Even on bad days, it's a job that is so much more enjoyable than any other job I've had. Instead of counting money or tending to hangry people, I get to hang out with books all day. Now, I realize that isn't appealing to some people, but to nerdy bookworms like myself, it's fantastic. I've worked at a bookstore for a while now, and I still think to myself how glad I am I got hired there. Here are some of the things I've learned while working there:
1. There’s a book out there on everything
Seriously. It’s conversation fodder for me and my coworkers all day long. You’d be amazed by the kinds of things that end up in print. From new age gurus promising cures and solutions to any and all ailments, spiritual or otherwise, to craft books on something called soft dolls (TERRIFYING). Think of the most obscure, random thing you can think of, and I can assure you that more than one book has been written on it.
2. You can judge a book by its cover
I mean, publishers have intent when they are creating the design for covers, right? They’re trying to target specific tastes, and they do it by giving someone an idea of what the book may contain past its cover.
3. A book doesn’t have to be literature to be good
Being a snob about what one reads guarantees a narrow mindset, even if it is when reading classics that are supposed to be showing different perspectives. That being said, the stuff in the literature section is probably there for a reason, but that doesn’t mean that there aren’t just as many gems in other genres.
4. Be open-minded
There’s plenty of stuff that I have read and listened to and watched since starting my job that I might not have picked up before, but it has made me expand my horizons and helped me to discover all sorts of new interests. I've also discovered so many new favorite authors.
5. A little bit of everything
I work at a used bookstore that doesn’t have an inventory. That means that the employees end up keeping an encyclopedic knowledge of inventory in their heads. However, it also means that we have to know enough about random stuff to be able to price books right and get them to their right places. So, that means that I had to learn a bit about a lot of world religions (I still get stumped as to whether Gnosticism is part of Christianity or not), geography and (embarrassingly enough) I had to really learn the dates of WWI and WWII. This also means I had to learn about the books that are out there—what is popular. Honestly, the whole experience has been like a secondary education on top of going to college.
6. I have a serious hoarding problem
I thought it was bad before. Oh, how sadly mistaken I was. I have stacks and stacks of unread books at my house. They could probably fill a whole bookshelf. I will get to them eventually, but I don’t have any restraint when interesting books find their way under my nose. I mean, what if I forget to find the book later in my life? What if it is a book I would absolutely love and I forget about it and never get to discover it?!
7. I am not alone in this
I have met so many fellow bookworms, both in my coworkers and in the customers who frequent the store. We have a trade policy, and when I ask people if they have trade credit, which involves bringing books into the store, many times the response I get is something along the lines of, “Oh, absolutely not; I keep my books” along with “You should see my house; I have x number of overflowing bookshelves.”
8. People can’t necessarily be judged by their covers
The stories that come tumbling out of people can be very surprising. There’s one older regular whose son works for a pretty big musician (and when I say work for him, I mean he works closely with him). I’d never have guessed it from looking at him. This story is one of many.
9. Don't worry about judgment from others so much
It may sound like an odd outcome, but working at a bookstore has made me realize that normal is definitely relative, and as such, the important thing is to do and pursue and be unabashedly interested in anything that, well, interests me. This is how I found myself, for example, reading “Stiff” by Mary Roach, which is a book about stuff that happens to cadavers. Reading it made me feel a bit like a serial killer at first, but it was legitimately interesting and not as weird as it initially sounded. Mary Roach is now one of my favorite authors because she fearlessly investigates all sorts of weird and fascinating things.
10. The young folks still read
I don't know if I was the only one worried about kids not reading and instead preferring electronic-based entertainment, but they definitely still do read, and there are plenty of kids who are just as into it as adults are. I sold the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy (in one intimidating volume) to a kid who couldn't have been older than 12 the other day, and it made me so happy to do so.
11. What it feels like to not hate my job
The job I had before working at a bookstore was working in a small-town grocery store. For about four years. That means I had to work with the public, in large volumes, for eight hours a day, five days a week, for way too long. It didn’t make me a very nice person, but that’s because it’s hard to deflect all the nastiness that customers inevitably vent. So when I started working at a bookstore, it was like heaven. Seriously. Like I would’ve done it for free (at first). The people I worked with were (and are) awesome, and most of the customers are so much nicer. Even the old folks who I thought might be crotchety. I am stumped as to why there is such a stark difference. Is it because people are shopping for leisure and not performing a tedious chore? Is it because, since they read, they are more empathetic (as some studies have shown), quicker to consider the perspectives of others (as reading is basically an exercise in immersing yourself in a different perspective for an extended period of time) and thus less likely to use employees as a metaphorical punching bag? I have no clue, but it makes such a big difference when the people in my work environment are pleasant.
Additionally, I love being around books all day. As someone once remarked when walking into the store, “you can feel the knowledge” that’s in there, and it sounds weird, but it was very true. It’s the same feeling you get when you walk into a library. There’s a heavy, though not imposing, feel to the atmosphere. For me, there has also always been a hint of excitement and mystery at perhaps unearthing a particularly good book. It’s a welcomed contrast to the loud, frenzied atmosphere of the previous jobs I’ve held.
12. That whatever profession I enter, it will involve books
After realizing how great it is to work with books and the people who love them as much as I do, I realize that that's something I don't want to leave behind.
