Before I get into some of our memorable posts from June I’d like to thank Paul Young of Prying1 Books for a comment he made earlier today. He was reminding folks that when they comment on an article they can put in either there own website address (which gets linked to your name) or the address of a site that might be helpful in regards to the article’s topic. We encourage you to comment, get to know us, tell us about yourself and your shop and by all means leave a link so that we can come by for a visit.
Now for some of our more interesting and more talked about posts for June.
Caro and Susan gave us a fantastic 4 part story detailing their entry into bookshop ownership
Twenty-one steps up. I counted. My knees asked me if I were serious about this. I told them it was going to be great for our cardiovascular systems. No lights up here at the moment, T. told us. For light, he turned on his phone. Worked pretty well, actually. Although…after 35 years in at the local middle school just about nothing gets to me, but that first glimpse was just a bit startling. Turns out this was where the locals stored their haunted house props when it wasn’t October. Fantastical shadows lit the manikins in the corner
My favorite article was Brian Webster’s story of how he opened a library in old Hong Kong
It was Summer with the temperature as high as 110 degrees so the working hours were from 5 am to noon, at which time we were supposed to take a siesta. Our sleeping and living quarters were also Quonset huts, no radios, air conditioning, TV or any other amenities. The CO had seen my RAF History and noticed my past as Librarian in a couple of bases and so he was delighted to foist the title in to me. What he didn’t mention that the Library was a divided off part of the canteen. All it consisted of were a couple of chairs, a table, and bookshelves. Empty!
“Where are the books,” I inquired.
“Don’t know old boy, suppose you’ll have to drum up that part yourself.”
And that was that.
A Bookshop Blog reader, Rebecca Jones, asked about buying a bookstore from a distance.
I want to make sure I ask the right questions about the store that is up for sale, but am not sure of the etiquette, what in-depth questions can or can’t I ask, or the red flags to watch out for. To make it even more difficult, the store I am looking at is about 1,000 miles away from me! So, I want to have as much information as I can before I have to make the trek.
And Nora of Rainy Day Paperback Exchange gave us the low down on some critters you may bump into.
Going by the name silverfish, fishmoth, carpet shark, or paramite these little insects love to chew on books. They’re silver and shiny and move with a distinct wiggling motion like they’re “swimming” across the surface. They’re usually no bigger than an inch long (2.5 CM). They’re harmless to humans and don’t spread disease. However they can badly chew up books, so spotting these guys in a box is a bad sign.
Maybe this is the place to ask Bruce about the comment feature. Sometimes it says on that little line at top that there is a comment, but when you look down at the bottom of the entry, nothing is there. Or it will say there are three, but only two show up. Are there comments on moderation, or maybe something makes them go away?