Why doesn't Barnes and Noble just lower its prices?
Kling's maxim: Price Discrimination Explains Everything
Who are the sorts of people that purchase at Barnes &amp; Noble? Less price elastic buyers, like those that are purchasing a gift, those less comfortable with buying online, those that value in store recommendations and assistance, and those that just like the in store experience. Barnes &amp; Noble wants to maximize profits, not maximize revenue. Selling to more price sensitive buyers like you means also lowering prices for less price sensitive buyers.
Say the cookbook costs Barnes &amp; Noble \$15 to buy. If they set the price at \$20 they make \$10 of profit selling one copy to you and one copy to the price inelastic buyer. If they set the price at \$40 they make \$25 in profit selling just one copy to the price inelastic buyer.
In summary: Barnes &amp; Noble targets buyers willing to pay high prices and lowering prices means making so much less per unit sold that they cannot make up the lost profits on higher quantities