RE-BOOKS

Interview with Robert Sezak of RE-BOOKS

When did you get started in bookselling?

I started RE-BOOKS in November 1993. I rented a small space under the local downtown CVS on the first of November and opened the doors in time for Black Friday.

What drew you to bookselling?

I have always enjoyed books - their covers and their content. Reading is am important part of my life.

Did you have any mentors in becoming a bookseller?

Colby Seams, William Lippincott, and Eric Fury, all Bangor, Maine booksellers and shopkeepers. Colby moved his shop to Madison, Maine and has since retired while William has moved his shop to Hamden, Maine as an online store open to customers by appointment. Eric is still going strong in his store Pro-Libris on 3rd St. in Bangor, Maine.

What are your specialties as a dealer?

I deal in rare, out-of-print, and used books where the genres and prices vary to suit anyones' wants and needs. I began specializing in Modern Firsts and now have strengths in Science Fiction and fantasy, Mystery, Poetry, History, Philosophy, and Chess

What's the most amazing book you've ever sold?

The most amazing books I have sold are those that bring a sense of wonder to a child's face, a spark of joy in the eye of the beholder.

What is your favorite part of being a bookseller?

All the books I get to meet and all the people I get to introduce them to.

Do you have an open storefront or have you in the past?

I have had an open bookstore November of 1993. I have been selling books on line since 1999 using a variety of platforms some of which have gone out of business or been absorbed by other enterprises. Biblio.com is the best online community for booksellers I have sold on and will continue to sell on. Thank you.

If so, do/did you have any bookstore pets?

No

What is the funniest / strangest / scariest thing that ever happened in your store?

The scariest thing that happened was when a water pipe burst in the walls above my store damaging the ceiling, walls, bookcases, and books.

What is your favorite bookshop (other than your own)?

Open Door Books in Bath, Maine.

What do you personally like to read? Collect?

I enjoy reading mysteries. I have been collecting chess books as of late and the McKay-Tartan book series. I am missing Tartan #45. I do not know the author or the title. In all my searching the scent goes cold. It is as if Tartan #45 doesn't not exist.

What's your favorite book you personally own? Would you sell it, if the price were right?

I don't have a personal favorite to speak of, but a number of books that I use for reference such as "March's Thesaurus and Dictionary of the English Language' and the1928 printing of the "Webster-Merriam international Dictionary 2nd Ed"

What one book would you buy if price were no object?

The 14 volume 16th Century Babylonian Talmud, The Gutenberg Bible, a signed 1st edition of Goethe's Faust - O there are so many

If you were stranded on a desert island and could bring three books, what would they be?

The english version of the Steinsaltz Talmud, Encyclopedia Britannica's 11th edition, and the unabridged Oxford Dictionary.