Bookseller Barnes & Noble narrowed its net loss from $12.6m (£8m) to $6.6m (£4.2m) for its second quarter ended October 29. Sales dropped 0.6% to $1.89bn (£1.21bn), with a decline in physical book sales offset by growth for its Nook product family. The retailer said that its Nook tablet has become the fastest-selling product to date. Total sales from its Nook e-reader business grew 85% to $220m (£140m). Barnes & Noble also saw a positive impact from the liquidation of rival Borders. Like-for-like sales fell 0.6% while retail EBITDA benefited from higher profit margins and grew to $21m (£13.4m).