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Following a class act is never easy, so taking on Bookologist feels somewhat daunting but I intend to meet this challenge by striving to retain the high quality and standards that Craig and the Steiners already set for this site while implementing my own ideas.
Let me introduce myself. My name is Edith Reynolds and I have had the pleasure of writing for AuctionBytes in the past. My early career was spent in education at the college level designing media programs and writing for a metropolitan newspaper and, later, editing & writing for a more countrified journal aimed at the New York "weekend in Connecticut" crowd. For the past 11 years, however, I've worked alongside my husband Dan Gaeta at The John Bale Book Company in Waterbury, CT and I currently head an e-fulfillment warehouse for online booksellers.
When Dan and I began our shop, it was in response to a need I saw as a member of the board of Literacy Volunteers-a place that supplied inexpensive books to people who needed them. It was clear early on that this was a business that had many facets and peopled with numerous knowledgeable sellers. It was humbling to say the least and frightening. How could we compete in business with people who were so entrenched in the field?
The answer was that most of those people shared what they knew with us, taught us, and commiserated with us over our blunders in a good-humored fashion. There were some sellers, of course, who husbanded their knowledge as if they were corporate secrets - something akin to MacDonald's secret sauce recipe. But the majority of booksellers were a good-hearted lot, well poised to participate in the burgeoning Internet marketplace.
It didn't take long for me to increase my love for books with a pride in our industry for having so many wonderful colleagues of generous spirit. Taking on Bookologist allows me to share my own strengths of finding those kind people and introducing them to you.
Aside from the practical matters Bookologist already provides, I'd like to get more of you involved with the site. To this end I will be instituting a new column: The Good Bookseller. Each issue I will interview a different person. If you know a merchant we might feature, please email me with the name and contact information. I love hearing from booksellers and collectors and welcome any communications you want to send. Let me know what products you've found; tell me about the pitfalls you've weathered. Anything that facilitates better bookselling is something Bookologist wants to share with its readers.
I am very grateful to the Steiners for this opportunity and I fervently hope I can live up to their expectations, for we share a heartfelt desire to help create a venue for booksellers that is useful and worthy of you all.
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