Another diary of a bookseller. Bythell describes the day by day happenings in the Scottish town of Wigtown, with all of their kooky and wonderful residents. This describes the events of 2016. ( )

Another very entertaining book by Shaun Bythell and, as in his previous diaries, it is full of his very funny thoughts and anecdotes about customers, staff, friends, and family, as well as the trials and tribulations in running a bookstore. It certainly makes me want to visit Wigtown and his store, not only to shop (it sounds wonderful!) but to maybe be able to meet Mr. Bythell and some of the characters he describes.

It astounds me that a small town can support multiple bookstores, especially independent ones. I am so jealous! Except for a couple of chain-stores, my home state of Delaware really has no bookstores, which is very sad. I have to buy my books (from used or independent bookstores) via the internet. At one time I managed an independent bookstore here (new books, not used) so I love hearing about the day-by-day bookstore experiences.

This diary is from 2016 (not a good year in the U.S.!), so it is pre-pandemic. I only wish the diary was more recent, as he does say in his epilogue that he is now married with a child and another on the way (as of late 2022) and it would be interesting to find out how that has changed his life with his store.

I always read his books quickly and am sorry when I finish it. I will have to re-read his other books... ( )

As usual, this bookshop memoir made me chuckle and yearn for a simple but full life such as that one might find in Wigtown. I actually looked up The Open Book, which is the bookstore airbnb in that town, and even though the memoir tracks the year 2016, the airbnb is still operating. If it weren't for the fact that it would do nothing for my husband, I'd probably see about booking that busman's holiday. Although, perhaps it might be a bit too "behind the curtain" to actually go there, after reading all about it. Still though, my heart beats a little harder each time I read one of these diaries. It's a lovely description of what seems like a satisfying life in the book trade. This one has a coda that makes it seem as if it might be the last one -- I can't be sure, but it felt a bit like an ending. I hope not, because I like to look in on Wigtown once in a while. ( )

If you’ve read previous installments in Shaun Bythell’s diary series, you’ll know what to expect: a year in the life of The Book Shop that features daily tallies of online orders (and how many of the books ordered were actually found in the shop) and till takings, stories of buying books from people downsizing or processing a loved one’s estate, colourful tales from the Wigtown Book Festivals, snippets of books read, and as always lots of eyebrow-raising moments from customers. I read this book in a day and found myself rather reflective on closing the book, especially when thinking about how Shaun takes the time to go through books from estates, whether to conduct probate assessments or buy stock for himself. Knowing what is useful to booksellers, what can go online, and what can just be recycled may help you if you ever have to deal with the library of a loved one. ( )

My second to last book wholly read in 2022, and there’s not a lot to say about it except if you’ve enjoyed Shaun Bythell’s previous memoirs about running a bookshop in Wigtown, you’ll enjoy this one too. If you haven’t yet tried his Diaries of a bookseller, and you enjoy that kind of thing, AND you enjoy reading about cranky, curmudgeons, then you might enjoy giving his books a try.

Each entry includes simple stats about books ordered online (through Abebooks or Amazon) vs. how many of those books were found on the shelves (used bookstores are messy) and how many books were sold in the shop and how much money was made each day. These stats are enough to reinforce that nobody goes into bookselling to get wealthy … or even eat. But in spite of his plain speaking about how tough it is to make it, and how stupid people are capable of being, he fails to dim the appeal of owning one’s own bookshop. At least, not for this reader. ( )