Barnes and Noble, Inc.

Hello! I am writing for a couple of reasons. First, I need to congratulate you on what looks to be the finest electronic reader book thingy on the market, or sort of on the market. The "Nook" looks magnificent and fabulous and seems to be far superior to other electronic readers on the market, all 1 of them (the Kindle, because I'm not sure you can even count the Sony version). So big props to you! (clapping of hands)

I do however have an alterior motive with this letter. You see, about 9 months ago, my 12 year old son, Brooks, decided that he just had to have an electronic reader. HAD.TO.HAVE.ONE. This was before we had any idea about the greatness of the Nook. Well, of course, we did not run out to the store/computer to order online to buy him one. We waited to see if this little infatuation of his was going to continue, besides, it cost $250.00. Well thank goodness that we waited, because this Fall, we were introduced to the world's most premier e-reader, being the Nook. And, well, his infatuation also did not wane. In fact, with his introduction to the Nook, his love for the e-reader only grew exponentially. You see, my son almost single handedly keeps Barnes and Noble in business. I know, a little bit nerdy for a 12 year old. But I promise, he's super cute, totally athletic, into sports, smart, and funny. He plays football, baseball, golf, and tennis. But he has this LOVE for reading. And, much to my dismay, he does not believe in the library. It's an expensive habit he has of buying and reading books, but who can deny a boy a book? He also does not like the store called "Half Price Books". He asked me if we could somehow sanitize the books that we bought there. I know, once again, a little nerdy.

So now that we have established his love of books, the foremost reason of my letter is as follows. I realize that I am a nobody really. Just a mom of 3 in Texas, that's all. So, when we found out about the Nook, my husband and I knew instantly that this was THE CHRISTMAS PRESENT for Brooks. This would be his gift, not some dumb video game system. The Nook, can anyone think of a better present? Well, I'm not gonna lie.... he actually would LOVE to adopt a 2 -4 year old precious little boy orphan from Ethiopia for Christmas, but that's not in the cards for December 2009. So, the next best thing is a Nook. So here's where the loser mom (me) comes into play. You see, I did not see the need to "PRE ORDER" this fantastic Nook. I mean don't you have all of your books available by pre - order??? But one can still get them on the day of release. So on November 23rd, my husband said, why don't you just go ahead and pre-order the Nook. I said, "Why??? I'm just gonna go to Barnes and Noble on November 30th and pick one up" That date being, of course you know, the release date of the fabulous Nook. So, I ended up doing as he suggested and got online to order one. Well, you can imagine my surprise when I went to order one and the shipping date was JANUARY 4, 2010!!!!! Back to square one.... I knew that there would be a few for sale in the store on the release date of November 30th. So I call my local Barnes and Noble store in Southlake, TX on November 29th just to see if I can get any inside scoop as to what time people might be lining up. (Because I have experience with standing in lines to get Zhu Zhu pets for hours.) Well, you know what I found out.... uh huh... not gonna be in the stores until December 7th. So, on the morning of November 30th, being the detective that I am, I began to call several stores between the Dallas/ Fort Worth metroplex all the way down Interstate 35 all the way to San Antonio, trying to locate a NOOK! Guess what several of your store workers told me at various locations throughout Texas....their gut feeling is that Barnes and Noble stores will not have any in the stores to sell before January! SAY WHAAAATTTT??? FREAK OUT MODE. I gather myself, and go to the computer and promptly order one, only to find out that I missed the January 4th shipping deadline by 15 painstaking minutes. And now, the ship date is JANUARY 11TH.

And that's why I'm a loser Mom. All because I didn't "Pre-Order" a NOOK, back in October, when we found out about it. Which brings me to the point of my letter, isn't there any way that anyone you know could possibly PRETTY PLEASE possibly move us to a shipping date that is before Christmas. I'm sure there are not many 12 year old boys that are counting on this, but mine is... and it would make his Christmas. He posted on his facebook today that he is sad because he knows there is no way he can possibly get one for Christmas. You see, he's even advertising for you! I mean really.... what 12 year old boy wants a certificate that says he is getting a Nook on January 11, some 17 days after Christmas???? So please, I ask you, be a Santa. Help make his Christmas all that a 12 year old's Christmas should be. Could you just be a dear and move our shipping date before December 25th. He would be the happiest boy and I would be one very grateful mom.

I appreciate your full and undivided attention to my letter. We thank you for your excellent customer service in your stores. And most of all, we are excited to see your fabulous new product, the Nook.

Sincerely,
Heather Cheatham