Читать книгу Confessions of a Bookseller - Shaun Bythell - Страница 21

Online orders: 5

Orders found: 4

Cold, overcast day. One of the orders today was for a book called Underground Adventures. There was a scrap of paper—a packing list scribbled by a previous owner—inserted in the first few pages which read:

Beer

Tent

Sleeping bag

Airbed

Blankets

The missing book in the orders today was for Patagonia, which I sold to one of our few regular local customers, Bum-Bag Dave, last week. I’m not sure why it is still showing as available on Monsoon: I clearly remember delisting it. Another of today’s orders was for a biography of Robert Adam, which I listed yesterday. It sold for £100. The next-cheapest copy on Amazon was £400.

Sandy the tattooed pagan turned up to collect his copy of Mactaggart’s Scottish Gallovidian Encyclopedia, and gave it to Lizzy, who seemed singularly underwhelmed by it. He brought in a box of books to sell which included a copy of The Fifteenth (Scottish) Division (1926 edition). Gave him £50 credit.

My mother appeared at 11.30 and talked incessantly on a variety of subjects, ranging from wild speculation about the sexuality of the residents of The Open Book (whom she’s having to lunch on Wednesday) to her reasons for clearing the loft (‘so that when we’re dead and buried, you and your sisters won’t have to do all that’). She was here for half an hour, and punctuated every five minutes by saying ‘I’ll fly off now,’ before embarking on another lengthy, rambling aside.

As is often the case in winter, the total paid out today significantly outweighed the day’s takings. Today was Blue Monday, supposedly the most depressing day of the year. The till total certainly isn’t much to smile about.

Till Total £18

3 Customers