What's a bookworm to do?

Sandy Petrosky, of Washington, has lost the lease on Sandy's Book Shoppe, which she operates on East McMurray Road, Peters, and must close.

So with 40,000 books remaining on wooden shelves, she's turning the page, ending this chapter of life and closing the cover March 31 on the 23-year-old bookstore.

"Absolutely, I'll try to sell them," Petrosky said of the books in the cavernous shop that range in topics from philosophy to weight loss, with particular emphasis on romance and mystery.

When Petrosky closes shop, the South Hills will lose one of its few book exchanges.

"Now there won't be anything but supermarkets and offices," she said. "It won't be fun around here anymore."

The shop's closing also will put an end to three book clubs and other community functions held in her shop, where people exchanged books they owned for other books. The books also are available for sale.

For now, books are going in only one direction -- out the door.

Besides the loss of her lease, Petrosky blames the demise of her shop on the success of chain bookstores, Internet vendors such as Amazon.com, and Wal-Mart and Sam's Club, which sell new books for the price she buys them wholesale.

When she conceded, "There is no margin," she was referring to profits and not the printed page.

There are other reasons for the closing:

"After 9/11, things came to a screeching halt," she said. "People were no longer reading. They were watching TV news.

"People are being more selective with their dollars. People who were saving money here now are going to the library."

Even the price of antiquarian books she sells on eBay, the Internet auction site, have declined, reflecting growing disinterest in reading, she said.

In 1995, Petrosky bought the shop from Nancy Christiana, who had opened the store in 1981 several doors down East McMurray Road from its current location.

Christiana had about 15,000 books, but Petrosky expanded the inventory by taking books in exchange and buying them at auctions and estate sales. She also bought books new. She opened the shop to fund-raising efforts and community events and encouraged debate about "politics, religion and sex.

"One person said it was the intellectual center of Washington County. I said, 'I think you are exaggerating.' But any topic and any opinions stayed here. It was a sounding board," Petrosky said.

A fan of the classics, she said her reading declined once she took over the shop, which she operates with help from daughters Dawn Renee and Leslie Ann. But she has managed to continue reading, especially major books, including the Harry Potter series that she said were as enjoyable for adults as for children.

She will keep several books she's bought over the years, including an early 1800s Moroccan leather-bound edition of "The Iliad," early editions of "Hiawatha" and McFarland's "History of Washington County."

But the rest of the books remain on sale for 25 percent off. She has plans for a massive clearance at the end of March, when she will hand each customer a bag to fill for $10. Petrosky said she would donate all unsold children's books to a poor school district in West Virginia.

For now, a steady stream of customers continues shopping for books and offering condolences about her decision to close the shop.

"It's amazing, the people coming in and saying they will miss you," she said. "I get teary-eyed. I never realized how valuable people considered it.

"I put nine or 10 years of my life into this business, and it was a fun, interesting, exciting and joyful business with a lot of high points," Petrosky said. "I've watched children growing up, and I won't get to see them continue on. I have a lot of memories."