Shaun Bythell owns The Bookshop, Wigtown - Scotland's largest second-hand bookshop. It contains 100,000 books, spread over a mile of shelving, with twisting corridors and roaring fires, and all set in a beautiful, rural town by the edge of the sea. A book-lover's paradise? Well, almost ...
In these wry and hilarious diaries, Shaun provides an inside look at the trials and tribulations of life in the book trade, from struggles with eccentric customers to wrangles with his own staff, who include the ski-suit-wearing, bin-foraging Nicky. He takes us with him on buying trips to old estates and auction houses, recommends books (both lost classics and new discoveries), introduces us to the thrill of the unexpected find, and evokes the rhythms and charms of small-town life, always with a sharp and sympathetic eye.
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How boring, right? When I first started working in a book-store, I imagined this romantic relationship with my job. I imagined having long, enlightening conversations with customers about books I'd never read, delving deep into the culture around reading, and exploring the intrinsic role of literature in our history and society. Fast forward, I just spent a solid fifteen minutes explaining to a thoroughly confused man why we can't price match with booktopia. I love 'The Diary Of A Bookseller' because it articulates everything it means to be in the book industry so poignantly, and with the perfect amount of cynicism. Shaun's experience owning an independent bookstore in Wigtown, Scotland, is brutally honest, absolutely hilarious, and beautifully written. For readers who haven't had the (dis)pleasure of working in a book-store, Bythell's journal may serve to dispel any magical mysticism around selling books. And for those who have, this book will almost certainly illicit an audible “I know right!”. Can not recommend highly enough, especially for people dipping their toes in non-fiction for the first time. - Joshua (QBD)
Guest, 24/02/2018
