Lost Sale

By: William Ross

I’m standing inside a used bookstore in a small town. The narrow rooms in the converted house are jam packed with older books, many of which lie in stacks on the ground. Narrow footpaths wind through the piles of books like hiking trails. The requisite cat is absent, probably having fled the health hazards posed by all this dust. I feel like a scout checking out potential sites for an episode of the TV show “Hoarders.”

I find a book I’d like to buy and check inside the cover for the price. There isn’t one. Just as I’m about to track down the store owner I see a drawing on the wall. In it a person is holding a book and a call out bubble extends from his mouth. Inside is the phrase “Can you tell me the price of this book?” A second person stands at his side with an angry expression on his face. Squiggly lines indicating frustration rise from his head and his fists are clenched. The call out bubble extending from this guy’s mouth reads “How many times do I have to tell you!! The prices are listed on a sheet next to the front door!!”

I put the book back on the shelf and head for the door. Insinuating that your customers are a total pain in the ass probably isn’t the best way to do business.

 

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2 thoughts on “Lost Sale”

  1. Wait a minute, if there is no price on the book, it means you can take it for free? Right? That is right isn’t it?

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