How long have you worked at Lemuria?

I think about 24 years. It could be more. I came here in 1993 but before that I had worked 4 or 5 years.

Do you collect books, or just buy them?

Both. I buy big books. I bought that New York Book of Dogs for my collection. My husband confiscates all the books I bring in the house. Anything I bring home isn’t going to be collectable because he’s going to write in them. He marks up and down the sides and underlines in strange fluorescent covers. The dogs eat a lot of the books, too. So it’s really hard to have a collection of fine books, but we have quite a large collection of books in various stages of destruction. Plus we have all the books our children can’t afford to have in their small abode. I live in a 4800 square foot and there are books everywhere—in the bathroom, under the bed.

Do you ever hide books from your husband?

No. Well, let me think back. Yes, if I have a signed first edition and I don’t want it written in, then I’ll hide it upstairs.

What do you look for in a good book?

I look for an intriguing human dilemma. I also like moral uncertainty

What book do you think is the best-kept secret?

No One is Here Except All of Us by Ramona Ausubel. It’s a marvelous book that nobody knows about.

How long have you been seriously reading?

Probably since I was about 14.

 Do you remember what book made you love reading?

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, Betty Smith.

What are you reading right now?

Infidel, Hirsi Ali

 Is there a system to how you choose what to read next/the order you read books in?

It’s just a spontaneous thing. I choose Infidel is because a customer recommended it to me. I really take what customer recommendations seriously. A lot of times I’ll be sitting at work and I’ll read a review in the Wall Street Journal. I’ll talk to Kelly about it, and if she thinks it sounds good, I’ll read it. So much of what I read is because we sell books to each other.

What book have you liked most that came out this year?

The Round House by Louise Erdrich. I’d never read her before; I had a barrier against reading her. I know she writes about Indians, and I was scared the story was going to be dated. I don’t like historical fiction. It wasn’t. The storyline was so good and well put that the book was seamless. I could not stop and put it down. It has a little bit of Indian myth in it, a who-done-it in there, a coming of age story; a little bit of everything.

Do you have a favorite book?

I used to say my favorite book was Walker Percy’s Moviegoer, and I reread it a year ago and I didn’t know why I liked it. I hate to say that, a lot of people like it, but I’m not one of them anymore.

Mandy has been working at Lemuria for the last 4 months, after moving to Jackson from California. She has an MFA in Children’s literature, and spends most of her time in OZ.

When did you start really collecting books? Is it a collection, or more of a hoard?

That’s a fine line, isn’t it?  I’ve always had piles and shelves and masses of books. Books have always been my favorite thing evenbefore I was able to read. I begged my grandma to teach me to read before I went to preschool. When I went to the mall, the first place I always wanted to go was the bookstore.

I’m not sure if I have a hoard or a collection. To be fair, I do get rid of books I don’t like, so I don’t hoard them in that way. I really do hoard books ‘to be read’. At home right now, I probably have about 400 books to be read. I can’t stop buying books, but I’m actually a really slow and meticulous reader, so that’s a problem.

 How do you organize your books?

Right now my books are in the trunk of my car and in piles on my guest room and living room floors. I just finished moving them all from California. I have to-be-painted bookshelves in my half-painted living room, but the books haven’t made it there yet.

Some Rules for Book Collecting:

1. Collect what you like.

In general, the value of a book collecting is greater than just one or two valuable books. The value is in the collection as a whole. Some people choose to collect books by specific authors, but this can be a gamble in the long run; some authors are fashionable at the time they are writing, but they are quickly forgotten. As a result, collecting books that are related to each other can be much more profitable. For example, collecting Southern authors vs. one or two specific writers from the South.

2. Protect your books.

Books retain and gain value based upon the condition they are in. The closer the condition of the book is to how it looked coming off the press, the more it is worth. Pretty simple, yes. But keeping books in mint condition is difficult, especially if you plan on actually reading them. If you buy any books from us, just ask, and we would love to Mylar them for you (cover the slip-case in plastic).

3. Buy First Editions.

As a general rule, first edition, first printings are the most valuable editions of books. Especially if they are signed. This can get complicated pretty quickly if the book is released in another country prior to its release in the United States. The foreign edition is considered the “first edition” but depending on the book, the U.S. edition can still be valuable.

To tell if a book is a first edition, look at the copyright page. Sometimes “First Edition” or “First Printing” will appear, but you should still check the number line. The number line appears in post-WWII era books, and is just what it sounds like, a line of numbers. Each publisher prints the numbers differently, but if the 1 is present, the books is a First Edition, First Printing. As new editions of the book are printed, the number of the previous edition is removed. So for example, if you see: 135798642, it is a first edition, first printing. However, 35798642 is a second printing. Every publisher organizes their copyright page differently, so if you aren’t sure if that copy of To Kill a Mockingbird is a first edition, bring it buy the store. Not only would we love to see it, we can also help you figure out if it’s worth any money.

4. First books.

In general, an author’s first book, whether novel or nonfiction, will be their most valuable. There are exceptions to this rule, but having a copy of the first book by an obscure author who later goes on to win the Pulitzer Prize is a treasure. It’s even better if you liked the book and believed in the author before anyone had really heard of him/her. It’s the literary equivalent of the Cubs winning the World Series (the Cubs haven’t won the World Series since 1908).

5. First Edition’s Club.

If you are seriously interested in collecting books, consider joining our First Edition’s Club. (This is not just a shameless plug, it really is a good idea). The books we choose are always signed, first editions. We choose books that we think will gain value, many of which are author’s first books. We Mylar the books for you, and you can either have them shipped to you, or come pick them up at the store. And it only costs the cover value of the book.

If you want to see what some of your books may be worth, AbeBooks is a great place to start.

Kaycie just left Lemuria (and Jackson) behind to move to a new job in New York City. Before she left, we talked about her books, and why she loves them.

 How long have you worked at Lemuria?

I guess a year and a half.

When did you start really collecting books? Is it a collection, or more of a hoard?

I guess I have a collection. I’ve always had a lot of books, but I didn’t think of it as a collection until I started working here after college.

What do you look for in a good book?

Interesting characters. I’m also really into magical realism, so pretty much anything that has that kind of feel to it: Haruki Murakami or Karen Russell.

Is there a book you wish was real?

The Great Night by Chris Adrian.

What book do you think is the best-kept secret?

I would say Murakami but I think he’s not a secret. Karen Russell’s St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves was just one of those books that I had never heard of. Someone working here pulled it off the shelf and told me I needed to read it. The stories really stuck with me. They are really beautiful and fun to read.

How long have you been reading?

Since preschool. My parents taught me how to read before I started kindergarten.

Do you remember the first book you read?

I don’t, but I had a lot of picture books about dinosaurs, so I’m sure it was one of those.

Do you have a favorite dinosaur?

Triceratops.

How do you organize your books?

I don’t really organize them. I have a shelf that is all first editions, but it is double stacked, so it’s not really organized at all.

You are moving to New York City this month. Are you taking all of your books with you?

Yes, but I don’t know if I’m going to have enough bookshelves; I hope so.

Is there a system to how you choose what to read next?

No, not really, but I like to have a big stack of things I haven’t read that I can choose from.

What are you reading right now?

Steven Millhauser’s stories, We Others and The Taxonomy of Barnacles by Niederhoffer.

When do you read?

It depends on my work schedule. If I don’t work, I read in the morning, if I do work, I read at night before I go to bed.

Are you a one-at-a-time reader, or are you reading many books at once?

Many books, but not always. Usually when I do that, I’ll just stop reading whichever one is less interesting. I can read short stories and a novel at the same time.

What do you look for in a good bookstore?

A big selection of literary fiction and children’s literature.

You lived in Paris for about a year, did you go to a lot of bookshops?

Yes, and I bought a lot of books and had to leave a lot of books.

Top 5 favorite books in your library right now:

1. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke, signed first edition

2. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy (battered paperback version)

3.The Junior Classics–(there are 10 of these, but I’m counting them as one) Collections of mostly creepy stories for children divided into volumes (Fairy Tales and Fables, Stories of Wonder and Magic, and Stories That Never Grow Old, etc.). They belonged to my mom and her siblings when they were kids and were passed down to me when I was in elementary school.

4. Si les fées m’étaient contées: 140 contes de fées de Charles Perrault à Jean Cocteau, edited by Francis Lacassin–This was actually my textbook for a course on the fairy tale so besides just being an amazing anthology of classic French fairy tales, it reminds me of being in France, classes at the Sorbonne, etc. Plus, it’s sparkly. Literally, the cover (not the dust jacket) is black with glitter…only the French…

5. ARC of The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides

This month, in celebration of the release of  My Bookstore, a collection of essays written by well-known authors about their favorite bookstores, our blog is devoted to real books and the real people who love them.

My Bookstore includes essays by John Grisham (That Bookstore in Blytheville), Wendell Berry (Carmichael’s Bookstore), Chuck Palahnuik (Powell’s Bookstore), and of course Barry Moser (Lemuria!).

Even with the rise of e-books and Amazon, independent bookstores are still the heart and soul of the book-selling business. We all read the books we are selling you (or at least try to read them–there are a lot of books), but more importantly, we have met many of the authors of the books we sell. Of course we want them to do well, but we really want for the author’s book to find the perfect reader. When we sell you a book, we aren’t just trying to help you find something that you will enjoy, but rather we want you to meet an author that you will follow, and maybe even collect.

This year, Austen and I have both been raving about Kevin Power’s The Yellow Birds. Even before it was nominated for the National Book Award, we have been trying to find as many readers for it as we could. What are we most excited about? We have both found an author we have liked from his first book, and who we can follow for the length of his career. (Even now, I can’t stop talking about how wonderful Yellow Birds is.)

In My Bookstore, we get to jaunt around the country, hearing what makes a bookstore great. A perfect read for a Sunday afternoon (I’ve been reading one or two essays every week), or even, dare I say, the perfect book for the bathroom.

Barry Moser will be HERE to celebrate the My Bookstore release on Friday, November 16th. Plan on coming out to celebrate with us at 5 PM.

My Bookstore is our November pick for First Editions Club.

smyb