In late July, Tavistock Books gained a new member of the team, Ms. Kate Mitas. We give you the inside scoop on this bibliophile and what made her travel across the country to Alameda, California!
What drew you to rare books in the very beginning? Was it before your first ever bookstore job?
I didn’t really come into contact with rare books much before my first bookstore job. I come from a family of readers, so there were always books in the house growing up, but no one was a collector. When I did see rare books, it was usually in museums, and they seemed interesting but remote – I think in general I need a certain amount of tactile experience in order to really appreciate a book, rare or not. Also, I had an early, scarring experience with perceived rarity: when I was about seven, I had $3 to spend at a street fair, and I blew it all on some Grosset and Dunlap children’s reprint that came out in the 1950s, just because it looked “old.” And then it turned out to be devastatingly dull, and I swore I’d never judge a book by its cover again. It took a long time, and actually handling some remarkable books, for that promise to become the epic fail it is now.
Time to pry! Where are you from? What’s your background in the book business?
I grew up outside of Dayton, Ohio, and have lived and worked in various places around the country since then. About eight years ago I landed a job at Cellar Stories Bookstore, in Providence, R.I., whose rare book room finally made me reconsider my staunch anti-collecting position. I started out doing the shelving and shipping, and otherwise being a general minion, then became the manager there a year later (a.k.a., Chief Minion). The store has been around for 34 years and is pretty beloved by the community, so it was a great opportunity to learn the basics of the trade – cataloging, buying, sourcing books for customers, and all the rest of it – from an established dealer, many of whose long-standing customers I now consider friends.
About a year and a half ago I moved back to Dayton and put my skills to use assisting at Blue Jacket Books, in Xenia, O.H., which went into new ownership four years ago and has already come into a couple of nice collections. For what it’s worth, during my time there I also learned the knack of herding the owners’ three goats (should anyone wish to know: stuff your pockets with alfalfa and stride purposefully in whatever direction you want them to go, like a general marching into battle at the head of an army that may or may not have gone into full retreat behind her – occasionally it even works!). All in all, it’s been a privilege to work at two shops so dedicated to continuing the trade.
Ms. Mitas herself! Hard at work at her new desk in Tavistock Books.
What would you say is the coolest or most interesting bookstore/library that you have ever been inside of? (I know, I know… left field!)
Hmm . . . that’s a tough one, since I tend to love just about every bookstore or library I’ve been in for one reason or another. I’m going to opt for a small treasure: the Adams family library in Quincy, MA. It was built out of stone by Charles Francis Adams, John Quincy’s son, in order to be fireproof, which sounds formidable, but, covered with ivy and surrounded by a garden in full summer bloom, is remarkably unprepossessing. And inside it’s got to be the most reader-friendly presidential library (and was used for that reason by succeeding generations of Adamses, including Henry): it’s a single large room filled with couches and writing tables, and has books lining the walls two stories high – no second floor, just a balcony running alongside the upper tier for browsing ease, as well as maximum natural light. Most of John Adams’s books are in the special collections of the Boston Public Library, but the rest of the family weren’t exactly slouches, and, really, it just seems like a delightful place to hunker down with a good book. I kind of want to live there, in fact. Minus the huge portrait paintings.
What are you most looking forward to with the position at Tavistock Books?
I have an enormous amount to learn about the antiquarian side of the trade, so . . . pretty much everything! I’m incredibly lucky to have Vic as a teacher, and I’ll get to work with amazing material. What more could I ask for?
Just to be even… what are you least looking forward to with the position? 🙂
Having to pretend I don’t hate the San Francisco Giants. (You said Vic wasn’t going to read this, right?)
What is your favorite book and why? Do you have a favorite literary genre?
I’m terrible at culling my favorites down to one, so I’ll call your favorite book and raise you two of my favorite authors, instead: Italo Svevo and Flannery O’Connor. I love mordant, absurdist humor, and both authors utilize it in very different ways, with very different ends in mind. I do tend to lean more towards modern literature and poetry, but am interested in a lot of genres and periods. Ask me again in a few months, and I”ll probably have different answers for you.
Where do you eventually hope to take the position? What will you do with the knowledge of the rare book trade?
Eventually, I’d like to open a shop of my own, but at this point, that’s very much an “eventually.” In the meantime, I’m going to focus on building up my expertise, do as much as I can to help keep the shop running smoothly, and simply enjoy the education I’ll be getting along the way. I think I’m in for some interesting and fun times, whatever they may bring!
