Dog Ears Books, as has already been discussed in these pages (I think of the postings as pages), celebrated its 15-year anniversary on July 4, and that got me to thinking—not to detract from the offerings of male booksellers but simply to acknowledge my sister colleagues--about other woman-owned Leelanau bookstores that have been around a long time. Original owner Prudy Meade (mentor and friend sorely missed still) started Leelanau Books in Leland in 1976, and Mollie Weeks started the Cottage Bookshop (now owned and very creatively expanded by Barbara Siepker) in 1984. Tack our own 105 dog years onto the list, and that's 32, 24, and 15 years, respectively, with all three still commanding a following today. That said, I do miss strolling into Known Books in Suttons Bay and being greeted by Cheryl’s big smile. We would catch up on shop talk, and then she would leave me alone to explore her shelves while she worked, and I always left with a few books, feeling good about the whole experience. That’s what it’s about, this bookselling gig, both selling books and providing a positive experience. (Selling anything, all by itself, is just selling, and chatting endlessly without making sales doesn’t pay bills.) Besides, our books are our treasures! By making them available, in our small towns, from our hands to our customers’ hands, the value we add to our “merchandise” is very personal.
Years ago, a man who had never before visited a store that sold used books (or maybe never visited a bookstore at all) asked me, “Where do you get your product?” The word shocked me. I don’t deal in 'product,' I sell BOOKS!
5 comments:
Dearest Pamela!
What a wonderful post about the handful of women selling books in Leelanau County. I am honored and humbled by your kind words. I had never looked at it from that perspective. I am thrilled to be a part of the Leelanau Bookselling Legacy!
Yes, I do miss Known Books' main street location in Suttons Bay for the very reasons you wrote about.
One thing I learned at Known Books after nine years on main street is this - when it is good - meaning when the people walking through the door are about books - there is nothing better in the world! When someone is "about the books" it sparks a deep inner fire resulting in an explosion of "book words"! Like you, I'm sure you have many favorites who, when they arrive, you get your conversations out and just talk and talk about books! Thank you for remembering those special times we spent together, and yes, I always appreciated your purchases!
Do you remember when you started selling books? Remember how we thought we knew it all! I am so thankful for all the mentoring I received from women "selling books" like you, Prudy, Laurie at Leelanau Books, and Mallie Marshall, and from all my customers who have educated me over the years. The beauty of what we do is that every time we pick up a book we realize there is one thing more to learn! And then someone walks in and we know we have found just the perfect person to recommend those books to!
Something else which you have made me remember is the terrific spirit of cooperation between all our bookshops. The main goal, besides talking someone's head off, has always been to get the book into the hands of the customer - and it has always been a luxury to know I could always freely call you or Laurie at Leelanau Books to find that book and refer that customer to you because I have always known you would treat them as well, if not better, than I did. Intuitively we know that to be successful in this niche industry in Leelanau County we have to continue getting the books into the hands of those customers - regardless of the source!
Being a bookseller is something which never leaves you. The want and desire to be involved with books doesn't seem like something we choose, I like to think the books have chosen us!
So even though Known Books moved off main street over two years ago, we are still involved in the process of selling books in the lower level of the Millside Building on the shores of Suttons Bay. Books are always available via our website at www.known.com and as long as the weather holds we will be continuing our "parking lot style" book sale. If you see the signs in the ground near St. Josephs Avenue and on the hill leading down to the bay which simply read: "Book Sale" then the store is open!
Thank you again Pamela for honoring me and the others with your thoughtfulness.
Cheryl
Pam -- Great to read your fine words about the women booksellers of Leelanau, all of whom I am proud to call friends. I'm especially glad you mentioned Prudy. When Glenn Wolff and I were fledgling authors and had just published our first book together, "It's Raining Frogs and Fishes," our publisher (HarperCollins) was reluctant to send us on book tour or really to spend any money at all on promotion. Prudy not only took us under her wing and treated us with so much kindness that we're still glowing from it, she made it her mission to convince HC that our book deserved better treatment. She sold hundreds of copies. I remember sitting speechless at a table in her shop while people stood in line with as many as a dozen copies each of that hefty hardcover (one woman bought 30). When our publisher saw what was happening locally they reconsidered their strategy and finally sent us on a tour across the country that launched the book into bestsellerdom. That was fun but it didn't matter nearly as much as Prudy's warmth and generosity. Like you, we miss her.
Jerry
Thank you, Cheryl and Jerry, for your wonderful, substantive comments! Today's post actually started as a stand-alone paragraph that I was thinking of putting with some other unrelated items in a "Miscellany" column, but then--well, it looks as if the topic did deserve its own day in the sun.
Cheryl, I totally agree with you about the cooperative aspects. Many is the time I've called you or Laurie or Barbara to see if you had something I didn't for a customer who wanted it. Jerry, I wish I'd been on hand for that first signing with Prudy, but other authors have told me similar stories about her. Truly, there was no one like her. She gave me a lot of encouragement when I was starting out.
As for those first couple of years, I was often panicked by how much I didn't know, along with the daily terror of having to talk to STRANGERS! Gradually, I relaxed. No one knows everything. No one has read everything. Book people are usually happy to share their knowledge and opinions--and generally can distinguish between the two.
I'm glad I reminded at least two people of good times in the world of books, and I thank you both for jogging my memory some more, too.
Oh, P.J., what an amazing collection of delightful people gather around your pages! Your post made me think of "Booksellers I've Loved and The Books They've Sold Me." They have seen possibilities in me that I haven't seen in myself, and introduced me to books, wonderful books, that I never would have found on my own. I miss having a neighborhood bookstore I could walk to, but I'm glad to have found one I can visit 24 hours per day, even in my jammies.
It's so interesting (and I can never predict) which posts draw comment. Yes, Gerry, I visit Torch Lake in my jammies, too, as well as other continents! Would say more now, but a cherry pie needs to come out of the oven----------
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