Last week I popped by the store for an hour on my day off to get a few things done. I walked in and there was a large family happily browsing. The first thing I noticed was that the four kids, ranging in age from 3 to almost 14, were not only amazingly well-behaved, they loved books. Each child was happily ensconced in the right section and the mom was browsing the adult section.
The mom asked if I owned the store and I said yes and she smiled broadly and then said excitedly, “We came from Montreal just to come to your store.” Who doesn’t love to hear that a family drove over two hours just to shop at my store? They made a day of it and met another family from Albany at the bookstore after lunch. As if Montreal weren’t far enough away, it turns out they’re from Singapore and looked us up there! I shared with her that I had been to Singapore so we chatted about the city and her life.
Angie Ng is the mother of this happy brood. I remarked at how much her kids loved books. Turns out Angie ran an online children’s bookstore in Singapore before relocating to Montreal. She marveled at our children’s selection, especially our picture books. She wanted books by Vermont authors, so I was more than happy to show her the books Elizabeth had written as well as others in the talented pool of Vermont authors and illustrators.
In the exchange with this charming family I was reminded of the universality of books. No matter where you go books can bring people together. All the way from Singapore, this family had intended to come to my store in Vermont. I happily filled their tote bag with books and smiled all day.