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Hullo there everybody. Hope that everyone has settled stomachs after Thanksgiving and that it was an enjoyable holiday. Here's is another weekly installment of Nice ta' Meetcha Mondays. This week, we are only featuring two employees, but they are fantastic: Hayden & the man with the plan, Arsen.
Hayden Griggs --
- When did you start working at BBS?
- I started in August of 2012
- What is your role on the floor?
- To ensure the happiness and well-being of our customers and make sure that those who come into our store keep loving literature as much as I do. Down with Amazon.
- Where are you from originally and what brought you to Boulder?
- I am from Boulder, born and raised.
- What are some of your favorite genres/specific titles?
- Victorian era fin-de-siecle
literature (HG Wells, Oscar Wilde, Jules Verne, Bram Stoker, etc.) and
Science Fiction and Fantasy (Orson Scott Card, Neil Gaiman, etc.) My
favorite books are Oscar Wilde's Picture of Dorian Gray and Patrick Suskind's Perfume: The Story of a Murderer. You also can't go wrong with Arthur Conan Doyle.
- What is your favorite thing about working at BBS?
- The booksellers. Everyone who works here works here for a reason. We love literature.
- What is one unique/interesting fact about you that one wouldn't necessarily learn in ordinary conversation?
- Claymation gives me nightmares.
Arsen --
- When did you start working at BBS?
- What is your role on the floor?
- I am the buyer of all new books in the store. The arbiter of literary newness. I keep the shelves fresh and updated. Also, I answer oddball questions with very little background information, ie: what is that book by that one woman who wrote that other book and I think the cover was green?
- Where are you from originally and what brought you to Boulder?
- I am from Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love, and ironically enough it was brotherly love that brought me here. A good friend lived out here and visiting the area made me love it.
- What are some of your favorite genres/specific titles?
- Literary fiction, confessional poetry, and first-person baseball history books. Jewish American writers such as Philip Roth or Bernard Malamud are some of my favorites because it is serious-themed literature that can incorporate humor. Also, Junot Diaz, Zadie Smith, and Jhumpa Lahiri are fantastic.
- What is your favorite thing about working at BBS?
- There's something new every day! Every 10 seconds for that matter.
- What is one unique/interesting fact about you that one wouldn't necessarily learn in ordinary conversation?
- I got drunk with Gillian Flynn and at the same party proceeded to lie to Barack Obama about having read his book. Also, I was a sportswriter for a few years when I lived in Maryland, before moving to Colorado.
Welcome back! Ready for another round of learning about three great BBS employees? Prepare yourself for this week's edition of Nice 'ta Meetcha Monday.
Christian --
- When did you start working at BBS?
- I started working at BBS a little over 3 years ago at the end of summer. I was thrilled to get the job.
- What is your role on the floor?
- My role is to connect people with the books they love. Some customers are looking for something specific, but have no specific information, some customers have fragmentary information, and others are looking for something new, absorbing and unheard of; it is my job to make a happy couple between book between customer and book. I am a literary detective. I also make jokes, tell funny stories and assist my other co-workers and whatever they need so that we all work together and help the store run smoothly. Aside from this I host authors events which is a lot of fun. I like connecting the authors with the public and make sure that this relationship is smooth, comfortable and enjoyable for all.
- Where are you from originally and what brought you to Boulder?
- I was born in Springfield, Illinois, but my parents left when I was four and since then I grew up during the school year in Boulder and summers in Seattle. Aside from this I have lived in New York, Prague and eight years in St. Petersburg, Russia.
- What are some of your favorite genres/specific titles?
- I have too many favorite titles to list, but a current favorite is Tomorrow In The Battle Think On Me by Javier Marias. I like David Foster Wallace, Philip Roth, Sylvia Plath and in general literary fiction and poetry. Currently I am on a Latin American writer binge. Also Dostoyevsky, Bugalkov's The Master and Margarita, Anna Ahkmatova and Russian poets of The Silver Age, Anna Karenina and Joan Didion.
- What is your favorite thing about working at BBS?
- My favorite thing about BBS are the wonderful people I see every day. Without them this would not be the Boulder Book Store. I also enjoy our diverse, eclectic and often eccentric clientele. And of course all the books and my generous employee discount.
- What is one unique/interesting fact about you that one wouldn't necessarily learn in ordinary conversation?
- Most people wouldn't know that for several years while growing up on Bluff Street in Boulder, Allen Ginsberg lived just a few houses down from us.
Emily --
- When did you start working at BBS?
- What is your role on the floor?
- Bookseller, Card and Sidelines Buyer
- Where are you from originally and what brought you to Boulder?
- Seattle, WA, but I've lived many places. I have family throughout Colorado and figured I'd give Boulder a try! Plus, it's safe to bike here. :)
- What are some of your favorite genres/specific titles?
- I love the classics and literature in general. I particularly enjoy Latin American magical realism and 19th century British Literature. I'm also a big fan of John Steinbeck and Virginia Woolf. I studied science so I always enjoy a science writer who understands the value of entertaining writing! Sam Kean and Richard Preston come to mind. I also love to cook and travel so the cooking section and travel sections are among my favorites. Some books I've loved recently? Every Lonely Planet book I've picked up, The Art of Travel by Alain de Botton, Wild by Cheryl Strayed, The Life of Pi by Yann Martel, Yoga and the Path of the Urban Mystic by Darren Main, The Wisdom of No Escape by Pema Chodron. Some of my all time favorites include East of Eden, 100 Years of Solitude, Zorba the Greek, Like Water for Chocolate, Mrs. Dalloway, A Room of One's Own, The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath, and Hamlet.
- What is your favorite thing about working at BBS?
- My book discount? The wonderful staff? Talking to people about books all day? It's hard to choose!!
- What is one unique/interesting fact about you that one wouldn't necessarily learn in ordinary conversation?
- I have visited 26 countries.
Kyle --
- When did you start working at BBS?
- What is your role on the floor?
- I am the revised edition of the Promotions and Marketing Assistant. I make signs, tend to the recommended shelves, and mess around with this blog thing. And also do any and all of Stephanie's grunt work.
- Where are you from originally and what brought you to Boulder?
- I'm from Doylestown, PA, a small town outside of Philadelphia, far away on the Eastern side of things. What didn't bring me to Boulder? Mountains, adventures, a big change in life. I mean, it's completely fantastic.
- What are some of your favorite genres/specific titles?
- I love reading classics, literary fiction, sci-fi/fantasy, and young adult lit. Some favorite all time titles include the Harry Potter series, all JD Salinger, Ayn Rand, The World According to Garp by John Irving, all Jonathan Franzen and John Green. Best of the year: Sailor Twain by Mark Siegel (an incredibly wonderful graphic novel - check it out!)
- What is your favorite thing about working at BBS?
- The books. I feel more at home surrounded by literature than most things. Since I've moved out here I've been made to feel very welcome by everyone that works here so that too has been great.
- What is one unique/interesting fact about you that one wouldn't necessarily learn in ordinary conversation?
- Okay, I'll admit it, I have three cats.
Hello again. Today, we're back to an all-girl lineup for the BBS Staff E-Meet-N-Greets. Enjoy!
Taylor --
- When did you start working at BBS?
- I started working here in June this year (June 2012).
- What is your role on the floor?
- I'm a bookseller and coordinator, which means I do what the booksellers do but I also get to hold a cool yellow phone.
- Where are you from originally and what brought you to Boulder?
- I'm from Centennial, CO originally. I came to Boulder to attend CU but also because the ever-growing presence of cookie-cutter houses in my hometown gave me the creeps.
- What are some of your favorite genres/specific titles?
- Right now I'm working on Stoker's Dracula and enjoying it. The Little Prince never gets old and is my go-to comfort book. I'm crazy for magical realism but branching out of that I'm definitely a sci-fi/fantasy girl. I love Abarat by Clive Barker, The Foundation Trilogy by Asimov and anything Vonnegut. One of my favorite books is Life of Pi by Martel. Recently, I've been delving into a little non fiction. I read Air by William Bryant Logan (he also wrote Dirt: The ecstatic Skin of the Earth, which is worth reading) and I loved it. What I'm getting to is that I am addicted to reading and I will read just about anything I can get my hands on.
- What is your favorite thing about working at BBS?
- I have the best co-workers around and that makes this a great place to be. It puts me in a good mood which definitely helps with the customer service aspect of our job. Also: books. That one's self explanatory.
- What is one unique/interesting fact about you that one wouldn't necessarily learn in ordinary conversation?
- I am terrified of cotton balls and participating in choreographed/organized dancing.
Katie --
- When did you start working at BBS?
- What is your role on the floor?
- I am a bookseller and an Event Host
- Where are you from originally and what brought you to Boulder?
- I was born in Denver but raised in Aspen and Denver, I came to Boulder for school, hooray learning!
- What are some of your favorite genres/specific titles?
- I had a weird obsession with the classics for awhile. Everything from Tolstoy to the Bronte sisters (except for Anne, poor, sweet Anne is always left out) Jane Austen and pretty much anything else you can find in the Dover Thrift section. My favorite book of all time is probably The Great Gatsby but that's impossible to know for sure. I really love Neil Gaiman, Leif Enger, but Jack Kerouac I love more than most. This could go on forever. I don't really stay in one genre, I will read any book that is nearby, I think that's what's great about books, though, there's an unending variety!
- What is your favorite thing about working at BBS?
- The people I work with, and Buster's giant bowl of candy, that's pretty neat too.
- What is one unique/interesting fact about you that one wouldn't necessarily learn in ordinary conversation?
- I'm a twin, but seeing as that is becoming increasingly less interesting (everyone has a twin these days) I will also add that I learned to ski when I was not even a year old.
Christine --
- When did you start working at BBS?
- What is your role on the floor?
- The last two years I've been the Assistant in the Marketing and Promotions department. The last few months, I've also added ordering books to my list of things I'm in charge of. Really though, I just do everything.
- Where are you from originally and what brought you to Boulder?
- I'm originally from Cleveland, Ohio. My cousin's empty room and my lack of immediate prospects post-college-graduation brought me to Boulder.
- What are some of your favorite genres/specific titles?
- I love most books. Words are wonderful. Lately, I've been a big fan of Ruta Sepetys (she wrote Between Shades of Gray -- NOT to be confused with 50 Shades of Grey -- and will soon come out with Out of the Easy in February). In the last few years, some of my favorites have included Let the Great World Spin and Brooklyn. And really most books. Talk to me about books.
- What is your favorite thing about working at BBS?
- The people. I'm actually leaving at the end of November to live closer to my inlaws and I'm certainly going to miss my coworkers and working with books in general. The bookselling industry is pretty dismal in Pittsburgh (where I'm headed). Stores there have not fared as well as BBS. I've been fortunate enough to meet so many people (both staff and customers...and authors!).
- What is one unique/interesting fact about you that one wouldn't necessarily learn in ordinary conversation?
- When i was in high school, I owned enough pairs of ridiculous socks to fill a suitcase. Also I lived in Canada for 5 years of my childhood.
This week, we've got a mix of old and new faces as well as...A BOY! Yes, we do have male staff members here at the Boulder Book Store!
Liesl --
- When did you start working at BBS?
- The Stone Age--before Computac, before the Annex (Blogger's note: ahem, she means the Upper North Room), before email. (that would be the early 90's BTW
- What is your role on the floor?
- To make people smile, especially kids, to hand out the bathroom code, and straighten stuffed animals. (Another note from the blogger -- Liesl is also our "Children's Room Inventory Manager" and she's a wonderful resource for recommendations for young folks!!)
- Where are you from originally and what brought you to Boulder?
- There is no time before Boulder--my parents brought me when I was an infant.
- What are some of your favorite genres/specific titles?
- Children's (but you knew that) what you may not have known is that I also like Sci-Fi, Mysteries, Cooking, and Crafts.
- What is your favorite thing about working at BBS?
- Books and people and rep night.
- What is one unique/interesting fact about you that one wouldn't necessarily learn in ordinary conversation?
- My dad was an Olympian. He went to Mexico City in 1968 and was co-captain of the men's gymnastics team. No he didn't win, but, hey, he went!
Daniel --
- When did you start working at BBS?
- I started in June of 2012
- What is your role on the floor?
- Where are you from originally and what brought you to Boulder?
- I am from Belleville, IL, the home of Jimmy Connors and Stag Brewery. The never-ending onslaught of present moment discovery in the contemplative psychotherapy program at Naropa University brought me to Boulder.
- What are some of your favorite genres/specific titles?
- My favorite genres: fiction, film, psychology, poetry, Buddhism, and shamanism. Ten of my favorite titles in no particular order: Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk Rock by Legs McNeil, Cathedral by Raymond Carver, Sculpting in Time by Andrei Tarkovsky, Desolation Angels by Jack Kerouac, Valis by Philip K. Dick, The Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles, Freedom from the Known by Jidda Krishnamurti, Our Lady of the Flowers by Jean Genet, Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, and The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein. I guess this goes up to 11. Jesus' Son by Denis Johnson.
- What is your favorite thing about working at BBS?
- The money obviously. Ok, ok the books. What a wonderful, diverse collection of glorious books.
- What is one unique/interesting fact about you that one wouldn't necessarily learn in ordinary conversation?
- I'm a fighter, not a lover.
Shelly --
- When did you start working at BBS?
- What is your role on the floor?
- Where are you from originally and what brought you to Boulder?
- From Conifer and Evergreen, though I usually just say somewhere close to South Park. And now I live up in the sticks of Gilpin County, which is why I don’t work at the Book Store more often. I moved back to Evergreen for my family, but when the local drugstore and hardware went belly-up, I moved to the cabin where I am now. It’s hard to see all the changes in Boulder too (I will eternally miss Tom’s Tavern), but it’s worse for me in my hometowns, since I’m such a sap.
- What are some of your favorite genres/specific titles?
- I read mostly contemporary literary fiction: short stories and novels, plus memoirs. Certain graphic novels or cartoons, literary magazines, and any other subject that peaks my curiosity, unless the writing/art itself doesn’t suck me in enough. The titles are endless, but two memorable story collections are Vanishing by Deborah Willis and Girl Trouble by Holly Goddard Jones. And I can tell you my three favorite Colorado writers and books: Laura Pritchett, Sky Bridge; Tim Z. Hernandez, Breathing, In Dust; Kent Haruf, Plainsong or Eventide. (All three will have new novels out in 2013.). Wyoming’s Mark Spragg, who wrote
Bone Fire, is also brilliant.
- What is your favorite thing about working at BBS?
- Shelving, finding books for customers (and myself), and meeting writers, such as the local people above. I first found Laura and Tim’s books on our shelves and I’ve since become pals with them, and worked with them as a writer myself. Kent and Mark are also lovely human beings. Stephen Graham Jones, who lives here in Boulder, is amazing and funny. Terry Tempest Williams left me in awe. And Andre Dubus III gave just about the best reading I’ve ever seen. Ideally, I love writers who are talented, smart, hilarious, and very authentic. I also like writers who swear (dammit).
- What is one unique/interesting fact about you that one wouldn't necessarily learn in ordinary conversation?
- I started wearing mini-skirts during my first year of college when I also stopped shaving my legs. And, with respect to my brothers, I was raised by wolves.
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