Bookstore sales fell 6.4% in September, compared to September 2013, according to figures released Friday by the U.S. Census Bureau.

September sales were $1.07 billion, down from $1.15 billion a year ago. The decline came after a small August increase and August remains the only month that monthly sales in 2014 exceeded those in 2013. For the first nine months of 2014, bookstore sales were declined 5.4%, falling to $8.57 billion from the same period in 2013.

For the entire retail segment, sales were up 6.0% in September and ahead 2.9% in the January-September period