The Power of a Gift Card

So I got a Barnes and Noble gift card for my birthday, which was so nice! I must say that it is one of my favorite type of gifts to get. It gives so much freedom to a person like me who loves to read. In my last post I mentioned that I read Life Expectancy and how great it was. Well, i had nothing to read after that. So, after I got home from work tonight and Chris and I made dinner, we went to the book store so I could see about buying up some books. I am happy to report I have found bargains galore, got a new "members" card for B&N, and managed to talk an employee into looking up a book I had read about (but couldn't remember the title) in the back via the internet. I am either really cute (maybe) or simply really a pest (most likely).

The funniest part about the employee is I recognized him as the guy I offended a while back when the store first opened. Mom, Chris, and I happened to be there wasting time before a movie. The guy was leaving the store, but he and the manager were messing with the doors because they were locked and shouldn't be. The guy was also wearing a U-M coat. I started joking with Mom about only people with U-M coats would want to lock people out of a book store because knowledge was too dangerous. Yeah....I guess it didn't go well with him and he really seemed to take offense. Whatever. I forgot about it. Weeks later it was Mom and me back at the store for James Patterson to sign a book. In line, waiting, we happened to strike up a conversation with The Guy. I didn't realize he was The Guy until later. I don't think he realized I was That One Mean Girl (I assume that was his opinion). The Guy and I talked at length about the Jasper Fforde series featuring a detective named Thursday Next and how great it was. Nice enough fellow, not at all the Up Tight Guy from six weeks ago. It dawned on me later who he was and Mom and I had a good chuckle.

Today he was The Guy who helped me think of this book. When I told him I couldn't remember the title for the life of me, but the basic story line was XYZ and if I had the internet I could look it up at dearreader.com, then life would be great. I couldn't because I was in the middle of Barnes and Noble and they don't have computers in the store that let you do that. Chris and I must have looked pathetic or maybe The Guy just wanted to feel heroic, but he told me to wait and he would go into the back and check the internet. He comes back with FOUR PAGES printed off this website so I could peruse and figure out which book it was.

Sadly, they did not have a copy of the book. So he let me know I could order it or just wait for the paperback version in May. I will wait. Trying to make sure I didn't walk away with three books, instead of a possible four, he asks what I like to read. He asks: "Do you like British fiction?" Sure! What book does he tell me to read? One of the books by Jasper Fforde! I realize that was what we talked about last time I was in and he puts two and two together as to why I seem familiar. Thankfully he does not mention the teasing and bad temper he was in the first time I ran into him...

The point of all this? I guess that I love books. A bookstore gift card is one of the world's most perfect gifts. Oh yeah....here are the books that I bought

Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie (I have a student who loves to read the classics)
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult

I can't wait to get reading!