Chatting Books Online Day 104. Today's recommended book falls into the 'why didn't I think of that" category. The Diary of a Bookseller by Shaun Bythell is just what it sounds like. Mr. Bythell owns a bookstore in Wigtown, Scotland and he wrote a book simply by recording a journal entry every day for a year. Theirs is a used bookstore that also has an online presence so each day's entry starts with how many orders came in over night and then how many of those books they actually found on the shelves the next day to ship out, At the end of each day it records how many customers came in that day and what the daily till total was , let me just say when I first read this book a few years ago and only a couple of years into owning my own bookstore this part had me saying "I'm not alone" and "see, everyone has bad days".
But it is what comes between the overnight and the till take that will have you laughing , commiserating and wanting to visit this bookish town in Scotland just as soon as you can. It is in this book that I first heard of The Boostore Band (whom I later had the privilege of hearing and meeting at a booksellers conference). It is where I first read about Wigtown which is officially designated as Scotland's Book Town because of the large number of bookstores and book related businesses in the town. It is where I first read about The Wigtown Book Festival which I fully intend to attend one year. And it is where I discovered just how good I have it because this guy has some unbelievably odd employees and customers!
Don;t get me wrong, though this book is about bookstores you don't have to own a bookstore to enjoy it. His humor is dry and biting and the whole thing is just really enjoyable.
Available in paperback . 312 pages. $ 17.99 a copy.
Day 104 : The Diary of a Bookseller
