BETWEEN THE LINES

Book Talk by Joe Neri

The Best Job in the World

I have the best job in the world.

I love it when parent and child come in and spend time reading the newest board book together while they sit at our kids table and chairs. I love it when grandparents come in and ask for help in picking books to send to their grandchildren in other parts of the country.

I love when someone says, “I’m looking for a book, but I don’t know the title or the author. Do you have it, or can you get it?” Actually, this kind of request, or something like it (“It has a blue cover.”), happens more than you would think. And, almost always, after I ask a few questions, I’m able to find the book.

I love when people ask for recommendations for books to read, and I love when they don’t ask, as they either hunt for a specific book or are just open to possibilities that open up before them on the shelves.

I love it when someone comes in and asks, “Is this the library?” I guess this comes with the territory, literally as we are only a short walk from the Sedona Public Library. I always smile and give directions to the library, but only after I tongue-in-cheek explain that we’re kinda like a library – you can keep any book as long as you wish but you have to pay the fine (cover price) up front.

I love it when the mail comes, almost always containing advance reader copies of books soon to be published. And, once a week, my copy of Publishers Weekly arrives, showing and telling me everything that’s on the new book horizon.

I love when the UPS truck arrives, with our daily shipment of books, boxes of brand new books and re-ordered old ones. Maybe I’m a little weird, but it almost feels like Christmas morning every weekday afternoon!

I love it when tourists, visiting Sedona for the first time, find us on their way into town and spend time browsing through books that they cannot get at home. And, I love it when long-time residents discover us for the first time, browsing through books that they can get at home but didn’t realize it.
There’s a whole lot more I love, more than can fit in this column. Maybe I should write a book!

I love being a bookseller, and I especially love being a bookseller in Sedona. I love books and I love Sedona. I definitely have the best job in the world.

Thank you all for all of your support and happy holidays to you and yours.