Roseledge Books launched its best ever, if first, all out sale, and people came for, or maybe stumbled onto, old new books that were better than new new books — which of course I didn’t have, as I have been away these past two summers. FICTION $1.00 and NON-FICTION $2.00, limit of 5 books/person.
Most Roseledge Books folks came from boats moored in front of Tenants Harbor Boatyard and, as noted, stumbled onto Tenants Harbor’s Destination Bookstore on their way down Sea Street to the General Store. Mention the sale to the brave of mind and watch them buy 5, then find the faux-readers in the group and bring them in, only to watch the faux’s turn into ringers, and sales soar, well sort of.
“Did you curate the collection?” a newbie asked, and I liked him forever. I liked his partner, too, who agreed that Titus Welliver is a great Harry Bosch
I tried making 5-b00k piles, e.g. kickass women, 2 piles of mysteries around the world, learning enviroments — maybe my favorite pile, jargoned up a bit for a friend, Maine for a Mainer, Maine for a newbie, fun with food that could be in Maine, in the vicinity of Labrador, really about books, sort of about books. I had a good time, and almost no one bought the whole pile, which just demonstrates the interesting complexity — okay, weirdness — of the RB reader. For my North Carolina friends, I’ll leave some unlabelled piles to see if you can find a theme.
Tomorrow, the Minneapolis migration happens. The summer mornings before 8:30 were cooler than I remember and the undappled sun was hotter. The off-shore breezes mellowed the days and kept the bugs away. I will bring more suitably flexible clothes next year.
Next year I’ll see the Fed Ex driver, who, after delivering the second box of wine — thank you, Santa with a bit of a drawl — noted, with a grin, that this seemed to be an unusual bookstore and she would be back. And so would the three Swedish sailors with books in hand who said they will come back here or go back there next year via the northern route, sometimes called the stepping stones, less often called the Viking route. I promised to have on hand books about St. Brendan’s earlier-than-the-Vikings voyage to Iceland, which would surely convincingly suggest that the Irish taught the Vikings how to sail the longer distances non-marauding adventures required. The most amiable of the sailors with pitch-perfect English just stared at me for a minute, maybe stunned, and said, pointing,”Your IRISH taught MY Vikings how to sail?” I admitted it was just a theory. “No,” he said, still not sure he had heard right, as he walked away, with a grin and a wave, and said, “See you next summer.”
I love it here, but it’s time to go back. Next year, for sure, North Carolina.