Interesting piece about a bookseller with too many books.
“Tom Wayne amassed thousands of books in a warehouse during the 10 years he has run his used book store, Prospero’s Books. His collection ranges from best sellers like Tom Clancy’s “The Hunt for Red October” and Tom Wolfe’s “Bonfire of the Vanities,” to obscure titles like a bound report from the Fourth Pan-American Conference held in Buenos Aires in 1910, didn’t sell. But wanting to thin out his collection, he found he couldn’t even give away books to libraries or thrift shops, which said they were full. So on Sunday, Wayne began burning his books [to] protest what he sees as society’s diminishing support for the printed word.”Â
This story just rips my heart apart: I spent twenty years running bookstores. I had a massive personal library that took decades to amass. (Alas, it’s gone now.) I miss being around books.
One thing we need in the City is another good new/used bookstore. Anyone out there that would like to help an old bookseller build her dream for New Orleans? It’ll be a place that covers the normal stock, but would specialize in NOLA cultures and have an Antiquarian book search from Hades. It would survive here… promise! (I never had a losing P & L.) The place can even hold it’s own against Barnes and Nobles or Borders… I opened stores for both of them.
I even have some names for the place: Diluvian Books, Dark Rose Books, or Between the Covers. It would need to be in Gentilly (since I don’t drive), and authors would be encouraged to come and talk about their works… I’ll even set up a library replenishment drive for the City, have readings for kids, carry local art…
This idea is viable here at this time, and it beats me having to train cooks for the restaurant that Betts wants to open. (Mongolian BBQs are not copacetic with make-up… trust me)