What do you think?
Rate this book
Shelf Life: Romance, Mystery, Drama, and Other Page-Turning Adventures from a Year in a Bookstore
Suzanne Shea has always loved a good book-and she's written five of them, all acclaimed. In the course of her ten-year career, she's done a good bit of touring, including readings and drop-ins at literally hundreds of bookstores. She never visited one that wasn't memorable.
Two years ago, while recovering from radiation therapy, Shea heard from a friend who was looking for help at her bookstore. Shea volunteered, seeing it as nothing more than a way to get out of her pajamas and back into the world. But over next twelve months, from St. Patrick's Day through Poetry Month, graduation/Father's Day/summer reading/Christmas and back again to those shamrock displays, Shea lived and breathed books in a place she says sells'ideas, stories, encouragement, answers, solace, validation, the basic ammunition for daily life.' Her work was briefly interrupted by an author tour that took her to other great bookstores. Descriptions of these and her memories of book-lined rooms reaching all the way back to childhood visits to the Bookmobile are scattered throughout this charming, humorous, and engrossing account of reading and rejuvenation.
For anyone who loves books, and especially for anyone who has fallen under the spell of a special bookstore, Shelf Life will be required reading.
Two years ago, while recovering from radiation therapy, Shea heard from a friend who was looking for help at her bookstore. Shea volunteered, seeing it as nothing more than a way to get out of her pajamas and back into the world. But over next twelve months, from St. Patrick's Day through Poetry Month, graduation/Father's Day/summer reading/Christmas and back again to those shamrock displays, Shea lived and breathed books in a place she says sells'ideas, stories, encouragement, answers, solace, validation, the basic ammunition for daily life.' Her work was briefly interrupted by an author tour that took her to other great bookstores. Descriptions of these and her memories of book-lined rooms reaching all the way back to childhood visits to the Bookmobile are scattered throughout this charming, humorous, and engrossing account of reading and rejuvenation.
For anyone who loves books, and especially for anyone who has fallen under the spell of a special bookstore, Shelf Life will be required reading.
232 pages, Paperback
First published May 15, 2004
6 people are currently reading
1371 people want to read
About the author
Suzanne Strempek Shea
19 books71 followersSuzanne Strempek Shea is the author of five novels: Selling the Lite of Heaven, Hoopi Shoopi Donna, Lily of the Valley, Around Again, and Becoming Finola, published by Washington Square Press. She has also written three memoirs, Songs From a Lead-lined Room: Notes - High and Low - From My Journey Through Breast Cancer and Radiation; Shelf Life: Romance, Mystery, Drama and Other Page-Turning Adventures From a Year in a Bookstore; and Sundays in America: A Yearlong Road Trip in Search of Christian Faith, all published by Beacon Press.
She co-wrote 140 Years of Providential Care: The Sisters of Providence of Holyoke, Massachusetts with her husband, Tom Shea, and with author/historian Michele P. Barker. This is Paradise, a book about Mags Riordan, founder of the Billy Riordan Memorial Clinic in the African nation of Malawi, was published in April by PFP Publishing.
Her sixth novel, Make a Wish But Not for Money, about a palm reader in a dead mall, will be published by PFP Publishing on Oct. 5, 2014.
Suzanne’s essay Crafty Critters, about her lifelong love of knitting, a craft she learned in the “Crafty Critters” 4-H club of Palmer, Mass., back in childhood, is included in the recently released anthology Knitting Yarns, Writers on Knitting, edited by Ann Hood.
Winner of the 2000 New England Book Award, which recognizes a literary body of work's contribution to the region, Suzanne began writing fiction in her spare time while working as reporter for the Springfield (Massachusetts) Newspapers and The Providence (Rhode Island) Journal.
Her freelance journalism and fiction has appeared in magazines and newspapers including Yankee, The Bark, Golf World, The Boston Globe, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Organic Style and ESPN the Magazine. She was a regular contributor to Obit magazine.
Suzanne is a member of the faculty at the University of Southern Maine's Stonecoast MFA program in creative writing and is writer-in-residence and director of the creative writing program at Bay Path College in Longmeadow, Mass. She has taught in the MFA program at Emerson College and in the creative writing program at the University of South Florida. She also has taught in Ireland, at the Curlew Writers Conferences in Howth and Dingle, and in Dingle via the Stonecoast Ireland residency.
She lives in Bondsville, Mass., with Tommy Shea, most recently the senior foreign editor at The National newspaper in Abu Dhabi, and their dogs Tiny and Bisquick
She co-wrote 140 Years of Providential Care: The Sisters of Providence of Holyoke, Massachusetts with her husband, Tom Shea, and with author/historian Michele P. Barker. This is Paradise, a book about Mags Riordan, founder of the Billy Riordan Memorial Clinic in the African nation of Malawi, was published in April by PFP Publishing.
Her sixth novel, Make a Wish But Not for Money, about a palm reader in a dead mall, will be published by PFP Publishing on Oct. 5, 2014.
Suzanne’s essay Crafty Critters, about her lifelong love of knitting, a craft she learned in the “Crafty Critters” 4-H club of Palmer, Mass., back in childhood, is included in the recently released anthology Knitting Yarns, Writers on Knitting, edited by Ann Hood.
Winner of the 2000 New England Book Award, which recognizes a literary body of work's contribution to the region, Suzanne began writing fiction in her spare time while working as reporter for the Springfield (Massachusetts) Newspapers and The Providence (Rhode Island) Journal.
Her freelance journalism and fiction has appeared in magazines and newspapers including Yankee, The Bark, Golf World, The Boston Globe, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Organic Style and ESPN the Magazine. She was a regular contributor to Obit magazine.
Suzanne is a member of the faculty at the University of Southern Maine's Stonecoast MFA program in creative writing and is writer-in-residence and director of the creative writing program at Bay Path College in Longmeadow, Mass. She has taught in the MFA program at Emerson College and in the creative writing program at the University of South Florida. She also has taught in Ireland, at the Curlew Writers Conferences in Howth and Dingle, and in Dingle via the Stonecoast Ireland residency.
She lives in Bondsville, Mass., with Tommy Shea, most recently the senior foreign editor at The National newspaper in Abu Dhabi, and their dogs Tiny and Bisquick
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 75 reviews
April 11, 2017
(2.5) The premise was so alluring: after radiation treatment for breast cancer (documented in her previous book, Songs from a Lead-Lined Room, which I’d like to get hold of), Shea, a novelist, gets an unexpected injection of confidence and purpose when she’s offered part-time work at Edwards Books in Springfield, Massachusetts. “I am now an author working in a bookstore. I am a spy from another land. Not unlike a dairy farmer hanging around the cheese shop.”
The first 40 pages and last 13 pages of this memoir about her first year of working in the shop (2001–2) are terrific. It’s the pages in between that are the problem. I read this slowly over the course of a month, keeping it as a bedside book, and every few pages or so I’d put it down and think, “gosh, that was so boring!” Because, yes, working in a bookstore has moments of excitement and fulfillment (as I know from personal experience), but from day to day it also has plenty of monotony. Unfortunately, the book’s enthusiastic subtitle is mostly misleading, because Shea largely concentrates on the tedious stuff: setting up bestseller and holiday displays, planning events, an honor system for paying for newspapers, taking inventory, the spate of post-9/11 books on terrorism and the Towers, long, pointless lists of the various magazines, gifts and greeting cards Edwards stocks, and so on. The focus on popular books of the time, not to mention the plethora of magazines, makes the book feel dated.
There are enjoyable bits here (especially the memories of Shea’s research travels and book tours) and if you’re a current bookstore employee you may warm to it more than I did, but overall – especially given the fairly frequent typos – I wasn’t too surprised that I was able to get this signed copy for a penny plus shipping via Amazon.
The first 40 pages and last 13 pages of this memoir about her first year of working in the shop (2001–2) are terrific. It’s the pages in between that are the problem. I read this slowly over the course of a month, keeping it as a bedside book, and every few pages or so I’d put it down and think, “gosh, that was so boring!” Because, yes, working in a bookstore has moments of excitement and fulfillment (as I know from personal experience), but from day to day it also has plenty of monotony. Unfortunately, the book’s enthusiastic subtitle is mostly misleading, because Shea largely concentrates on the tedious stuff: setting up bestseller and holiday displays, planning events, an honor system for paying for newspapers, taking inventory, the spate of post-9/11 books on terrorism and the Towers, long, pointless lists of the various magazines, gifts and greeting cards Edwards stocks, and so on. The focus on popular books of the time, not to mention the plethora of magazines, makes the book feel dated.
There are enjoyable bits here (especially the memories of Shea’s research travels and book tours) and if you’re a current bookstore employee you may warm to it more than I did, but overall – especially given the fairly frequent typos – I wasn’t too surprised that I was able to get this signed copy for a penny plus shipping via Amazon.
September 23, 2007
A memoir about a writer who, after a fight with cancer, takes a part-time job at a local, independently-run bookstore. This seemed right up my alley: books, bookstores, and writing are three of my favorite things (throw in some slashy TV and a couple of cupcakes and I'll never leave). But Shea's narrative is both too personal and too distant. She'll say things like, "And then Old Hank, who everyone in town knows, came in." That example is totally made-up and probably exaggerated, but the point remains: I don't know Old Hank; Shea never makes me feel, as a reader, like I know Old Hank—or anyone. I felt like I was having a conversation with a group of people I just met but who all know each other: their stories would resonate greatly with them, but leave me feeling left out in the cold. Shea never brings the reader in; she made me nostalgic for the bookstore in the small town where I grew up, but didn't make me feel like I knew her bookstore at all. I don't know if I was just cranky when I read this or not, but it left me feeling dissatisfied; it left me cold.
December 1, 2007
I would venture to say that any lover of books has toyed with the idea of working at the mecca for bibliophiles, a bookstore. Strempek Shea -- not just any book lover but also a bestselling author -- shows us what it's like on the other side of the cash register.
Shea has a way with words, and her turns of phrase are always skillful and often unexpected. I enjoyed the way she wove details about the publishing business with the details about the inner workings of the store and its many colorful characters.
She did seem testy at times, particularly when describing her reaction to some customers' requests. And I found her denigration of Bill O'Reilly to be unwarranted (what happened to nonjudgment??). And it was interesting that she -- who is so sensitive about her own name being spelled correctly -- misspelled the title of Mitch Albom's "Tuesdays with Morrie."
Those are just minor peeves, though, and overall I give this book a high rating. If you love the written word, you'll love this book.
Shea has a way with words, and her turns of phrase are always skillful and often unexpected. I enjoyed the way she wove details about the publishing business with the details about the inner workings of the store and its many colorful characters.
She did seem testy at times, particularly when describing her reaction to some customers' requests. And I found her denigration of Bill O'Reilly to be unwarranted (what happened to nonjudgment??). And it was interesting that she -- who is so sensitive about her own name being spelled correctly -- misspelled the title of Mitch Albom's "Tuesdays with Morrie."
Those are just minor peeves, though, and overall I give this book a high rating. If you love the written word, you'll love this book.
December 26, 2020
The author, recovering from cancer, begins to work at an independent bookstore.
3.5 stars There were parts of this that really resonated with me (as a former bookstore employee, and all-time reader) such as her descriptions of interactions with customers, changing store displays with holidays, and books that were in vogue at the time. There were other parts that slowed down the narrative - lists of the magazines the bookstore carried, and bits about bookstores she visited while on tour. All in all, I enjoy pretty much anything that's written about loving books.
3.5 stars There were parts of this that really resonated with me (as a former bookstore employee, and all-time reader) such as her descriptions of interactions with customers, changing store displays with holidays, and books that were in vogue at the time. There were other parts that slowed down the narrative - lists of the magazines the bookstore carried, and bits about bookstores she visited while on tour. All in all, I enjoy pretty much anything that's written about loving books.
November 24, 2024
Not really all that much about a bookstore; just about her life while at the same time there was a bookstore.
August 26, 2024
Good. It’s an easy read, and many of the observations about the quotidian lives of the various people in Shea’s life ring true and are easily assimilated into the life we each of us also live. While not a classic or a gripping tale, it’s entertaining and worth reading.
November 14, 2020
For anyone writing a book or, even more fitting, anyone who has worked in a bookstore ( which i have- several ) this book is excellent! You'll slide right into Shea's memoir and not want to leave.
What caught me was her beginnings with learning to read with Dr. Seuss and moving on to Trixie Belding books a few years later- both of which i did and for the same reasons! Instant love.
Her descriptions of working in EDWARDS bookstore in Massachusetts had me nodding and laughing.
" hi, i don't know the author or the name of the book but the cover is red and gold and there is a action in it? " As well as customers you come to treasure.....
This book was so well written that i was sad when it ended, i felt like i'd made a friend who was moving away!
What caught me was her beginnings with learning to read with Dr. Seuss and moving on to Trixie Belding books a few years later- both of which i did and for the same reasons! Instant love.
Her descriptions of working in EDWARDS bookstore in Massachusetts had me nodding and laughing.
" hi, i don't know the author or the name of the book but the cover is red and gold and there is a action in it? " As well as customers you come to treasure.....
This book was so well written that i was sad when it ended, i felt like i'd made a friend who was moving away!
August 14, 2009
It's always interesting to read someone else's perspective on something one's done oneself, and greatly enjoyed--in this case, work in a bookstore.
It's odd, too, to see the things that other people focus on, and the differences that arise just from store to store. They aren't necessarily regional differences, either, since I've worked in a Boston shop and her's is only a couple of hours drive west. I too was working in a bookstore not longer after 9/11, but we had a completely different experience; while Shea talks about 9/11-themed books flying out of the store, we found ourselves stuck with enormous piles of returns. I admit, I'm kind of fascinated by this, and now I'm really wondering what it was like in other parts of the country.
Shea also spends a lot of time talking about the gift side of her shop, which I always avoided as deadly dull, and, honestly, snubbed as being a distraction from the actual point of a bookstore. She's quite right, though, in that those little trinkets can often bring in enough money to make a real difference in the survival of bookstores, so people like me really need to get over that sort of self-defeating snobbery. I still find it a bit amazing to realize that someone can actually get enthusiastic about the greeting cards (and as someone who really hates scented candles, I sympathized with the customer who complained when they were brought into the shop). But, as they say, "computer books pay for the poetry section," and gifts are much the same.
I was also amused as she learned some of the nitty-gritty of book retailing--"stripping" mass-market books is indeed something that needs a little getting used to. I used to suggest that we charge customers who'd just suffered bad breakups a small amount for the opportunity to strip the romance books each month, sort of a Tom Sawyerish public service: "True love forever, hah! Take that! [rip]"
But really, the best part is watching as Shea comes to understand the joy of hand selling. Her descriptions of how the store owner would take the time to share her knowledge and help figure out just the right book for just this customer, right here, right now, were spot on. The only part she missed is the little glow of the moment when that customer comes back, happy and wanting more: "I loved that book you recommended, it was perfect! Now I need another, please!"
It's odd, too, to see the things that other people focus on, and the differences that arise just from store to store. They aren't necessarily regional differences, either, since I've worked in a Boston shop and her's is only a couple of hours drive west. I too was working in a bookstore not longer after 9/11, but we had a completely different experience; while Shea talks about 9/11-themed books flying out of the store, we found ourselves stuck with enormous piles of returns. I admit, I'm kind of fascinated by this, and now I'm really wondering what it was like in other parts of the country.
Shea also spends a lot of time talking about the gift side of her shop, which I always avoided as deadly dull, and, honestly, snubbed as being a distraction from the actual point of a bookstore. She's quite right, though, in that those little trinkets can often bring in enough money to make a real difference in the survival of bookstores, so people like me really need to get over that sort of self-defeating snobbery. I still find it a bit amazing to realize that someone can actually get enthusiastic about the greeting cards (and as someone who really hates scented candles, I sympathized with the customer who complained when they were brought into the shop). But, as they say, "computer books pay for the poetry section," and gifts are much the same.
I was also amused as she learned some of the nitty-gritty of book retailing--"stripping" mass-market books is indeed something that needs a little getting used to. I used to suggest that we charge customers who'd just suffered bad breakups a small amount for the opportunity to strip the romance books each month, sort of a Tom Sawyerish public service: "True love forever, hah! Take that! [rip]"
But really, the best part is watching as Shea comes to understand the joy of hand selling. Her descriptions of how the store owner would take the time to share her knowledge and help figure out just the right book for just this customer, right here, right now, were spot on. The only part she missed is the little glow of the moment when that customer comes back, happy and wanting more: "I loved that book you recommended, it was perfect! Now I need another, please!"
June 8, 2011
If you are at all curious what it is like to work in a bookstore, this is the book to read. I worked in a small, independent bookstore from 1995 - 1998. It was the best job I've ever had. I loved it. And reading this book was like a walk down memory lane. I remember the quirky customers, the unbelievably vague book descriptions ("that book with the tiger on it") but still finding what they were asking for, opening the boxes of new inventory, setting up the displays, all the non-book items we sold and of course, spending part of my paycheck in the store. I was thrilled that she mentioned 2 of my 3 favorite bookstores in the country: Elliot Bay Books and the Tattered Cover. I am completely shocked that she did not mention the third: Powell's. Strempek Shea and I must have been in the book selling business around the same time because many of the book titles she mentioned as current were current when I was selling them too. That added to the dreamery of the story for me. Beyond all the warm-fuzzies, I thought the book was well written; a light read. I doubt that everyone will have the same reaction to this book as I did, but I would still recommend it as perhaps insight as to what happens in the background of your favorite bookstore.
December 28, 2008
A novelist, recovering from cancer, takes a part-time job in an independent bookstore. This is brilliant, in that understated way which creeps up on you. She's got that trick of describing entirely ordinary things like constructing holiday book displays with deep, resonant emotion. The conceit is bibliophilic and beautiful: books and the people who love them as a healing force. In between insights on the publishing and marketing worlds and discussions of customer satisfaction, there are little glimpses of a shattered life slowly mending. Subtle, quietly chatty, informative, intensely
but unobtrusively personal.
but unobtrusively personal.
November 10, 2013
I just had a hard time getting into this one. Maybe it's because I've read so many "books about books" that have been excellent and it's one of my favorite types of books. However, there were certain parts (one in particular where she is trying to show the varied interests of readers) where the author literally lists magazine titles for at least two pages. The bookstore where she works sounds lovely, and there were some vaguely interesting tidbits....but I must say I didn't finish the last 30 pages. Just wanted to move on.
November 29, 2014
I had to write a whole book report on this, so I'm not going to write an essay now. Short version is there were some cute anecdotes, but they were partly ruined by a personality I didn't really mesh with.
April 8, 2022
I am rounding up all of the books in my house in an attempt to get organized and I came across this one in a stack it did not belong in. I opened it just to peek and decided it would be something I would try reading. I read the mixed reviews on GoodReads and was struck by people who felt it was too superficial. After reading the book, I am convinced those people are not the type who would spend hours (paid or unpaid) in a bookstore just people-watching and book-browsing. Anyone who would do so will feel right at home and very much seen with this book.
I am curious if any of the bookstores mentioned here are still in business, because I regularly travel up to Providence to visit friends and I might be tempted to browse in them. (I can speak highly of Barrington Books and Books on the Square and Symposium Books, all of which I have visited with fellow booklovers.) I was tickled to see Elliott Bay Books mentioned and understood why Powell's was not (it is a behemoth compared to most of the stores mentioned). I was delighted to see the author cite favorite books of mine and others I had read. And I was intrigued about some books that I had not heard of (the ones by the author herself, for instance), and some I had encountered but not been completely sold on reading yet (Ghost Soldiers). In sum, I will be counting this book for the Genreland for April: To Lift Your Spirits, because that is precisely what the book did for me.
I am curious if any of the bookstores mentioned here are still in business, because I regularly travel up to Providence to visit friends and I might be tempted to browse in them. (I can speak highly of Barrington Books and Books on the Square and Symposium Books, all of which I have visited with fellow booklovers.) I was tickled to see Elliott Bay Books mentioned and understood why Powell's was not (it is a behemoth compared to most of the stores mentioned). I was delighted to see the author cite favorite books of mine and others I had read. And I was intrigued about some books that I had not heard of (the ones by the author herself, for instance), and some I had encountered but not been completely sold on reading yet (Ghost Soldiers). In sum, I will be counting this book for the Genreland for April: To Lift Your Spirits, because that is precisely what the book did for me.
March 14, 2018
I feel like I could now order the right seasonal cards for a bookstore, but I wanted to know where this husband of hers went? Why she didn’t have kids? And, sad to say, the fact that I’d never heard of her or the books she’d written, made it difficult to connect with her as an author. She apparently has an agent and publisher, but seems to go out of her way to share her under-attended readings at stores that have never heard of her either! Does she really “take over” the display area for known authors, at Edwards, and put HER books up? Easy read, and I only stuck with it because it was short.
February 16, 2022
This might be the most boring book I have ever read. I finished because I have liked a few of her prior books (I think of her as a Western Massachusetts Anne Tyler but I like Anne better though she is of course repetitive.
If you are from around Springfield you will enjoy the references. If you work in a bookstore you will likely enjoy this book. Busman's holiday for you. I might enjoy working in our library but retail is out for me and lots of you I would guess.
This is a surviving from cancer story and might be my mother's except she volunteered until she died (of cancer). So there is that part that may be of interest though only tangentially.
If you are from around Springfield you will enjoy the references. If you work in a bookstore you will likely enjoy this book. Busman's holiday for you. I might enjoy working in our library but retail is out for me and lots of you I would guess.
This is a surviving from cancer story and might be my mother's except she volunteered until she died (of cancer). So there is that part that may be of interest though only tangentially.
February 9, 2025
Although I’ve never worked in a bookstore, Shea’s memoir of her year at Edward’s bookstore had me longing to do so. Her vivid descriptions of customers, staff and general bookstore and publishing procedures caused me to pause and smile with a sense of nostalgia, wishing I had been there next to her. Any lover of words and books will enjoy every moment spent within these pages; pick up a copy, grab a cup of coffee or a glass of wine and escape to Springfield, Massachusetts!
August 18, 2021
It was such a trip reading this because I worked in a bookstore for 10 years and it was like reading my life at that time! Anyone who is curious about what it's honestly like working in a bookstore should read this. I'm sure some things have changed in the new-book only market, but this read just like my old job at a new/used store. Even down to the customers :)
May 18, 2018
Very interesting! I worked in libraries for many years and while reading this I often laughed with recognition at some of the types of questions which are asked in bookstores. Homage to bookstores, especially independents, and most especially to Edwards Books in Springfield, MA.
March 23, 2020
A bit of a disappointment. Too much about her book tours, and about decorating the store, and placement of books that had come out during the time of writing, and almost no stories about the people she worked with or the customers.
June 5, 2023
This is a fun little glimpse into one little bookstore in one little corner of the world. I love the connections and solidarity that this store fosters and it was fun to see the author transformed and to get a behind the scenes view of owning and running a bookshop.
February 3, 2019
Some interesting anecdotes surrounded by lots of filler. The 9/11 section was particular poignant.
January 17, 2020
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and had fun knowing the book references.
January 21, 2020
Delightful little book - a year in the life of an author just recovering from cancer who works a little at her local bookstore.
March 24, 2021
Absolutely wonderful book. I will also be checking out her novels.
December 28, 2014
Author Suzanne Shea, shortly after battling cancer, is at a loss for what to do when her friend, a proprietress of a bookstore, calls her up needing help - Shea jumps at the opportunity and begins working at the bookstore, collecting a year's worth of reminiscences in this story.
I initially was intrigued as a book-lover myself. I work at a library, and one of the high points of my day is when the holds appear. After working there for nearly two years, I'm able to guess which book is whose even before I scan it and find out definitively. Then, of course, is the joy of finding a new book someone brings to the counter, or fielding the questions, "I'm looking for a book. It has a blue cover, I think? I don't know the title. Can you find it?". And, of course, there is my own love of bookstores - mostly independently-owned used bookshops half-hidden away with reader prodigy owners who can tell you exactly what you'd like.
Unfortunately, this book wasn't really that. The bookstores Shea loves and lovingly details are the brand new, glossy kinds where, as she mentions, the furniture has a price tag and there are more candles, tarot cards, and wind chimes for sale than there are books. While I'm no bookshop snob and have been known to while away the hours at Barnes & Noble, it does put a hamper on the more esoteric stories waiting to be told; this read more like working in retail than working in a bookstore, specifically. (And if you think they're the same, allow me to assure you that they are not - no customer of Macy's comes in later because they wanted to tell you how much they loved their blouse, or spends hours sitting on the floor, staring at the latest pair of shoes).
Additionally, Shea often goes for pages on things only tangentially related. There are two pages filled with a list of all the magazines carried, with little else. There are pieces of history that, while I'm sure were interesting to somebody, bored me to tears. And Shea's own experiences book touring were interesting, they weren't why I picked up the book.
Occasionally she did have the kind of anecdotes I was expecting - a pilot who wanders in looking for a book on rekindling love, a man who forgets his dentures at the counter, but they were few and far between.
I'm glad that Shea found something at the bookstore that gave her guidance, particularly after facing cancer. I can't even imagine and I wish her the best of luck. However, I just can't say this book lived up to the title or my expectations.
I initially was intrigued as a book-lover myself. I work at a library, and one of the high points of my day is when the holds appear. After working there for nearly two years, I'm able to guess which book is whose even before I scan it and find out definitively. Then, of course, is the joy of finding a new book someone brings to the counter, or fielding the questions, "I'm looking for a book. It has a blue cover, I think? I don't know the title. Can you find it?". And, of course, there is my own love of bookstores - mostly independently-owned used bookshops half-hidden away with reader prodigy owners who can tell you exactly what you'd like.
Unfortunately, this book wasn't really that. The bookstores Shea loves and lovingly details are the brand new, glossy kinds where, as she mentions, the furniture has a price tag and there are more candles, tarot cards, and wind chimes for sale than there are books. While I'm no bookshop snob and have been known to while away the hours at Barnes & Noble, it does put a hamper on the more esoteric stories waiting to be told; this read more like working in retail than working in a bookstore, specifically. (And if you think they're the same, allow me to assure you that they are not - no customer of Macy's comes in later because they wanted to tell you how much they loved their blouse, or spends hours sitting on the floor, staring at the latest pair of shoes).
Additionally, Shea often goes for pages on things only tangentially related. There are two pages filled with a list of all the magazines carried, with little else. There are pieces of history that, while I'm sure were interesting to somebody, bored me to tears. And Shea's own experiences book touring were interesting, they weren't why I picked up the book.
Occasionally she did have the kind of anecdotes I was expecting - a pilot who wanders in looking for a book on rekindling love, a man who forgets his dentures at the counter, but they were few and far between.
I'm glad that Shea found something at the bookstore that gave her guidance, particularly after facing cancer. I can't even imagine and I wish her the best of luck. However, I just can't say this book lived up to the title or my expectations.
March 6, 2013
"Novelist Suzanne Strempek Shea heard from a friend who was looking for help at her bookstore, so she volunteered, seeing it as nothing more than a way to get out of her pajamas after an illness. But over the next twelve months, from St. Patrick's Day through Poetry Month, graduation/Father's Day/summer reading/Christmas, and back again to those shamrock displays, Shea lived and breathed books in a place she says sells 'ideas, stories, encouragement, answers, solace, validation, the basic ammunition for daily life.'
"For anyone who loves books, and especially for anyone who has fallen under the spell of a special bookstore, Shelf Life is required reading."
~~back cover
I interpreted this blurb as indicating that the book would be about the bookstore. And it was, but the bookstore was definitely second fiddle to the author's responses to it, her delination of her progress out of depression, and what it's like to be a book author on a book tour. I would have rather heard more about the bookstore and how it worked. There was a bit of that in there, and also some description of the regular customers, but I felt that the focus was on Suzanne Strempek Shea, and not the bookstore, it's staff, it's inner workings, or it's customers. Remembering The Little Chapel on the River, (http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...) and how much I enjoyed learning about how the store and bar worked, about the family that owned it and ran it, and the customers. This book is just a brief overview of the author's egocentric engagement with what seems to be an almost legendary bookstore.
I had a hard time reading it. It didn't grab me, so it was a slog to finish it.
"For anyone who loves books, and especially for anyone who has fallen under the spell of a special bookstore, Shelf Life is required reading."
~~back cover
I interpreted this blurb as indicating that the book would be about the bookstore. And it was, but the bookstore was definitely second fiddle to the author's responses to it, her delination of her progress out of depression, and what it's like to be a book author on a book tour. I would have rather heard more about the bookstore and how it worked. There was a bit of that in there, and also some description of the regular customers, but I felt that the focus was on Suzanne Strempek Shea, and not the bookstore, it's staff, it's inner workings, or it's customers. Remembering The Little Chapel on the River, (http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...) and how much I enjoyed learning about how the store and bar worked, about the family that owned it and ran it, and the customers. This book is just a brief overview of the author's egocentric engagement with what seems to be an almost legendary bookstore.
I had a hard time reading it. It didn't grab me, so it was a slog to finish it.
February 10, 2009
I always wanted to work at a bookstore and from reading this book, I feel that I at least know the jargon. Before reading this book, I didn't know the difference between a regular paperback and a trade paperback, or what a dump was.
The author, Shea, is a breast-cancer survivor. The main reason for taking the bookstore job was to get out of the house and out of her depression. The author seems to enjoy the experience and the sense of family working entales.
I would have liked to know more about Shea's immediate family. Shea mentions her father's death and her mother running the bookmobile. She shared a bookshelf with her sister; however, I don't remember any other mention of her. How about Mr. Shea? Maybe it doesn't matter. Since I had questions, obviously, I cared about the author.
This message of this book is to get interested in something and you won't focus on life's negatives, so much. Doing what you love can change your attitude and your life.
The author, Shea, is a breast-cancer survivor. The main reason for taking the bookstore job was to get out of the house and out of her depression. The author seems to enjoy the experience and the sense of family working entales.
I would have liked to know more about Shea's immediate family. Shea mentions her father's death and her mother running the bookmobile. She shared a bookshelf with her sister; however, I don't remember any other mention of her. How about Mr. Shea? Maybe it doesn't matter. Since I had questions, obviously, I cared about the author.
This message of this book is to get interested in something and you won't focus on life's negatives, so much. Doing what you love can change your attitude and your life.
January 13, 2016
The first chapter of this memoir could be written about a library as well as a bookstore. Many of the book and patron references were very similar. However as the book progresses we see the differences. Shea is a published author who has recently been diagnosed with breast cancer, had surgery and radiation treatment. She has retreated into herself and her home is her cocoon. A bookstore owner friend calls her to pass the word that she is looking for someone to work a few hours a week at the store and as a way to take baby steps back into the world Shea offers to take the job. The memoir centers around a year she spends there getting involved with people again both coworkers and customers, eventually expanding to the community. The anecdotes were fun, the look at the behind the scenes at the book store were informative, and the references to her own and the store's connection to publishing were interesting. Altogether an enjoyable read.
March 20, 2009
I read one other non-fiction book by this author and really enjoyed it, so I added some of her other titles to my to-read list. She also writes fiction books, which I have not read any of. I really enjoyed this book as well, so perhaps I'll have to check out some of those.
This book describes her experience working in a small non-chain bookstore after recovering from cancer. She was working in the bookstore at the same time I was working at Barnes and Noble so I remember dealing with a lot of the same books she talks about, so that added another layer for me. But I'm sure anyone who has worked in a public services job can relate to the story. There were a few times I felt like she got excessive with lists of things like titles, genres, etc., but other than that I have no complaints about the book. A quick, fun read.
This book describes her experience working in a small non-chain bookstore after recovering from cancer. She was working in the bookstore at the same time I was working at Barnes and Noble so I remember dealing with a lot of the same books she talks about, so that added another layer for me. But I'm sure anyone who has worked in a public services job can relate to the story. There were a few times I felt like she got excessive with lists of things like titles, genres, etc., but other than that I have no complaints about the book. A quick, fun read.
November 15, 2011
I read some reviews of this book prior to reading it- mainly to see if guys read it too, and what they thought.
Most of the reviews were by women, and most were positive. The guys were more ambivalent.
Not me.
This book is about an author who is recovering from cancer treatment and gets back into the world by working 8 1/2 hours a week in a bookstore. The cover claims it contains drama, romance, mystery, etc...and this is quite true if you regard taking inventory as drama or decorating a store for Valentine's Day as romance. Mystery comes in when you start to wonder how this particular book got published. It's incredibly dull. It should have been titled "Shelf Lifeless".
In particular, there is a three-page stretch where the author lists about one hundred and forty (140!!!) magazine and newspaper titles that her store carries. This is unforgivable.
No sale.
Most of the reviews were by women, and most were positive. The guys were more ambivalent.
Not me.
This book is about an author who is recovering from cancer treatment and gets back into the world by working 8 1/2 hours a week in a bookstore. The cover claims it contains drama, romance, mystery, etc...and this is quite true if you regard taking inventory as drama or decorating a store for Valentine's Day as romance. Mystery comes in when you start to wonder how this particular book got published. It's incredibly dull. It should have been titled "Shelf Lifeless".
In particular, there is a three-page stretch where the author lists about one hundred and forty (140!!!) magazine and newspaper titles that her store carries. This is unforgivable.
No sale.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 75 reviews