I remember reading that bookstores don't actually pay in advance for their inventory, they pay only when a book is scanned and sold.

So, it's unsurprising that the discounts on many of the books won't get too large, as they are likely not even the property of the company.

Went into the Borders in North Bethesda, MD today to see what they had on sale. Lots of STORE CLOSING! signs and various sections of the store were on sale from 20-40% that I saw. However, every book I thought interesting, I compared to Amazon on my iPhone. Amazon beat the Borders sale price every time, sometimes by a significant margin (up to 50% less). This was for new books! I could get things even cheaper if I bought from Amazon used. I gave up after a while and left, totally unimpressed and not wondering why they were closing now. There were a LOT of people in there though and long lines at the checkouts.

The problem is 20-40% off is still basically the same as ordering from Amazon.

That's one disappointing thing: the closing "sales" give you the same discount you can get with a coupon any day of the week. San Mateo's closing, too; quel dommage.