Entries from The Diary of a Jewish Bookseller Sep 2019

A clear sign the spring season has arrived, is when customers start asking me to set aside books until their wives are in the bungalows, when they can then sneak them in to their homes

An Elderly Hasidic couple visiting the store: While he spent hours browsing, his wife found a corner and spent the time knitting him a sweater

A Fiercely Anti-Zionist Hasidic visitor remarked to me that my name is composed of two evil entities, the state Israel and the Mizrahi movement, but you are OK he informed me

Conversing with a local Syrian Jew in the store on what Syrian Jewish Life was like,  felt like going back in time: His grandfather was born in 1830! Both him and his father having been born to their parents late in their life

A loyal customer noted to me about a book I had listed: Gerem Hamaalot—"the descendants of the author, R Meshulam Igra ended up in Australia and then Sacramento...and I dated one of them one summer in high school 😬Was somewhat tempted to buy it but I think I’m over her—i mean over it"

Just got off the phone with a young boy, approx. 10 years old who called the store and started rattling off all the books in his collection, wanting to know about them and their worth and fascinated that he found someone who he can converse about his books with

After acquiring a library from the children of a deceased collector and unpacking the boxes in the store, I received an unpleasant visit from someone who claimed to be a relative of the deceased owner, demanding the books back. A call to the family members I dealt with had them tell me, "we don't want to deal with him, figure it out on your own". After him saying "I've got friends" and "I am a man of the street", I voted to give up the books in favor of my personal safety.

A Postal worker making a delivery conveyed his amazement at the sight of all the books, and didn't leave until he purchased a Jewish Bible and some other essentials

On the phone with a customer who recently discovered his Jewishness, I was asked if there was a "Baal Teshuvah" discount. Clearly, the man still has a way to go to integrate into Haredi Society

A visiting customer took the trouble to inform me that I am wasting my life, as I could have easily become the next Rav Ovadia Yosef

I suspect I won't be hearing from a particular decade-long regular customer: Now awaiting sentencing after torching an old Rabbis home and threatening to kill him

An Israeli Judaica dealer picked up a 20th century Vizhnitz book in the shop and remarked how he loved the 16th century Venice Printing. Even after letting him know that Vizhnitz was not Venice, he insisted that in Hebrew it is one and the same

A Tale of Two Worlds in 1: Unpacking a Chabad Chassid's library I acquired, I discovered the former owner had a strange interest in the Satmar Rebbe's writings, with well-used copies of R. Menachem Mendel Schneersohn's writings adjacent to those of R. Yoel Teitelbaum

An order came through for a very specific 19th century Ketubah from a Lawyer in Panama, working on behalf of an interior designer in Europe who was designing a Russian Oligarch's new home who insisted on having one hanging in his new home along with a translation of the text

While placing an order on the phone, the customer requested I confirm that the edition of the Ohr Hachaim on the Torah she was ordering was the version that protected your home and brought blessing to your life

I received the following after a book was received by the customer: "Didn't trouble you with expressing my thanks for the Hebrew Language book over the Sabbath & Sunday, as the Lords day respectively, is his and not my property to bear tidings of any sort.Very grateful nonetheless, since my lessons in Hebrew earlier in life were cut short by a ex-wife who saw little use in what she considered a dead tongue. Fool that she remains."

A local real-estate broker asked for some basic books on Judaism, as he was dating a Jewish Girl and he was a devout Catholic. He left the store with a handful of Aryeh Kaplan books and a lengthy explanation from me of the dangers of marrying a JAP.

A young schoolboy expressed interest in Kabbalah and purchased a work by Gerschom Scholem, only to return it after his father reprimanded him for reading inappropriate material

After purchasing a Mezuzah, the customer informed me that she wasn't Jewish but believed that the Mezuzah would protect her from the evil spirits that were plaguing her

Acquiring from the library of a Jews for Jesus center that folded, I was surprised to find there a traditional Rabbinic library that would not embarrass any world-class Yeshiva.

A customer called to arrange the sale of his library following his imminent death, informing me that he had terminal cancer and he was wanted to ensure that his books find a good home after his passing

A non-Jewish Truck-driver unloading a Snapple delivery across the street, noticing me bringing in boxes of books, requested and bought some Kabbalistic works, informing me that the subject was a long-time interest of his

Making a house-call one night to pick up some books, I was rather befuddled after encountering the woman of the home doing her house chores wearing an attractive pair of Tefillin

A call comes through from a parent requesting that I keep an eye out for his son, a local 12 year old regular who is enroute to the store. The father suspected he was stealing cash to fuel his rare book collecting addiction and wanted me to see how much cash he pulls out of his wallet