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PowellsBooks.Blog
Authors, readers, critics, media − and booksellers.

Portrait of a Bookseller

Portrait of a Bookseller: Angelo R.

by Powell's Books, December 1, 2017 9:06 AM
Portrait of a Bookseller: Angelo R.

How would you describe your job to someone you just met?
I coordinate the journey of a book from the time it arrives on the truck at the store to when it leaves the store in a customer’s hand, or when it goes back to the warehouse.

Last book you loved:
They All Saw a Cat by Brendan Wenzel. I read a lot of picture books these days to my 4-year-old, and this one stands out as a book we will use for a long time to come to show different perspectives.

Where are you originally from?

North Cape May, NJ.

What did you do before you came to Powell's?
I ran a kitchen back in NJ, and then was a general manager for Borders Books until the company’s unfortunate demise.

What is the best part of your job?
No day is the same; no cart of books received is the same. Every day I participate in my own choose-your-own adventure game.

What’s the most interesting part of your job?

The people I get to interact with. We have a great team of individuals and I learn something from them every day I come to work.

Share your favorite customer quote.
“The world cannot computerize every human endeavor, thank goodness.”

No day is the same; no cart of books received is the same. Every day I participate in my own choose-your-own adventure game.
Share a memorable experience you've had on the job.
We have a regular customer who collects The New York Times Book Review and has been doing so for years. They could just get a subscription and have it delivered to their house, but they enjoy coming to the store each week to pick it up and browse. I look forward to my weekly phone call letting them know that it has arrived, and have been learning a little more about them with each call.

When you’re not reading, what do you like to do in your free time?
I spend a lot of time with my little one and have been introducing him to different types of music and musical instruments. I love listening to live music. I’d see a show every day if I could, and will travel wherever needed to see Phish.

What makes for a good book in your eyes?
I love a book that grabs my attention quickly and keeps me guessing about what’s going to happen as I read. I enjoy when an author can get me to visualize different characters and voices in my head, and then lets me develop my own sense of who each character is.

Why do you think bookstores remain so popular in the digital age?
People like the feel of a book in their hands. Digital readers are great and absolutely have a place in the market (I love using mine when I’m traveling), but a physical book will never run out of batteries, get a cracked screen, or stop working if it gets wet.

Recommend a book or author you think everyone should read.
Christopher Moore. His wit and humor are unmatched by any other author I’ve read.

Walk us through your favorite route when browsing books at Powell’s.
I like to read all of the signs and staff pick recommendations while browsing, and tend to head to sections I am unfamiliar with. I like to switch between reading fiction and nonfiction titles to keep expanding my reading horizons.

Tell us about your first memorable reading experience.
I remember the book Here Comes the Strikeout by Leonard Kessler from when I was a little kid. I used to read it over and over again, and am looking forward to being able to give a copy to my son when he starts his reading endeavors.

Do you have any odd reading habits or book rituals?
My only ritual is to remove the dust jacket and put it in a safe place until I finish a book. Something about getting it bent or damaged really bothers me.



Books mentioned in this post

Here Comes The Strikeout An I Can Read

Leonard Kessler

They All Saw a Cat

Brendan Wenzel
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