BOSTON -- The final chapter is playing out for a Newbury Street landmark that has attracted book lovers of all types since 1975.

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NewsCenter 5's Kelley Tuthill reported that the Avenue Victor Hugo Bookshop will close its doors by the end of the year, a victim of the Information Age and increasing rents.

Owner Vincent McCaffrey was selling books from a pushcart when he found the space on Newbury Street and opened Avenue Victor Hugo Bookshop. In 27 years, the quirky store became known for its wide selection of used books, magazines and a cat named Blue Bart.

"This is a rainy day, middle of the week," McCaffrey said. "On a typical day like this, we'd have 20 to 40 people in the store browsing. I don't have 10 now. That's a big change.

McCaffrey said he has lost a third of his business in three years.

"Our business really started taking a dive when the Internet really became solid," he said. "That was about 1999."

The store is the opposite of the large bookstores opening in malls across the country. At Victor Hugo's, rarely seen books can be seen on almost any shelf, for those willing to look for it.

"Everybody's so concerned about their time. Everybody's in a rush," McCaffrey said. "But what we're geared to is browsing."

The store will close at the end of the year, and McCaffrey will launch a massive sale next week, with more than 130,000 books discounted by 50 percent. With the proceeds, he plans to relocate, but he said it won't be the same.

"You get attached to your customers," he said. "We've had some good ones. It's part of the business."